IT'S A NATURAL: Federally funded researchers at the Argonne
National Laboratory are trying to improve the efficiency of
natural gas-powered engines, spurred by anticipated consumer
demand for fuel that is cheaper and greener than gasoline, and
without the hassles of other alternative fuels. Pictured: a
natural gas-powered Honda Civic at the 2011 Los Angeles Auto
Show. Image: LA Wad, courtesy Flickr Dear EarthTalk: I recently
saw an article extolling the virtues of natural gas as an
abundant, inexpensive and domestically produced automotive fuel.
Is this going to be the automotive fuel of the future and how
green is it?—Jason Kincaide, New Bedford, Mass. It is difficult
to say which of the growing number of fuel options will power
the cars of the future. But natural gas, given its domestic
abundance, low price and lesser carbon footprint, is certainly a
contender, at least as far as researchers at the federally
funded Argonne National Laboratory are concerned. Some of the
same engineers there who developed the