Over the last few months, Congress has been debating the conflict-ridden “Cap-and-Trade” bill, a.k.a The American Clean Energy and Security Act. The House passed the climate change bill back in June, and the Senate will take a crack at it next. The cap-and-trade policy tool is designed, in part, to “incentivize” innovation of efficient, environmentally friendly fuels, because who really wants to pay more for polluting (i.e. if a company exceeds it emissions allowance it can opt to buy credits from those that pollute less)? 

Diesel is the fuel of choice for most trucking companies, and according to GreenTruck.com, heavy-duty diesel engines have actually become more efficient and produced fewer emissions since 1970 (right around when the Clean Air Act was passed). So what other fuel “innovations” or options are available other than diesel? We’ll explore some here:

Biodiesel – Biodiesel is made from animal fat or natural vegetable oils such as corn and soybean and typically blended with petroleum diesel. The U.S. uses roughly 60 billion gallons of diesel a year, says one biofuels analyst, and about five percent of that total is of a biodiesel blend. One Detroit-based innovator, Clean Emission Fluids, is hoping to make biodiesel more available to trucking and delivery fleets with its portable biodiesel pumps.

Straight Vegetable Oil – SVO, or waste cooking oil, can be used with converted diesel engines. It’s also supposedly illegal (per the EPA), but commercial vehicles owners have experimented with its use a great deal over the years.

Electric – This year, the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach will use 100 trucks fueled by lithium battery electric power as part of its Clean Trucker Program. Honda, meanwhile, introduced a Peterbilt-built class 8 hybrid diesel electric truck into its fleet at its Alpharetta, Georgia parts center. Honda is testing the new hybrid over the next year to gauge fuel economy. And Walmart has even started to use hybrid trucks in its fleet.

Hydrogen Fuel – If NASA launches Space Shuttles into space with hydrogen, surely it can work for 18-wheelers? Dynamic Fuel Systems in Pickering, Ontario is one such company producing a “transportable hydrogen generator retrofit” for heavy-duty trucks.

Compressed Natural Gas – CNG is essentially natural gas under pressure. Richard Kolodziej, president of Natural Gas Vehicles for America, believes CNG-fueled engines may one day replace class 8 diesel engines. In fact, in 2010, Freightliner Trucks plans to deploy CNG-fueled engines in more than 90% of its truck applications in North America.

Have I left anything out? What other alternative fuels do you want to hear about or know of that you believe would be both economical and efficient?