Posted on 04/01/2011 5:24:36 AM PDT by thackney
Movement toward natural gas-fueled vehicles finally appears to be firing on all cylinders.
The surge in U.S. natural gas production from prolific shale formations has created an abundance of the blue-burning fuel.
Middle East turmoil and a recovering global economy are putting energy security and high gasoline prices front-and-center in consumer minds.
Legislative efforts to reduce pollution and greenhouse gas emissions are mired in partisan bickering.
And President Barack Obama provided a timely rallying point in a speech this week, giving a positive nod to government incentives for natural gas vehicles as alternatives to ones powered by higher-emission, oil-based fuels.
Next week a bipartisan group in Congress plans to introduce the “New Alternative Transportation to Give Americans Solutions” (NAT GAS) Act, which will offer tax credits to promote production and purchase of natural gas vehicles.
Texas lawmakers have proposed a bill to encourage the build-out of compressed natural gas stations along the “Texas Triangle” linking Houston, San Antonio and Dallas-Fort Worth. It would be funded through the existing Texas Emissions Reduction Plan, which draws from fees tacked on some vehicle titles, commercial vehicle inspections and other sources.
The City of Houston and oil and gas producer Apache Corp. today will announce a smaller effort closer to home — a $1.5 million compressed natural gas station at Bush Intercontinental Airport. It will fuel a fleet of gas shuttle buses to run between the city’s economy parking lot and the terminals.
25% lower CO2 The deal encapsulates many of the benefits of compressed natural gas vehicles that proponents have been touting – lower emissions from the fleet of 30 buses that cover a combined 900,000 miles per year, as well as lower fuel and maintenance costs.
Compressed natural gas vehicles get about 20 percent lower fuel mileage than diesel engines, according to Bernstein Research, but carbon dioxide emissions are about 25 percent less and smog-producing emissions up to 90 percent lower.
And while diesel now averages around $3.79 a gallon in Houston, a comparable amount of compressed natural gas costs $1.70 to $1.90.
Compressed natural gas vehicles also tend to have lower maintenance costs.
Apache will build the fueling terminal and donate it to the city. It will be operated by New South Parking, the contractor that runs the city economy lot – which will be rebranded as Ecopark.
Apache CEO Steve Farris doesn’t expect natural gas vehicles to replace all gasoline and diesel vehicles, but to be part of a wide range of solutions.
“It’s the biggest no-brainer for the American public today,” Farris said in an interview Thursday. “It’s cheaper, it’s cleaner, it’s more abundant and it’s in our own backyard.”
About 11.4 million natural gas vehicles operate worldwide, representing about 1.1 percent of all vehicles, according to Bernstein Research. That’s up from just 0.17 percent a decade ago. Combined, these vehicles consume about 1 trillion cubic feet of gas per day, 1 percent of global gas consumption.
Only about 122,000 are in North America, while Pakistan leads the world with about 2.3 million, according to the International Association of Natural Gas Vehicles.
While cost, emissions and availability of the fuel are part of the reason for gas vehicles’ success abroad, they also aren’t competing with an existing gasoline vehicle infrastructure like the U.S. has built up over many decades.
Some critics point to the difficultly of trying to build out a nationwide natural gas infrastructure, but Farris noted the U.S. already has the most extensive network of natural gas pipelines in the world.
Lowest-hanging fruit And use of natural gas vehicles can expand in the U.S. without drawing in individual consumers.
The Houston airport project is an example of the lowest-hanging fruit – government- or company-owned fleets of heavy vehicles, such as buses and garbage trucks, that operate in well-defined routes or regions.
Houston-based Waste Management makes extensive use of compressed natural gas for its garbage trucks nationwide, while a number of airport bus systems have converted to natural gas.
Apache’s Farris, however, is bullish on compressed natural gas vehicles reaching a broader segment of the American driving public.
“Unless you find a way to turn the water into wine, we’ll be using CNG for passenger cars,” Farris said. “It can just be so significant for American economic and energy security.”
