Corn Cob CNG tanks?
TENILLE BONOGUORE
Globe and Mail Update
February 20, 2007 at 11:18 AM EST
Farm waste has been turned into a high-density gas tank that could unlock the secret to methane-fuelled cars.
Using the waste material from corn cobs, researchers from the University of Missouri-Columbia and the Midwest Research Institute in Kansas City have created carbon briquettes that use tiny complex pores – called nanopores – to store natural gas in unprecedented densities.
The methane storage system is slim enough that it could replace gasoline tanks in cars and encourage mass-market natural gas automobiles. Methane is an abundant fuel that burns cleaner than gasoline.
The technology is already being used in a pickup truck used regularly by the Kansas City Office of Environmental Quality, and principal project leader Peter Pfeifer says the breakthrough could revolutionize vehicle design.
“We are very excited about this breakthrough because it may lead to a flat and compact tank that would fit under the floor of a passenger car, similar to current gasoline tanks,” Dr. Pfeifer said.
The carbon briquettes are made from cobs left over from kernel harvesting. The state of Missouri alone could supply the raw material for more than 10 million cars per year, the researchers say.
“It would be a unique opportunity to bring corn to the market for alternative fuels – corn kernels for ethanol production, and corncob for natural-gas tanks,” Dr. Pfeifer said.
The carbon briquettes can store natural gas at an unprecedented density of 180 times their own volume and a pressure of only 3,450 kilopascals, which is the same pressure as natural gas pipelines.
That could mean the end of cumbersome high-pressure tanks that currently keep gas at 24,800 kPa and can fill up an entire car trunk.
The test pickup truck, part of a fleet of more than 200 natural-gas vehicles operated by Kansas City, has been in use since mid-October and the researchers are monitoring the technology's performance, from mileage data to measurements of the stability of the briquettes.
The briquettes are the first technology to meet the 180-to-1 storage-to-volume target set by the U.S. Department of Energy in 2000.
Globe and Mail Update
February 20, 2007 at 11:18 AM EST
Farm waste has been turned into a high-density gas tank that could unlock the secret to methane-fuelled cars.
Using the waste material from corn cobs, researchers from the University of Missouri-Columbia and the Midwest Research Institute in Kansas City have created carbon briquettes that use tiny complex pores – called nanopores – to store natural gas in unprecedented densities.
The methane storage system is slim enough that it could replace gasoline tanks in cars and encourage mass-market natural gas automobiles. Methane is an abundant fuel that burns cleaner than gasoline.
The technology is already being used in a pickup truck used regularly by the Kansas City Office of Environmental Quality, and principal project leader Peter Pfeifer says the breakthrough could revolutionize vehicle design.
“We are very excited about this breakthrough because it may lead to a flat and compact tank that would fit under the floor of a passenger car, similar to current gasoline tanks,” Dr. Pfeifer said.
The carbon briquettes are made from cobs left over from kernel harvesting. The state of Missouri alone could supply the raw material for more than 10 million cars per year, the researchers say.
“It would be a unique opportunity to bring corn to the market for alternative fuels – corn kernels for ethanol production, and corncob for natural-gas tanks,” Dr. Pfeifer said.
The carbon briquettes can store natural gas at an unprecedented density of 180 times their own volume and a pressure of only 3,450 kilopascals, which is the same pressure as natural gas pipelines.
That could mean the end of cumbersome high-pressure tanks that currently keep gas at 24,800 kPa and can fill up an entire car trunk.
The test pickup truck, part of a fleet of more than 200 natural-gas vehicles operated by Kansas City, has been in use since mid-October and the researchers are monitoring the technology's performance, from mileage data to measurements of the stability of the briquettes.
The briquettes are the first technology to meet the 180-to-1 storage-to-volume target set by the U.S. Department of Energy in 2000.
Views: 172
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Henry, Landowner on
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I had an uncle who sold propane in Claiborne Parish when I was growing up 45-50 years ago. I believe he ran his personal vehicle on some type of compressed fuel. When I worked for SWEPCO 25-30 years ago, SWEPCO had a project to run fleet vehicles on CNG. I don't know why but the project seem to die out after five or six years. I have a friend at AEP who lives in Tulsa Oklahoma. His father worked for the natural gas utility in Tulsa. He told me that the natural gas utility in Tulsa had been using CNG in its vehicles for years. My point is CNG has been in use for years. I have never heard of problems. I will research this more when I retire and move back. I remember the man in charge of the CNG project at SWEPCO. I will look him up and see what he says.
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Permalink Reply by sesport on
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Consider looking for info re. ng vehicle accidents in the countries where they are already widely in use. Some countries may have little/no/unreliable info, but I would think European countries would be keeping track of that kind of thing. Maybe they'd have some kind of consumer protection agency or insurance rating organization like we have here.
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Permalink Reply by P.G. on
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Natural Gas: An Enticing Alternative
By Larry Burns
GM Vice President, Research & Development
Volatile oil prices have been dominating the news lately, underscoring growing unease about the automobile’s heavy dependence on petroleum. As these concerns reverberate from Main Street to Wall Street, General Motors is working toward new solutions that will answer the growing demand for personal transportation in an affordable and sustainable way.
http://fastlane.gmblogs.com/archives/2008/07/natural_gas_an_enticin...
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Permalink Reply by sesport on
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Thanks for the link, interesting what the person from Germany had to say about the differences between LP vs. NG vehicles.
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Permalink Reply by Grice on
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Here are two clips to enjoy. The first one, demonstrates the durability of the CNG tank. The second clip, shows the potential of (what seems to be) a pressure release safety valve after a crash.
http://www.youtube.com/v/P4hlM11udJA&hl=en&fs=1
http://www.youtube.com/v/LMTaLuRwB5k&hl=en&fs=1
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Permalink Reply by Skip Peel - Mineral Consultant on -
PG & Grice. Great links, thanks. As this thread will eventually move off the main page, would you please repost these on the Natural Gas Cars Group page so they will be easily accessible in the future?
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