Experts: Gasoline, Fossil Fuels Are Here to Stay:

"Despite a big push by the federal government, many experts who study alternative fuels agree that biofuels will not ultimately replace gasoline and other fossil fuels in everyday use. Practical, portable fuel cells seem to be at the top of current scientific thinking in the alternative fuels industry, but such technology isn’t the only area of research going on in the field.

Al Ebron is the director of the West Virginia University-based National Alternative Fuels Training Consortium. The consortium is the only nationwide center that trains and supports those who use alternative fuel vehicles.

The consortium has about 20 educational programs on ethanol and biodiesel in its curriculum. Professionals and staff from organizations as diverse as Walt Disney, NASA, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. military receive training from the consortium.

Ebron said there has been a spike in interest in the biofuels courses over the last year as a result of high gasoline prices and the 2005 Energy Policy Act that encourages the production and use of biofuels with grants and subsidies.

‘‘We’ve had to turn people away from our last couple biodiesel classes,’’ he said.

As an expert in alternative fuels, Ebron acknowledges that integrating biofuels into mainstream fuel markets poses a lot of efficiency dilemmas. Still, he views biofuels as an advancement along the United States’ long road to energy independence, especially as researchers branch out into newer forms of fuel to replace even the concept of the internal combustion engine.

‘‘None of them (biofuels) by themselves is going to replace gasoline,’’ Ebron said. ‘"