Are gas powered engines more toxic to the environment over wood powered(steam) engines?

Answer 1

On most levels, wood-powered steam would be worse.

Both activities release carbon dioxide and wood burning would release more because steam engines have to go to 3-stage expansion pistons to approach the thermodynamic efficiency of an auto engine. That was done in large steamships circa 1900, but never on a small scale like a Stanley Steamer car of 90 years ago.

Wood smoke has a lot of toxics in it that gasoline doesn't including particulates and PAHs. You can (and environmentally should) use a catalytic on either gas or wood smoke, but gasoline emissions are easier to tune and abate.

Wood has the advantage of being renewable. But we, as a species, can't burn wood at the rate we do petroleum. Of course, we can't burn petroleum at the rate we do indefinitely either.

Steam engines, unless engineered very, very carefully can make some really big bangs. Paddlewheelers on the Mississippi used to blow up all the time when operated carelessly.

We fight wars over oil but not over wood. But I've whacked myself with an axe and my mother cut her leg with a chainsaw and I know peole who lost legs in the logyard. Currently, among Americans, only volunteer soliders are being killed fighting over oil/sand/terrorism/whatever.

Answer 2

It's a question of give and take.

Gasoline engines produce fewer particulates (smoke and dust) than steam engines. If we all burned wood, these particulates would cause health problems, and everything in the cities would be stained black with soot.

However, wood is a renewable resource, if you plant trees fast enough. That means that it could conceivably be a fuel source which does not contribute greenhouse gases to the problem of global warming. Note that this has never actually ever been done. We always cut down the trees too fast.

Which is worse depends on which side effect you think is more important.

Answer 3

It depends on which way you look at. Natural gas is a fossil fuel and is putting carbon dioxide into the atmosphere (although not as much as an oil or coal fired system as these fuels have a higher carbon to hydrogen ratio). If the wood comes from a sustainable forest it is carbon neutral as equivalent to the carbon released will be taken up again by new growth in the forest.

Answer 4

A gasoline engine won't run on fryer oil, a diesel can be converted, From what I have heard is you need a separate tank for the oil, separate lines from the fryer oil to the engine and the oil tank needs to either have a heating element in it or be heated by the exhaust manifold... The procedure for using it is to start the vehicle on diesel & drive while heating the oil up, when the oil is in a liquid state you switch over to the oil. Then you need to switch back to diesel a few miles before you get to your destination to purge all the fry oil out of the lines so they don't clog up.... On the upside folks have said the exhaust smell of a engine running fry oil smells like burgers....

Answer 5

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Along with stone, mud and animal parts, wood was one of the first materials worked by early humans. Microwear analysis of the Mousterian stone tools used by the Neanderthals show that many were used to work wood. The development of civilization was closely tied to the development of increasingly greater degrees of skill in working these materials.

Answer 6

Woodworking is a more general term than woodcarving. Anything you build, make or carve from wood is called woodworking. Woodcarving is a form of woodworking by means of a cutting tool held in the hand, resulting in a wooden figure or figurine or in the ornamentation of a wooden object.
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Answer 7

surly wood powered, because gas usually made of Hydrocarbons but wood contains lots of materials.

Answer 8

considering the amounts of chemical to make your engine to run smoothly as compared to the amounts of chemicals to make wood tree grow faster...

both suck

Answer 9

you have to eat