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not all of us are on board with the
transition to electric vehicles
renewable energy options promise to help
with the pressure of the pump and
climate change but so far no one method
whether that solar hydro wind or
alternative fuel have managed to knock
oil from its pedestal yet
electric cars are off to a strong start
when it comes to getting renewable
energy out on the road but not
everybody's sold on it yet which is why
electric cars are facing a
familiar-looking contender synthetic
fuel companies like porsche and bmw are
investing a lot of money into it with
synthetic fuels it might be possible to
make your existing gasoline car carbon
neutral but will it actually work
and for the undecided community out
there stay tuned until the end because i
have a little bit of an announcement i'm
matt farrell welcome to undecided
[Music]
the battle for the future of our roads
isn't over which is why there's still a
lot of interest in synthetic fuels these
are also known as syn fuel or in some
circles e-fuels and are carbon neutral
fuel alternatives engineered for
combustion engines you might be asking
yourself isn't burning stuff bad for the
environment
well not completely fossil fuels take
sequestered carbon from the earth in the
form of hydrocarbons through crude oil
combust it and then release that co2
into the atmosphere ultimately
increasing the amount of co2 above
ground synthetic fuels on the other hand
take a different approach they take the
co2 already in the atmosphere and
combine that with hydrogen to make a
usable fuel this fuel is combusted like
fossil fuels but unlike fossil fuels
synthetic fuels simply return that co2
back into the atmosphere for a net zero
carbon footprint
how do these synthetic fuels borrow
atmospheric carbon well as it turns out
we're still discovering the best way to
do this
biofuels use the time-tested fruits of
photosynthesis to access that sweet
sweet carbon now those fuels are
produced from crops like soybeans
sugarcane algae corn and even some forms
of grass the appeal behind this
synthetic fuel isn't hard to see there's
literally tons of biomass on the earth
and not all of its food-grade material
this natural fuel is already partially
in circulation and you can find ones
that are ethanol-based which are
primarily produced from corn here in the
u.s
e-fuels on the other hand are more of
what people think of when you say
synthetic fuels
these fuels are the epitome of if you
don't have carbon laying around
store-bought's fine
these fuels bypass photosynthesis
altogether instead opting for lab-made
fuels via electrolysis
methanol the fissure trops process and
even the excretions of certain
microorganisms the fundamentals stay the
same you take co2 out of the atmosphere
combine it with hydrogen zap with your
favorite chemical magic and tada that
carbon and hydrogen turns into synthetic
ethanol and water otherwise known as
synthetic diesel both of these types of
synthetic fuels offer the same outcome a
carbon neutral energy source that
doesn't demand the same industry
overhaul that electric cars require but
if this tech is so great and still lets
us keep the status quo
minus the environmental killing
emissions then why haven't synthetic
fuels taken over yet and our synthetic
fuels are really a threat to the
electric car industry which is off to a
really strong lead to answer that we
have to see how synthetic fuels and evs
stack up in real life let's take a look
at how these two technologies compare on
the three biggest fronts efficiency
costs and environmental impact
all renewable energy sources come with a
limiting factor like the impact of
season changes and mass storage for
solar power synthetic fuels are no
different but for them their achilles
heel tends to be their efficiency when
it comes to energy we're mainly worried
about three things energy density or how
much energy is available energy transfer
how quickly the energy can get from
point a to point b
and energy efficiency of how much of
that initial energy remains from the
source to the end point if we translate
that we're essentially asking three
questions in regards of using synthetic
fuel or evs
how much energy can we pack into our
vehicle to avoid unnecessary and
inconvenient pit stops to recharge or
refuel how many steps does that energy
have to go through to get from the
engine to the wheels and how much of
that energy remains when it gets to the
wheels in other words how much is lost
during the conversion process
in terms of energy density synthetic
fuels have shown some awesome potential
figuratively and literally on the
bi-fuel side ethanol and biodiesel
average about 26 to 38 megajoules per
kilogram which isn't too far off from
current fossil fuels at 45 to 55
megajoules per kilogram electrofuels
seem to hold their own as well at around
32 megajoules per kilogram but
lithium-ion batteries on the other hand
fall just a little bit short in this
area at around 2.5 megajoules
ouch now keep in mind that this is only
one consideration of energy efficiency
so what does that mean for us when we
get behind the wheel in short synthetic
fuel is actually pretty great for energy
storage if you have a larger vehicle
that need to store a lot of energy at
once in a relatively condensed space
like planes and shipping freighters then
synthetic fuels are a really good match
we've already seen the maritime industry
take on synthetic fuels as companies
like the shipping giant maersk begin to
incorporate methanol-fueled vessels i
actually touched on this in a recent
video this is why biofuel is mainly
geared towards biodiesel not biogasoline
the next consideration is to remember
that we eventually want that energy to
get out of storage and into action this