Rising Gas Prices Fuel Demand for Ford Compressed Natural Gas-Powered Commercial Vehicles
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/rising-gas-prices-fuel-demand-for-ford-compressed-natural-gas-powered-commercial-vehicles-118840199.html
•Rising price of traditional gas coupled with significant government incentives and an increasing number of fuel stations is pumping up demand for compressed natural gas-powered (CNG) vehicles by commercial customers
•Ford meets demand by offering CNG as an option for Transit Connect, E-Series vans and F-Series Super Duty trucks
•An extremely clean-burning fuel, CNG usage can result in 30 to 40 percent less greenhouse gas emissions, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Higher fuel prices, increasing government incentives and more fueling stations are spurring interest in compressed natural gas-powered commercial vehicles offered by Ford Motor Company.
Consider Metro Taxi of West Haven, Conn., which soon will take delivery of 20 Transit Connect Taxis powered by CNG. Owner Bill Scalzi said he bought the CNG-powered Transit Connect Taxis because of rising gas prices, government funding and the fact that there will soon be more CNG fueling stations in Connecticut, including one he is adding to his facilities.
Scalzi is not alone in wanting to own natural gas fueled vehicles as orders for CNG Transit Connect Taxis are coming from companies in places like Las Vegas, St. Louis, Boston, Chicago and Hartford, Conn.
“Fleet managers are adding all the reasons up and concluding that it makes sense to switch to CNG now more than ever,” said Rod Phillips, Ford Commercial Business Manager of the New England area.
CNG is made by compressing natural gas, which is mainly composed of methane. It is stored and distributed in hard containers at a pressure of 2,900 to 3,600 psi. About 85 percent of the CNG used in the United States is produced domestically.
CNG is used in traditional gasoline internal combustion engines that have been modified to operate on CNG. In addition to Transit Connect Taxi, CNG is an option for Ford E-Series vans and F-Series Super Duty trucks.
The benefits are numerous.
First, CNG is a nontoxic, extremely clean-burning fuel and significantly reduces CO, CO2 and NOx compared with gasoline. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, use of CNG can result in 30 to 40 percent less greenhouse gas emissions.
“The ability to convert the Transit Connect to CNG is a big driving force for us,” said J.J. Bell, vice president of Las Vegas-based Whittlesea Blue Cab, which has ordered Transit Connect Taxis powered by CNG. “We are converting more and more of our fleet to this alternative fuel.”
Another benefit is cost. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, between September 2005 and January, the price per gallon equivalent of CNG peaked at $2.34 in the summer of 2008. The national average was $1.93 in January 2011, the same as it was in October 2010. That’s important at a time when the price of gas is flirting with $4 per gallon.
“Every time fuel costs start climbing, the level of interest in alternative fuels increases,” said Carla York, CEO of Reston, Va.-based Innovation Drive Inc., a company that manages alternative fuel-related projects.
She said her organization receives 12 to 20 percent more calls with every 50-cent increase at the pump.
Government incentive support
An additional benefit is the amount of funding available. Government incentives such as rebates or tax credits are prompting fleet owners such as Scalzi to buy or convert their vehicles to run on CNG at reduced rates.
For example, the federally funded Clean Cities Petroleum Reductions Program is providing $300 million in funding to regional projects across the United States. One project is the Connecticut Clean Cities Future Fuels Project, which partially covers the costs of converting a vehicle to CNG. That project alone plans to provide funding for a total of 264 alternative-fuel vehicles.
“Without the help of the government program I wouldn’t have been able to purchase so many CNG-powered Transit Connect Taxis at one time,” Scalzi said. “I like the Transit Connect Taxi for its spacious passenger area and cargo capacity, so the government assistance was timely.”
The incentives also are helping fund construction of CNG fueling stations. Nearly 1,000 CNG fueling stations are now spread across the United States.
As a result, cities such as Tampa, Fla., and St. Louis soon will have their first public CNG stations.
Gerald Koss, marketing manager for Ford fleet operations, said Ford anticipated the infrastructure to support CNG vehicles would evolve and remained committed to its plans to bring CNG-powered commercial vehicles to market – even during economically challenged times.
“We took the chance that infrastructure would expand when we introduced our Transit Connect Taxi CNG capability in advance of any incentives for infrastructure or CNG conversions,” said Koss. “It turns out our timing couldn’t have been better.”
