Environmental problems can be divided into global issues, and local issues mainly centring on urban areas. The true choice for the environment would be a power plant that provides an answer to both of these aspects.
The reduction of the greenhouse gas, CO2, is the most important issue when considering the environment from a global perspective. The combustion of an engine that uses Hydrocarbons as fuel is a process in which fuel is converted to CO2. A viable solution to reducing the amount of CO2 emissions is by improving the efficiency of vehicles and reducing the amount of fuel they consume.
In order to preserve the local environment of urban areas, it is important to reduce the level of HC and NOx released by cars. Many countries are planning to impose stricter vehicle emission standards, with which manufacturers must comply quite rapidly.
1. Reducing CO2 Emissions
(1) The Advantages of GDI Technology in Reducing CO2 Emissions
Lowering CO2 emissions demands a global outlook. Accordingly, we must focus on reducing emissions, starting from the production stage, through to the end of a vehicle's life cycle.
Some technologies, while enabling major CO2 emission reductions during combustion, involve higher-than-usual output during production or recycling, resulting in an increase in total emissions over the life of the vehicle. Because the GDI engine doesn't necessitate major alterations to existing production processes, production stage CO2 emissions are fundamentally the same as for conventional petrol engines. Moreover, with the GDI engine, CO2 emissions at the recycling stage are on a par with those of conventional petrol engines. Any reduction in on-road fuel requirements will thus translate directly into a reduction in total CO2 output.
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Reducing CO2 emissions on a global level depends on lowering the emissions of every vehicle on the road, and also increasing the number of vehicles that emit less CO2. This means that technology must be both effective and applicable to a wide range of vehicles.
Let's assume the life span of an average vehicle is 10 years. The owner of a Galant-class car will spend approximately \800,000 on fuel during this time. To take an extreme example, what would happen if a vehicle was developed that didn't require any fuel at all? The owner would not benefit, for example, if the price of the vehicle was \800,000 higher than a standard model. Nor would such a vehicle be likely to gain widespread popularity. GDI-equipped cars are priced comparably to cars mounted with conventional petrol engines, yet offer, on average, a 25% reduction in fuel consumption over the life of the car. The benefits to the owner are irrefutable and significant, and the potential for broad application high.
Because more CO2 emissions are effectively reduced per vehicle, and wider application makes the CO2 reduction potential exceptionally high, GDI is the most viable direct-injection petrol engine technology available today.
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