is unfortunately where we start to see
synthetic fuels fall behind battery
powered electric vehicles have an
advantage here when it comes to energy
transfer because at the end of the day
the energy process is simpler
relatively at least
the ev energy transfer process has three
main steps the energy is generated at
the source transmitted to the battery
and then transmitted to the motor it's
done
oversimplified but that's basically it
synthetic fuels on the other hand have a
few more processing steps along the way
the energy has to go through
electrolysis and carbon capture undergo
the power to lipid process essentially
stabilizing the product for transport
and then must travel from the fuel tank
to the engine and then so that the fuel
has navigate more moving parts in the
engine for that energy to be useful the
result transferring energy via synthetic
fuel takes more steps and with each step
the efficiency drops
in particular biofuel has an energy
efficiency problem you need just over
7000 kilocalories worth of biomass to
create one liter of ethanol but that end
product only contains 5130 kilocalories
the process itself is energy negative
unfortunately photosynthesis is a
generally inefficient way to turn
sunlight into energy
at least for our uses
on the other hand battery-powered
vehicles boast an energy efficiency
rating of around 69
meaning that 69 of the energy survives
the process from storage to the wheels
synthetic fuels well you're looking at
an energy efficiency rating of a just 13
that means the best synthetic fuel takes
two times the energy to move a
combustion engine vehicle the same
distance as the worst ev
evs simply travel further on the same
amount of energy so let's talk about one
of the biggest hurdles when it comes to
synthetic fuels the cost
biofuel in particular has a turbulent
economic landscape oil prices as we've
seen lately can be a little unstable
when oil prices drop they drag the
profit margin of biofuels down with it
combine that with the rising cost of
corn and you're looking at a measly one
dollar profit per ton produced
the corn and soybean industries are
heavily subsidized by the government
some cynics even see the ethanol-based
fuel industry as a way to provide jobs
that otherwise may not exist
synthetic fuels are in a similar tight
spot today it's hard to find a supplier
who can produce enough large quantities
to make the difference in the market at
94 to 232 dollars per ton of co2
synthetic fuels are just plain expensive
to produce
in terms of upfront costs it can take
millions of dollars to start up a
synthetic fuel plant and production
itself offers razor thin profit margins
that make restaurants look like a
lucrative business venture
with the low profit and high up front
costs synthetic fuel producers can find
it hard to entice weary private
investors which makes it hard to raise
the capital they need to get going
because of this synthetic fuels work
best economically in areas with tighter
emission regulations and government
subsidies
so far we've only discussed the
production costs so what about the
actual cost to all of us the consumer
well unfortunately synthetic fuels don't
do much better you may shudder at the
thought of the current prices at the
pump but in comparison synthetic fuels
can cost an equivalent of ten dollars to
38 dollars per gallon which is about two
dollars and sixty four cents to ten
dollars per liter
ouch at those crazy prices who in the
world would still be gunning for
synthetic fuels well it's generally more
popular in social circles where those
costs are a drop in the bucket
performance in premium car companies
like porsche bmw and formula one are all
on the front lines incorporating carbon
neutral sources like synthetic fuels for
those buyers the price tag of synthetic
fuel may not be a deal breaker for the
everyday driver however that's quite the
sting to the wall
switching away from fossil fuels will
require changing our infrastructure so
how would things look different in a
world based on synthetic fuels versus a
world running on electric cars
surprisingly a world running on
synthetic fuels may not look that much
different than the one we have right now
that's because e-fuels can be
distributed with our existing
infrastructure like the 115 000 gas
stations in use today here in the us
on a more personal level we could
potentially use our old car models as
well no need to go out and buy a brand
new electric car it's obviously a huge
advantage for those who drive classic
and fidgets cars
making the switch to synthetic fuels
could be relatively easy logistically
and culturally even climate change
naysayers may be less resistant to
switch to synthetic fuels if they can
keep their old car and semblance of
their old lifestyle
unlike electric cars vehicles that run
on synthetic fuel can still be noisy
which depending on who you are that
could be a plus
some performance car makers like porsche
have already adopted some synthetic fuel
models to highlight the tech
but of course nostalgia doesn't make up
for some of the synthetic fuel's blatant
downsides
remember that 38 per gallon price tag
well synthetic fuels are still expensive
inefficient and for some just a last
gasp effort for oil companies to stay
relevant they also still face
distribution limits including the recent
supreme court decision to retain limits
on the sale of biofuels like e15
on the other hand electric cars and by
extension their charging stations are
already being integrated into our
infrastructure and they show no signs of
stopping just the opposite it's actually
accelerating
last but certainly not least we need to
see how synthetic fuels live up to their
carbon negative promise are synthetic
fuels a formidable alternative fossil
fuels
maybe
