02 Feb 07
VW's biofuels boffin, Dr Wolfgang Steiger
So what exactly is this medium-term plan from VW? Put simply, it's about making huge reductions in carbon dioxide emissions by using new bio-fuels in clever new engines.
The engines will be along the lines of VW's experimental CCS (Combined Combustion System), a highly efficient internal combustion unit that takes the best of current petrol and diesel thinking and is, as a result, frugal, clean and powerful. The fuel will be along the lines of VW's own SunFuel, which is a second-generation bio-fuel. It's carbon-neutral, only emitting the same amount of CO2 during combustion as the plants absorbed during their growth.
SunFuel process is carbon neutral
Hold on: 'second-generation'? If, like many of us, you're struggling to get your head around the first generation, then lend an ear to VW's bio-fuel champion, Dr Wolfgang Steiger, head of group powertrain research.
He explains that first-generation bio-fuels use the seed or flower of plants, but second-generation bio-fuels can use the entire plant, as well as waste matter such as wood chippings.
'In my language, waste doesn't exist. It's all residues,' says Dr Steiger.
A century-old chemical process, resurrected to tackle a new problem, converts stalks, husks and specially grown crops into a consistently pure fuel.
VW is also actively supporting research into new farming methods that raise productivity, but not at the expense of food production. The crops can be grown organically, quickly and with a much improved yield.
