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Compressed natural gas
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Compressed natural gas (CNG) is natural gas that has been compressed to less than 1 percent of its standard atmospheric pressure. Under pressure it is clear, non-corrosive, and odorless. CNG is produced through compression, cooling, and dehydration and stored in pressurized tanks. Because CNG is a compressed form of the natural gas used for electricity generation, heating, and fueling, it can be used in place of gasoline or diesel in vehicles with a CNG-capable engine or with a CNG conversion kit.[1][2]
Uses
Between 80 percent and 90 percent of U.S. natural gas supplies were produced domestically as of 2015. Total U.S. production of natural gas in 2015 was 27.06 trillion cubic feet (Tcf). Natural gas is used to generate electricity, heat buildings, fuel vehicles, heat water, and power furnaces in industrial facilities. Around 50 percent of U.S. homes use natural gas, mostly for space and water heating, as well as for appliances like ovens, stoves, and lighting fixtures. Other uses for natural gas include space heating, water heating, and the manufacture of fertilizer, plastics, and pharmaceuticals.[3][4][5][6]
CNG vehicles
Because CNG is a compressed form of natural gas used for heating and fueling, it can be used in combustion engines. A fuel line carries the CNG from a compression tank to a regulator. CNG is then injected into an engine in the same way as gasoline is. Vehicles that run on gasoline or diesel must be converted to a CNG vehicle or be retrofitted with specific equipment. A CNG conversion kit consists of a CNG tank, a regulator, filling nozzle, high pressure tubing, and pressure gauges.[7][8]
According to the U.S. Department of Energy, there were approximately 150,000 CNG-powered vehicles in the United States as of 2015. Approximately 15.2 million CNG vehicles were used worldwide as of 2015. The three types of CNG vehicles included the following:[9]
- Dedicated vehicles, which run solely on natural gas
- Bi-fuel vehicles, which contain two fueling systems for gasoline and natural gas
- Dual-fuel vehicles, which are generally heavy-duty vehicles (such as trucks) and have systems for natural gas and diesel
Natural gas vehicles (whether CNG or liquefied natural gas) have more limited driving ranges than vehicles fueled with petroleum. This is because both CNG and liquified natural gas contain less energy content when stores in tanks similar in size to tanks that hold gasoline or diesel, which have greater energy density. CNG vehicles have less range than liquefied natural gas vehicles because natural gas has less energy density in gaseous form than in liquid form.[10][5][2]
Fuel availability
Fueling stations that dispense compressed natural gas totaled approximately 915 stations in the United States as of May 2016 (this figure excluded private stations). Click here to see a map from the U.S. Department of Energy of CNG stations.[5]
Costs
According to CNG Now, a compressed natural gas advocacy group, the average price of compressed natural gas per gasoline gallon equivalent (GGE) was $2.11 as of May 2016, compared to $2.28 per gallon for gasoline and $2.38 per gallon for diesel fuel.[5][11]
According to a 2012 report in Popular Mechanics, CNG installation costs ranged between $6,500 for a basic CNG conversion system and $12,000 for a high capacity, composite CNG fuel tank. In addition, the report found that total spending on a CNG conversion kit was equivalent to purchasing 1,800 gallons of gasoline at 2012 prices.[12]