Ford has invested billions in researching and developing new fuel-efficient engines, transmissions and electrified vehicles, even during the depths of the economic downturn when competitors dialed back product spending. Today Ford has 12 vehicles with best-in-class fuel economy and four models with at least 40 mpg – claims no other full-line automaker can match.
Anybody saying anything about converting older cars to NG??
That link includes companies that convert existing vehicles to Natural Gas.
I do believe there are kits available for converting cars to CNG, but there doesn’t seem to be much of an effort to promote this on a professional, widespread level.
I want to know if there will be more natural gas filling stations available, and retail home-dispensing units. My BF has had two natural gas cars (bi-fuel) for several years, but hasn’t been able to find a way to fill the tanks.
Just was not worth the expense.
Propane powered vehicles can be obtained second hand from gas companies.
It is also possible to convert a new vehicle to gas for as low as $1,000... Or was in the 80’s.
Compressed Natural Gas Fueling Stations in Pennsylvania
http://www.afdc.energy.gov/afdc/progs/ind_state.php/PA/CNG
Today, the key to natural gas fueled vehicle is access to refueling.
I read someplace that natural gas works very well for fleets that return to a central hub for maintenance every night (where they can be refueled). Natural gas does not contain as much energy as gasoline (in a volume to volume comparison), so its often necesary to refuel more often. Thats why it works well for buses and commercial fleets that will return to a central hub where they can be refilled every night.
Most automobile owners want to refuel a minimum number of times. So the more frequent refuelling of natural gas vehicles will become a nuisance to many car owners.
We have to be careful using natural gas for transportation. Right now there is an abundance of natural gas because of hydraulic fracturing. If the greenies are successful in blocking hydraulic fracturing then we will have to import LNG from other sources...which is the same problem we have with oil.
Not to mention we are producing so much of it we are expected to become a net exporter with our shale gas development. LNG export licenses have already been granted.
One other problem with natural gas is that most new power plants being built are designed to run on natural gas. So, we WILL be using much more natural gasfor electricity in the coming years. If we use natural gas for transportation and add that demand to NG’s growing consumption for electricity, the price might end up being higher than that of oil.
Propane as a motor fuel should be avoided. Nat gas is cheaper and safer.
Or we could drill for our own oil? Somebody tell the author Greenhouse Gas is a myth.
Pray for America
Better even still, do both.
speaking of natgas, this remark couldn't be more poorly informed. It is the thinnest of energy markets (save ethanol, but nobody takes that seriously) subject radical price spikes usually leaving bankruptcies their wakes, including, arguably, the state of California, which mandated its use in electric generation just before one such spike just over a decade ago.
Very short term spikes of greater magnitude exist, but for the residential consumer, day in day out, the planned annual expense is more dependable.
The very high spikes are due to supply bottlenecking. A greater expanded use and increased transmission and distribution system along with storage would reduce these spikes.
Thanks. As you can see, most of them are either Planned (not operational) or Private Access only. We would have to drive across the state to fill up in the few that are open to the public, which actually defeats the purpose.
Just was not worth the expense.
That's certainly an argument against conversion of a used car.The issue of fuel supply simply has to be politically stabilized. We need a presidential candidate who wins election on a "Drill, baby, drill" platform.That done, CNG can be produced in abundance, and used in applications where it makes the most sense. And IMHO private passenger cars are not, and will not soon be, that application. If CNG is cheaper on a $/BTU basis, the first app would be city busses &c which don't require long range between refueling, and can be refueled where they "sleep." And second would be pretty much defined by the applications for which diesels are now preferred - trucks and busses, which are large enough to carry the size of fuel tank they need. You don't buy a diesel unless fuel economy is a major consideration, which is not nearly as true of passenger cars as it is with trucks (and, for that matter, locomotives).
Contrary to popular opinion, diesels can run on natural gas, and very efficiently. The key is that the fuel/air ratio has to be controlled very well. First, to keep the mixture lean enough to prevent autoignition until the pilot charge of diesel fuel is injected, and second, to control power output.
The other requirement might be that the transmission be automatic, and have enough "speeds" to be capable of helping to control the engine's power output by controlling the RPM of the engine. This is true of the diesel/electric locomotive . . .
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