Power plants of motor transport: development prospects

Abstract

The analysis of the promising direction of development of energy installations of land transport is conducted. To date, in view of the emerging problems of depletion of oil resources and environmental safety in transport, in some popular science publications and in the media, the idea of the upcoming transition of motor vehicles to electric traction is actively awakening. However, in the opinion of the overwhelming majority of authoritative specialists in the automotive industry, this idea is premature and does not have a serious scientific substantiation. Currently, there is a large investigated potential of replacing oil with alternative energy products, the resource base of which, in some cases, significantly exceeds the traditional raw material base of oil fuels. Wide opportunities to solve the problem associated with the predicted depletion of oil resources are enclosed in the use of natural gases (primarily methane) and vegetable (biological) raw materials for the production of motor fuel. The development of alternative energy is universally considered one of the promising ways to solve the problems of energy supply, both in the field of constantly growing energy consumption in general, and in the direction of the future development of the energy balance of the transport complex. Thus, it is possible to assert with confidence that the domestic automobile transport is guaranteed to be provided with motor fuel for many decades. In addition, the current opinion about the high energy and environmental efficiency of electric motor transport is, in its essence, not unambiguous and for a number of indicators the electric vehicle is significantly inferior to a vehicle with a traditional internal combustion engine. In this article, on the basis of a reasoned analysis involving the opinions of a large number of authoritative specialists in the global automotive industry, this statement is proved.