Scroll over the map below to see each state's CNG price as of May 2016, according CNG Now. Information is also available in the table below. As of May 2016, Connecticut had the highest CNG price at $2.96 per GGE. Oklahoma had the lowest price at $1.39 per GGE. The national average was $2.11 per GGE as of May 2016.[11]
| Compressed natural gas prices by state1 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Price per GGE2 March 2015 | Price per GGE2 May 2016 | Price difference | |||
| Alabama | $2.45 | $2.37 | -$0.08 | |||
| Alaska | $2.00 | $2.00 | $0.00 | |||
| Arizona | $2.31 | $2.25 | -$0.06 | |||
| Arkansas | $1.58 | $1.57 | -$0.01 | |||
| California | $2.40 | $2.39 | -$0.01 | |||
| Colorado | $2.52 | $2.49 | -$0.03 | |||
| Connecticut | $2.96 | $2.96 | $0.00 | |||
| Delaware | $2.89 | $2.89 | $0.00 | |||
| Florida | $2.20 | $2.21 | $0.01 | |||
| Georgia | $2.23 | $2.23 | $0.00 | |||
| Idaho | $1.97 | $2.14 | $0.17 | |||
| Illinois | $2.49 | $2.49 | $0.00 | |||
| Indiana | $2.30 | $2.29 | -$0.01 | |||
| Iowa | $2.02 | $2.05 | $0.03 | |||
| Kansas | $1.82 | $1.74 | -$0.08 | |||
| Kentucky | $2.25 | $2.06 | -$0.19 | |||
| Louisiana | $1.80 | $1.81 | $0.01 | |||
| Maryland | $2.55 | $2.51 | -$0.04 | |||
| Massachusetts | $2.50 | $2.50 | $0.00 | |||
| Michigan | $2.50 | $2.50 | $0.00 | |||
| Minnesota | $1.99 | $2.02 | $0.03 | |||
| Mississippi | $1.94 | $1.80 | -$0.14 | |||
| Missouri | $1.98 | $1.96 | -$0.02 | |||
| Montana | $1.95 | $1.95 | $0.00 | |||
| Nebraska | $1.99 | $1.97 | -$0.02 | |||
| Nevada | $2.31 | $2.29 | -$0.02 | |||
| New Hampshire | $2.70 | $2.70 | $0.00 | |||
| New Jersey | $2.20 | $1.79 | -$0.41 | |||
| New Mexico | $2.49 | $2.42 | -$0.07 | |||
| New York | $2.45 | $2.41 | -$0.04 | |||
| North Carolina | $2.00 | $2.01 | $0.01 | |||
| North Dakota | $1.95 | $1.95 | $0.00 | |||
| Ohio | $2.14 | $2.12 | -$0.02 | |||
| Oklahoma | $1.67 | $1.39 | -$0.28 | |||
| Oregon | $1.48 | $1.69 | $0.21 | |||
| Pennsylvania | $2.15 | $2.18 | $0.03 | |||
| Rhode Island | $2.13 | $2.13 | $0.00 | |||
| South Carolina | $1.82 | $1.74 | -$0.08 | |||
| Tennessee | $2.11 | $1.92 | -$0.19 | |||
| Texas | $2.14 | $2.09 | -$0.05 | |||
| Utah | $1.76 | $1.76 | $0.00 | |||
| Virginia | $1.83 | $1.62 | -$0.21 | |||
| Washington | $2.38 | $2.35 | -$0.03 | |||
| West Virginia | $2.24 | $1.93 | -$0.31 | |||
| Wisconsin | $2.12 | $2.11 | -$0.01 | |||
| Wyoming | $1.84 | $1.91 | $0.07 | |||
| National average | $2.16 | $2.12 | -$0.04 | |||
| 1Data not available for Hawaii, Maine, South Dakota and Vermont. 2Gasoline gallon equivalent. Source: CNG Now, "Average Price" | ||||||
See also
Footnotes
- ↑ U.S. Energy Information Administration, “Glossary, C” accessed January 29, 2014
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 FuelEconomy.gov, "Natural gas," accessed September 17, 2014
- ↑ U.S. Energy Information Administration, "Which states consume and produce the most natural gas?" November 23, 2016
- ↑ U.S. Department of Energy - Alternative Fuels Data Center, "Natural Gas Fuel Basics," accessed September 17, 2014
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 U.S. Department of Energy - Alternative Fuels Data Center, "Natural Gas Benefits and Considerations," accessed September 17, 2014
- ↑ Geology.com, "Uses of Natural Gas," accessed November 11, 2014
- ↑ PetroWiki, "Compressed natural gas (CNG)," accessed February 23, 2017
- ↑ IGS CNG Services, "CNG 101," accessed February 23, 2017
- ↑ U.S. Department of Energy, "Natural Gas Vehicles," accessed February 23, 2017
- ↑ CNG Now, "What is CNG?" accessed September 17, 2014
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 CNG Now, "Average Price," accessed September 17, 2014
- ↑ Popular Mechanics, "Should You Convert Your Car to Natural Gas?" February 10, 2012
