Types

• Types of alternative fuels currently available or being developed include liquified petroleum gas, compressed natural gas, liquified natural gas, methanol, ethanol, biodiesel, electricity and hydrogen.
  
  

Fossil Fuels

• Liquified and compressed petroleum or natural gas fuels are an immediate alternative to foreign oil, but they are still fossil fuels that will eventually be depleted.
  
  

Ethanol

• Ethanol and methanol are expensive to produce, and ethanol requires large amounts of land to grow corn to make the fuel; the farming process depletes the soil and adds chemical fertilizers and pesticides to the environment.
  
  

Biodiesel

• Biodiesel derived from plant matter is a promising alternative fuel, but is currently more expensive to produce than gasoline. Large scale biodieslel production requires vast amounts of agricultural acreage and would not be environmentally or economically sustainable.
  
  

Electricity

• Electricity as an alternative to gasoline is already a reality, but disposing of used batteries presents environmental challenges, and vehicles that run on straight electricity have a limited travel range.
  
  

Hydrogen

• Hydrogen is expensive and difficult to generate, store and transport. Hydrogen has a tendency to pre-ignite under certain circumstances, posing obvious danger the fuel user.
  
  

Availability

• Lack of retail availability is a disadvantage of most alternative fuel types, as nationwide infrastructures have not yet been developed to supply the alternative fuels to the population.