All views shared in the Opinions section of the Chatterbox belong to their respective authors, and may not represent the views of the publication as a whole.

For decades many have been debating over the issue of tailpipe emissions, however, there is a recent development which has introduced itself into this argument. 

Electric-powered vehicles are, no doubt, better for the environment than gasoline-powered vehicles, however, electric vehicles still pose environmental concerns. They are not only inconvenient, but they aren’t as beneficial to the environment as most people think. 

Contrary to popular belief that electric cars are in a new age of technology, the first electric vehicles were first invented in 1828. The cars were not very practical, however, so inventors got to work producing a practical electric car which came out in 1899. Their greatest benefits were how quiet they were compared to the gasoline vehicles and how they did not emit anything from their tailpipe. 

Electric vehicles began taking off in the early 1900s. The very first hybrid car was invented in 1901 and electric vehicles made up a third of the cars on the road. However, in 1935, cheap oil was found in Texas, which made it cheaper to use a gasoline vehicle than an electric vehicle, nearly eradicating all electric cars from the roads. 

According to the EPA, one gallon of gasoline releases 4.6 metric tons of carbon dioxide from an average passenger car into the atmosphere. Diesel fuel releases 1,023 metric tons of carbon dioxide per gallon burned, however, there are a lot more diesel-fueled vehicles on the road when you consider the transportation industry. Having too much carbon dioxide in our atmosphere will heat up the planet. In 2021, carbon dioxide was responsible for two-thirds of the total heating influence of all human produced greenhouse gasses. 

Electric vehicles are far from perfect when it comes to producing emissions. Electric cars themselves do not produce any emissions, however, manufacturing the vehicles produces a large amount of carbon dioxide. On top of that, charging electric vehicles also produces emissions. 

The 80 kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery which is found in Tesla’s electric cars produces between 2 and 16 metric tons of carbon dioxide, mostly from mining the resources needed which requires fossil fuels. This is where most of the emissions come from. 

China has signed pledges promising to stop deforestation and reverse it. However, they have yet to sign an agreement to lower their methane emissions. In 2013, China declared sustainable energy development as a priority. 

There is an alternative to electric vehicles when it comes to reducing emissions. A Chinese company, Guangzhou Automobile Group, has developed an engine powered solely on ammonia. This engine is mostly used in the transportation industry. This engine reduces emissions by 90% when compared to other combustion engines. 

This type of engine was initially paired with gasoline to reduce emissions. The only downfall to the engine is that ammonia can be toxic to humans and animals alike. In fact, ammonia exposure is the leading cause of death for fish. 

According to the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, too much ammonia in the atmosphere can have dire consequences such as acid rain. Companies are working on the problem of unburned ammonia coming out of the tailpipe.

Since ammonia is more energy efficient to transport than hydrogen, it is a more ideal fuel source. It is easier and safer to handle than hydrogen. It is easier to handle and is liquid at ambient temperatures. 

Sun Borne Systems has created a reactor powered by ammonia, which has a chemical formula of NH3. The reactor takes the ammonia, compresses it or pressurizes it, converts some of it into hydrogen and nitrogen and burns both of the elements. The remaining ammonia is then cycled back to be broken down into nitrogen and hydrogen. This reactor does not produce any emissions. 

In order for ammonia engines to be practical, we would need to set up an infrastructure to support the fuel. There would also need to be a way to refuel your vehicle without being exposed to the fuel. It would be important to reduce emissions to zero, to conserve the environment. All of these processes take a long time. There will likely not be ammonia engines commonly seen on the road anytime soon. 

Venus was likely an inhabitable planet with a climate very similar to Earth, and less than a billion years ago a greenhouse effect caused volcanic activity pumping carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. A similar event could possibly happen on Earth, leaving the entire planet uninhabitable, with a temperature hot enough to melt lead. It is important to reduce emissions to ensure the survival of our planet.