both synthetic fuels and evs should in
theory have zero lifetime co2 emissions
or at least near zero in reality though
this depends on how they're manufactured
right now electric vehicles require
those pesky lithium-ion batteries which
require the painstaking excavation of
precious minerals and a whole lot of
electricity neither of which are always
obtained from clean sources the result
those lithium batteries can contribute
around 25 percent of the electric car's
lifetime co2 emissions you also need to
consider where the electricity itself
comes from electricity from coal still
results in emissions even if the vehicle
itself is emission free but it is still
cleaner than running a car and gasoline
the source of that electricity is what
ultimately matters and whether the
production is green or not which is why
producing an ev car can produce around
20 tons of co2 before it's even driven
off the lot
however for evs that it's slowly
changing as our electricity production
gets cleaner
synthetic fuels run into similar
predicaments like considering the
emissions that come from shipping the
fuel and tankers or the refineries
required to make the fuel usable
biofuels have their own environmental
impacts to consider over 90 million
acres of farmland in the u.s is used for
corn and around 40 of that is used for
ethanol that supplements around 10
percent of the gas used by u.s consumers
today in the last decade those croplands
expanded by 1 million acres per year for
corn primarily edging out natural
habitats in the process
corn is also hard on the soil pulling
many nutrients from it this means
farmland has to have nutrients
supplemented or crops rotated to keep
the land productive
using biomass for fuel also comes with
other environmental concerns including
insecticides loss of biodiversity
potential food insecurity and excessive
water usage to produce one gallon of
ethanol from corn grain can take about
two to nine gallons of water depending
on the method used to convert the grain
keep in mind that the average biofuel
plant is looking to produce millions of
gallons of fuel each year
biofuels are ultimately a zero-sum game
the land crops and water used for
biofuels can't be used for food some
producers have tried to mitigate this by
switching the biomass source for example
sugarcane biofuel is actually an energy
positive process but it can also lead to
deforestation in the amazon as it's
still cheaper to import it from there
than to grow domestically
other sources like algae offer promising
results but they're still
energy-intensive and expensive which
negates their current environmental
benefits
could synthetic fuels be produced in
environmentally safe way absolutely
would this be the cheapest option at
this point it doesn't seem like it this
is why i spend so much time in my videos
discussing costs manufacturers and all
of us are more likely to flock to the
low cost options especially in an
economically strained industry
ultimately if there's a higher cost the
manufacturer will pass it on to us the
consumers if you can get one fuel
cheaper than another which would you
choose
steno fuels are a promising front in
many ways but they're not going to
dethrone electric vehicles anytime soon
if ever
synthetic fuels will not be the magic
bullet that some environmentalists
wanted or what the industry craves
synthetic fuels could be helpful to
transition naysayers who are still
attached to their combustion engines
including oil companies and they could
ease the transition away from fossil
fuels for large form transportation like
ships and planes where batteries just
aren't an option yet
for now and for the foreseeable future
evs are still the strongest contenders
for everyday passenger vehicles still we
need to be aware of all the behind the
scenes emissions and environmental
impact that these technologies pose
including the high potential for
greenwashing in the wrong hands
at the end of the day this all comes
down to energy and how we harness it and
use it if you want to get better
understanding of the science behind that
so you can make more informed decisions
for yourself
i'd strongly recommend checking out
brilliant brilliant has helped me to
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make sure i have my head wrapped around
the fundamentals of the topics like
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conservation of energy and all the
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hands-on interactive courses and topics
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refreshing your knowledge on core
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all of the concepts are taught through
fun interactive challenges to help you
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to brilliant and to all of you for
supporting the channel
do you think synthetic fuels will catch
on jump in the comments and let me know
or if you have knowledge on this or work
in the industry please share your
experience so we can all learn together
this video isn't meant to be the
definitive answer on synthetic fuels but
a starting point to jump in and learn
more i know i still am
now for that undecided community
announcement i'm opening up a portion of
my discord server for anyone that wants
to join to talk to other members of the
community
and up until now it's been close to
patrons but i'm opening it up to a few
select channels on the discord server
like smart homes sustainable tech tesla
and evs and a couple of others i'd love
to build out a fun and safe place for
all of us to share and keep learning
together the link is in the description
and i hope to see you there
and thanks as always to all my patrons
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i'll see you in the next one