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As their name implies, gaseous fuel vehicles are vehicles powered by gaseous fuels instead of the conventional liquid fuels, gasoline and diesel. The Natural Gas Vehicle Technology Forum focuses on vehicles fueled with natural gas, hydrogen, and hydrogen-natural gas blends. Use of these fuels increases energy security, paves the way for fuel cell vehicles, and improves public health and the environment.
Increasing Energy Security
The United States imports more than half of its petroleum, much of it used to fuel vehicles in the form of gasoline and diesel. The demand for petroleum imports is increasing. With much of the worldwide petroleum reserves located in politically volatile countries, the United States is vulnerable to disruptions in supply.
Natural gas vehicles are an immediate solution to the nation's energy security needs. Most of the natural gas consumed in the United States is produced domestically and by politically stable countries, and an extensive natural gas infrastructure exists. Using natural gas vehicles instead of conventionally fueled vehicles reduces U.S. dependence on foreign oil and increases energy security. Hydrogen-fueled vehicles offer the promise of a petroleum-free transportation network in the future.
Paving the Way for Fuel Cell Vehicles
Fuel cell vehicles powered by hydrogen are the future of transportation. Natural gas vehicle and infrastructure development can facilitate the transition to this technology. With the highest hydrogen-to-carbon ratio of any hydrocarbon, natural gas is an efficient source of hydrogen—in fact, it is the number one source of commercial hydrogen used in the United States. The vast U.S. network of natural gas transmission lines offers the potential for convenient transportation of natural gas to future refueling stations that reform hydrogen from the gas.
Because natural gas and hydrogen are both gaseous fuels, lessons learned from developing natural gas technologies may aid the transition away from conventional liquid fuels to gaseous hydrogen fuel. Issues shared by natural gas and hydrogen include:
- Fuel storage
- Fueling
- Station siting
- Training
- Facilities
- Public acceptability
Vehicles fueled with hydrogen-natural gas blends (HCNG) are a first step toward a hydrogen-based transportation network. Fueling vehicles with HCNG can help build demand for a hydrogen infrastructure while providing enhanced emission reductions.
For more information, see the Natural Gas Vehicle Coalition's "Why NGVs Are A Critical Pathway to Fuel Cell Vehicles."
Protecting Public Health and the Environment
Compared with vehicles fueled by conventional diesel and gasoline, gaseous fuel vehicles can produce significantly lower amounts of harmful emissions such as nitrogen oxides, particulate matter, and toxic and carcinogenic pollutants. Gaseous fuel vehicles can also reduce emissions of carbon dioxide, the primary greenhouse gas.
Hydrogen and HCNG vehicles are not yet widely available. However, compressed natural gas (CNG) and liquefied natural gas (LNG) vehicles have been on the road providing emission reductions for many years. For details on CNG and LNG benefits, see the following publications from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Some of the following documents are available as Adobe Acrobat PDFs. Download Acrobat Reader.
- Clean Alternative Fuels: Compressed Natural Gas (PDF 76 KB)
- Clean Alternative Fuels: Liquefied Natural Gas (PDF 72 KB)
For More Information
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