Ammonia: The Future of Clean Energy or a Toxic Threat?

We use toxic chemicals in various aspects of our lives. Ammonia is a great cleaner and is used in fertilizers, but now it can power vehicles.

China is already leading the world in EV adoption, but some Chinese-based companies are also working on alternative fuels. Some automakers see a future with current internal combustion engines transforming to different fuels, including ammonia. This product is being studied as a potential combustible fuel. China-state-owned GAC is already developing engines that can run on ammonia, which would be the first time it’s used outside the shipping and trucking industries.

What engine can run on ammonia?

The engine recently produced by GAC appears to have enough cylinder pressure to prevent excess nitrogen from being a problem. This new engine that runs on ammonia is a 2.0-liter 4-cylinder model that produces 161 horsepower. This power output isn’t the story, though. The real story is the reduction of carbon emissions. This engine reduces carbon emissions by 90 percent compared to conventional fuels. Could we see more ICE models powered by ammonia in the future? Although the carbon emissions could be reduced by 90 percent with this new engine setup, there are drawbacks to using ammonia.

Using ammonia can be extremely problematic

Although we use harmful chemicals in our everyday lives, the impact ammonia can have could make things much worse. Ammonia is one of the most toxic chemicals in the world and is a solvent that can dissolve some metals when exposed to enough of this substance. In gas and liquid form, it can lead to death in animals and humans. Although gasoline is harmful in large quantities, you don’t have to worry about it burning your skin or the fumes killing you from short-term exposure. This would be one of the greatest concerns when using ammonia as a fuel for passenger vehicles.

Ammonia is the leading cause of fish kills, which makes it concerning in the hands of citizens not trained to handle it. The commercial transportation sector is already equipped to handle toxic chemicals, which is why it can be used as a diesel alternative. Another place we’ve seen ammonia used safely is in rocket engines. The X-15 rocket was fueled by ammonia and took William Knight to 4,520 mph at 102,100 feet of altitude. This industry handles even more dangerous chemicals than ammonia, but most people wouldn’t understand the importance of safely handling this material.

Cars would have to change to utilize this material

Fueling internal combustion engines with ammonia can be extremely difficult because of its slow-burning properties and lack of energy density. In fact, this material is only about one-third as energy-dense as diesel fuel. This slow-burning property returns an octane rating of 120 for ammonia compared to 87 and 92 octane fuel that we use in our cars. In fact, an octane rating of nearly 100 is reserved for racing fuel put into race cars at the track. This means using ammonia burns hotter and a higher flash point than diesel or gasoline.

There’s a serious nitrogen problem with using ammonia

Ammonia is a toxic chemical, but its harmful properties offset the benefits of using this material in our cars. Although burning ammonia produces zero CO2, zero hydrocarbons, and zero soot, it does produce a lot of nitrogen. The only way to avoid high nitrogen output when utilizing ammonia is to use an engine with a high compression ratio or boost. The nitrogen released into the atmosphere can lead to ammonia and ozone being created, which can cause acid rain. Enough acid rain can destroy the atmosphere and cause more breathing issues in animals and people than we currently face.

How could ammonia be useful in the auto industry?

Ammonia can be used to produce hydrogen, which can be an excellent alternative fuel. Hydrogen can become an excellent fuel for vehicles, but it requires special equipment, and so does an all-electric vehicle. Using ammonia to produce hydrogen would at least allow professionals to handle this harmful chemical and produce a safe chemical that could power future cars.

When a toxic chemical like ammonia is considered an alternative fuel option, all environmental impacts must be considered. It’s unlikely that we’ll ever see ammonia used as an alternative fuel to electricity or gasoline, but it could be ideal for producing hydrogen, which might be a great alternative fuel for the future. Will this be the future use of ammonia? Its possible, but there are still environmental concerns surrounding using ammonia at all.