The fuel efficiency of New and Used cars varies widely. The average fuel efficiency of brand new cars sold is about 23 - 25 miles per gallon. But as the car is driven -- that fuel efficiency drops, especially if the automobile engine is not maintained properly. Not long ago 18 MPG was considered good mileage. We assume a fuel efficiency of 19 - 20 MPG average for ALL vehicles driving on the roads.
A gallon of gasoline weighs about 6.67 pounds and is almost entirely carbon atoms.
The process of burning a gallon of gasoline removes 12 pounds of Oxygen from the atmosphere and replaces it with 19.2 pounds of Carbon Dioxide. The Oxygen is gone for good and the Carbon Dioxide has replaced it.
If we assume that the average car on the road gets a fuel efficiency of 19 - 20 miles per gallon, then after driving 19 miles, you have burned one gallon of gasoline and put 19 pounds of Carbon Dioxide in the atmosphere.
The answer requires some averaging, but the averages seem close to reasonable to me.
Every mile you drive puts an additional one pound of Carbon Dioxide in the atmosphere.
(if you have a newer car, you put a little less CO2 in the air)
copyright (c) 2017
William Schaeffer
No comments:
Post a Comment