Emission concerns

Carbon Monoxide (CO), Hydrocrabons (HC), Nitrogen Oxide (NOX), particulate matter (PM), volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and smaller amounts of other pollutants such as sulphur dioxide (SO2) and ammonia (NH3) are dangerous emissions produced by the exhaust in cars. The result is global warming which is responsible for high temperatures, rising seas, and severe flooding and droughts.

Carbon monoxide (CO) is a poisonous gas while VOCs are a major component of smog produced from unburned fuel.  NOX is a contributor to smog and acid rain.

Fuel-efficient vehicles are the need of the hour and with the kind of fuel being used, the emission also differs. Some fuels, like those made from cellulosic biofuels, reduce emissions compared to gasoline. Electric cars produce fewer emissions.

There is an ongoing debate on whether diesel is cleaner than petrol but there is no consensus as yet. Diesel cars were thought to be cleaner, but studies have found that they have completely different emission characteristics, and an increase in such cars could have its own implications on urban air quality.

Incorporating catalytic converters in cars using petrol, which oxidize pollutants, especially CO to less harmful gases such as CO2, has come up as a solution, but at the cost of more fuel usage and lesser efficiency. But still, the emissions are more than that of diesel cars.

Thankfully, because of the hot weather in GCC, emissions from cars are lesser than in the colder countries, since a car in a cold climate could take up to 5-10 km to warm up and colder engine produce more emissions than at idle temperature. 

A method of pollution reduction currently being utilized involves the use of cleaner petrol and diesel and carefully controlling the amount of fuel they burn. And then there are alternative fuels. Compressed natural gas (CNG), Liquefied Petroleum gas (LPG), city diesel, hydrogen,  alcohol fuels, hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and battery operated vehicles are being developed and in various stages of competing with the efficiency provided by petrol or a diesel car, while dramatically reducing the harmful emissions. 

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