In this paper we make use of detailed, transaction-level data on automobile purchases and monthly, ZIP-code level data on retail gasoline prices to investigate the effect of fuel prices on four aspects of automobile purchasing in the U.S.: market shares, new car prices, trade-in utilization, and new car inventories. We find statistically and economically significant effects in all four aspects,...

In this study, a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) stack has been successfully fabricated and tested by using direct natural gas. The main objective of this research was to achieve optimal long-term performance of the SOFC stack without carbon deposition by using low-cost natural gas as a fuel. The stack configuration was improved by a new interconnect design and made of cost-effective raw materials...

The main advantage of a fluidized bed is its capability in excellent gas-fuel mixing. However, due to the lacks of gas radial momentum, its lateral mixing of gas-solid is not adequate. Therefore, this research is focused on fluidized bed hydrodynamics enhancement using the modified gas distributor plate design. For getting an optimum fluidized bed hydrodynamics prediction, three different class...

In the gas station problem we want to find the cheapest path between two vertices of an n-vertex graph. Our car has a specific fuel capacity and at each vertex we can fill our car with gas, with the fuel cost depending on the vertex. Furthermore, we are allowed at most ∆ stops for refuelling. In this short paper we provide an algorithm solving the problem in O(∆n2 + n2 logn) steps improving an ...

Candidate fuel/coating combinations for an advanced, coated-fuel particle for a gascooled fast reactor (GFR) have been evaluated. These all-ceramic fuel forms consist of a fuel kernel made of UC or UN, surrounded with two shells (a buffer and a coating) made of TiC, SiC, ZrC, TiN, or ZrN. These carbides and nitrides are analyzed with finite element models to determine the stresses produced in t...

This study shows the design of a new hybrid power generation system, photovoltaic panel (PV)–coupled solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) and gas turbine (GT)–electrolyser. Three objectives (cost, pollutant emissions, and reliability), which are usually in conflict, are considered simultaneously. The design of a hybrid system, considering the three mentioned objectives, poses a very complex problem of o...

a value chain is a series of events that takes a raw material and with each step adds value to it. global interest in the application of natural gas (ng) in production and transportation has grown dramatically, representing a long-term, low-cost, domestic, and secure alternative to petroleum-based fuels. many technological solutions are currently considered on the market or in development, whic...

the hcci combustion process is initiated due to auto-ignition of fuel/air mixture which is dominated by chemical kinetics and therefore fuel composition has a significant effect on engine operation and a detailed reaction mechanism is essential to analysis hcci combustion. a single zone-model permits to have a detailed chemical kinetics modeling for practical fuels. in this study a single-zone ...

This paper addresses the impacts of environmental legislation and vehicle emissions on the future of alternative fuels sucl~ as methanol, compressed natural gas, propane, electricity, hydrogen, and reformulated gasoline in the transportation industry, and it discusses the advantages and disadvantages of each type of fuel in terms of fuel efficiency, fuel cost, environmental impacts, and vehicle...

For the successful commercialization of PEM fuel cells for portable power and transportation applications, there is a strong need to lower the amount of water-gas shift catalyst used within fuel processor for H2 production/purification. While most recent studies have improved the current understanding of water-gas shift catalysis, especially regarding structural-property relationships and catal...