Analyzing US Policies for Alternative Automotive Fuels

The US Department of Energy has undertaken an extensive analysis of the options for employing alternative automotive fuels in place of conventional motor gasoline. The analysis depends upon studies of environmental impacts, vehicles and infrastructure, and fuel supplies. The supply analysis is built around a small mathematical programming model that uses region-specific supply and demand curves for crude oil, natural gas, and hydrocarbon end products. The model has identified issues and structured data needs. As the national debate over alternative automotive fuels policy evolves, the model continues to be used by the Department of Energy to evaluate a wide variety of scenarios, and to document analyses.