US expert commend CNG

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI, APRIL 19.

Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) as a fuel is a hotly debated topic these days with a lot of mud-slinging between the Centre, the Delhi Government, transporters and technical experts who have been pressing their opinions for and against it. However, international experts, including those from the U.S. where CNG has gained acceptance, firmly advocate this eco-friendly fuel.

Experts from the U.S., where alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs) were introduced in a big way in the early 90s, claim that CNG has been one of the ``preferred'' options there and has the potential of being successful on Indian roads too.

``The U.S. already has 3,89,400 AFVs, which include 1,10,000 CNG vehicles, running successfully,'' says the Deputy Director in the U.S. Department of Energy, Ms. Marcy Rood, who has been a key figure in the ``Clean Cities'' programme promoting AFVs. ``The Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority currently operates over 1,100 CNG buses -- more than half of its fleet, and plans to purchase another 2,000 CNG buses by 2004, this feat can be achieved in India also,'' she adds.

Advocating CNG, Ms. Rood says: ``Besides being an eco-friendly fuel, which considerably improves air quality, it is a domestic resource which saves valuable foreign exchange and is also a good long-term investment.'' In the U.S., the main concern was to ensure future security in the energy sector and in this endeavour, exploring alternate fuels would be the right step, she explains.

Another key feature of our efforts was to strive towards cleaner environment which could be achieved through AFVs, she says. ``Under our `Clean Cities' programme in 80 destinations, 102 metric gallons of petroleum is being displaced annually reducing 19,000 metric tons of emissions, and constantly working towards greater success.''

Another U.S. expert supporting Ms. Rood is Mr. Richard L. Bechtold, who has 25 years experience with alternate and conventional fuels in transportation and is currently providing technical support services to the U.S. Department of Energy.

``AFVs in the U.S. are using propane, natural gas -- both compressed and liquefied, ethanol, methanol and electricity,'' says Mr. Bechtold, and adds that CNG as an alternate fuel has been a good success.

``CNG is an eco-friendly fuel where emissions show considerable reduction in particulate matter -- a prime source of concern, and reduces air toxics to a great extent. Moreover, it even contributes to ozone production,'' he says, drawing attention towards the fact that the relative toxic risk of vehicle exhaust between diesel and CNG was to the extend of 130:1.

According to Mr. Bechtold, safety aspect in the use of CNG had been the most talked about subject, and in India, too, this issue has raised eyebrows. ``Every fuel has its unique risk and it is up to the user to avert any hazard,'' says the expert. ``Safety hazards arise when problems related to engineering, operation and maintenance are not addressed properly. Besides, use of genuine spare parts and handling the technology by skilled manpower is a must.''

To remove apprehensions, Mr. Bechtold suggests mounting of CNG cylinders on the roof of buses as was being doing in the U.S.. It reduces the risk factor to a great extent.

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