The advantages and disadvantages of hybrid cars Car is a very important transportation nowadays.

According to an analysis conducted by The Organization of Motor Vehicles Manufacturers (OICA), the total number of cars produced in 2010 was around 58 million. Large number of cars was produced due to the demands from people around the globe. However, there are some problems arise from this situation. Exhaust emission from these cars especially those that consumed fuel is of concern as it can cause problems to the environment. Due to the increasing awareness on the environment, some of the major automobiles manufacturers are starting to develop an environmental friendly car as a solution which includes the production of electric and hybrid cars (Anderson and Anderson, 2010). Hybrid car can be defined as a car which can run on two or more fuel sources. Hybrid electric car is a hybrid car that combines conventional propulsion system with a rechargeable energy storage system. In a simple word, a hybrid car consists of combustion engine, a battery and an electric engine (Stellet et al., 2011).

Hybrid car holds certain advantages when compared to the conventional car. Hybrid car is expected to effectively conserve fuel consumption due to the two engines its possessed. Apart from traditional engine, it also has an electrical motor and batteries that run together to cut the fuel consumption. Based on a fuel economy measurement study by Electric Power Research Institute, California, it was found that hybrid cars show higher fuel efficiency when compared to the conventional cars. From the study, hybrid cars gave 45% higher fuel efficiency than the conventional cars (EPRI, 2001). With hybrid technology, a car owner will be able to cut his fuel usage by more than half. With the low fuel consumption, a hybrid car can go much further with a small amount of fuel and it has been proven through several studies. In a study to compare the

fuel usage for both types of cars, it was found that fuel consumption was 34.0 miles per UK gallon (8.20 liters/100 km) for standard car and 51.7 miles per UK gallon (5.46 liters/100 km) for the hybrid under a certain aspect of study (Westbrook, 2001). This would lead to the main advantages of using a hybrid car which involves the price of fuel. Virtually, hybrid car owners do not feel the increasing cost in fuel prices. This is due to the low consumption of fuel when using hybrid car compared to the conventional car. The price of fuel has rise steadily worldwide and the probability for going down is unlikely. Furthermore, uncertainty regarding the supply of fuel is of concern as the resources for crude oil are diminished one by one (Stellet et al., 2011). Unless new sources of oil are found, the world would possibly face a problem in replacing one of their important energy sources. Driving a hybrid car definitely reduced the cost of in term of fuel usage which will benefit the owner in a long term basis. Using hybrid car certainly helps in preserving the environment. Hybrid car produced low level of toxic fume when compared to conventional car. Conventional car released high amount of pollutants such as green house gases from their exhaust due to the fuel combustion. For hybrid car which minimized the use of combustion engine, the exhaust emission was reduced significantly. In a study, it was found that the amount of carbon dioxide gases produced by conventional and hybrid car under the same test condition were 300 g/mL and 60 g/mL, respectively (EPRI, 2001).

Even though a hybrid car offers certain advantages compared to a standard car, it also has some disadvantages. The main disadvantage of a hybrid car is the retail price is quite expensive. Not everyone can afford to buy a hybrid car. The price of hybrid cars is more expensive as the car has more components than a standard car, besides the advanced technology that they contain. For example, Ford Fusion Sedan, a standard car, was sold at $ 19, 850 while its hybrid version,

was sold at $ 28, 600. Even though the price of hybrid car is expensive, it is actually cheaper when compared to conventional car in the long term. In term of car design, hybrid cars are relatively heavy because of the heavy batteries installed inside the car. Hybrid car can never really go fast because of the heavy battery. Thus, hybrid car manufacturers integrates smaller internal combustion engine which is constructed from light material to reduce the car weight. Furthermore, the design of hybrid car is usually more aerodynamic in order to maximize efficiency. Another issue regarding hybrid cars is that it is very risky in accidents. The electric system that makes a hybrid car work effectively is also what makes it risky if it ever got involved in an accident. This is because hybrid car stores high amount of voltage in its batteries.

Normally, a standard car stored about 12 volts in its batteries. However, for hybrid car, the voltage in batteries can go up to 275 volts, which is very high (Stellet et al., 2011). This means that there is a chance of getting electrocuted when a hybrid car involves in an accident.

Hybrid cars offer a range of advantages over conventional car and have some disadvantages of its own. Major automobile players today are looking for ways to get rid of the disadvantages of hybrid cars. They are looking ways to increase the performance of hybrid cars, make it lighter and less risky due to the high voltage. Furthermore, the price of hybrid car could be reduced. In some time near the future, hybrid cars will be the people choice instead of conventional cars.

References Anderson, C.D. and Anderson, J. (2010). Electric and hybrid cars: a history. 2nd edition. McFarland. 1 19. Electric Power Research Institute (2001). Comparing the Benefits and Impacts of Hybrid Electric Vehicle Options. Palo Alto. California. Schobert, H.H. (2002). Energy and society: an introduction. 1st edition. Taylor & Francis. 470. Stellet, J., Schuecking, M., Steeg, C., and Lang, A. (2011). Hybrid Cars - Today and in the Future. Volume 205. Westbrook, M.H. (2001). The electric car: development and future of battery, hybrid and fuelcell cars. Institution of Electrical Engineers Power Engineering Series. Volume 38. 1st edition. IET. 150.

Renewable and Non Renewable Energy

The illustration shows the sources of energy in our world. There are two types of energy; renewable and non renewable energy and both energies have different resources. Renewable energy can be described as all energy derived from regenerative resources, which cannot be depleted (Andexer, 2008). Renewable energy is available naturally on a continuous basis or can be generated over a short period of time, which may be over several days or more (Ghosh and Prelas, 2009). A non renewable energy source can be defined as a resource that is not replaced on continuous basis or is replaced slowly, but dependent completely on natural sources (Ghosh and Prelas, 2009). Renewable energy consists of solar, biomass, wind, hydropower and

geothermal energy. These kinds of energies will never run out. Renewable energy is available everywhere and is replenished always, providing mankind a potentially enormous supply of energy (Chiras, 2006). For example, solar energy can be used almost everyday as the sun always shines throughout the year. Another example is wind energy. Wind energy is available year after year due to the unequal heating of the Earths surface. When one area is warmed by the sun, hot air is produced. The hot air will rise and cooler air will move in from neighbouring areas. As the cool air moves in, it will create winds of varying intensity (Chiras, 2006). Fossil fuel, coal, natural gases and nuclear energy are types of energy that are not renewable. Non renewable energy is finite, and cannot be regenerated in a timely fashioned by natural processes. For instance, fossil fuel oil supply is currently decreasing as the demand from people is very high. Even though the supply of crude oil is expected to remain until at least 2025, with the current situation, it is difficult to determine whether the world has enough oil reserves to meet the people demand. As a conclusion, energy can be divided into two types; renewable and non renewable energy. Currently, the supply of non renewable energy is depleting. Thus,

renewable energy which can be regenerated back by nature is considered as an alternative to the non renewable energy.

Reference Andexer, T. (2008). A Hypothetical Enhanced Renewable Energy Utilization (EREU) Model for Electricity Generation in Thailand. GRIN Verlag. 15 17. Chiras, D.D. (2006). The homeowner's guide to renewable energy: achieving energy independence through solar, wind, biomass and hydropower. New Society Publishers. 21 22. Ghosh, T.K., and Prelas, M.A. (2009). Energy Resources and Systems: Fundamentals and nonrenewable resources. Volume 1 Energy Resources and System. Springer. 2 3.