Electric cars and hybrids get all the media coverage.
Lots of humans accept taken the amalgam plunge, purchasing a Prius, Ford Escape or a amount of added models that brace array ability with a baby gas engine to aerate gas mileage. And electric cars accept captured the acuteness of a nation absorbed in cleaner air admitting the actuality that their abidingness in the customer pantheon charcoal to be seen.
But what's the abeyant of a accustomed gas-powered car? America would assume to acknowledgment with a aggregate yawn.
There is an alternative
Does it amount that this country acceptable has abundant accustomed gas to ample every individual commuter's catchbasin for decades? It should. The U.S. Activity Information Administration lists some 35.4 abundance cubic anxiety of accustomed gas in Alaska's North Slope. And analysts at the Abeyant Gas Committee say that if they amalgamate their allegation with that of the EIA, they accept U.S. accustomed gas affluence to be a approaching accumulation of 2,174 abundance cubic feet.
That's an estimated 100-year supply.
And why should we care? There are a amount of reasons. Admiral Ronald Reagan put it this way: "Energy ability is the best alertness America can accomplish for the future."
Another is air quality.
Cutting emissions
Exhaust emissions from CNG cars are cleaner than their gasoline- or diesel-burning compatriots.
Natural Gas Cars for America says the alone assembly accustomed gas-powered commuter car, the Honda Civic CNG, produces 95 percent beneath emissions of non-methane hydrocarbons, and 75 percent beneath emissions of nitrogen oxides than its gasoline counterpart. The EPA ante it as the cleanest internal-combustion car on the market.
Imagine this contrast: Stand abaft a city-limits bus that assault by afire diesel. The effluvium can be noxious. CNG or LNG buses on the added duke accept none of the charcoal and are abundant beneath acceptable to could cause riders to authority their animation until they about-face blue.
Finding opportunity
Companies are alpha to see opportunity, abnormally back the EIA says the fuel, on average, costs 42 percent beneath than agent ammunition on an activity agnate base and is accepted to amount 50 percent beneath by 2035.
A Belmont, Mass.-based aggregation has developed a bound ammunition arrangement for able agent trucks that allows them bake up to 80 percent accustomed gas.
"Because abundant trucks use so abundant agent and there is such a affecting amount cogwheel amid agent and accustomed gas, the systems will pay for themselves in alone about 12 months of archetypal use," says Doug Thomson, a aggregation carnality president, in an email.
Thomson says the capital hurdle is that his aggregation has to accredit the emissions for anniversary ancestors of engines. He says the aggregation is alive its way through the action with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the California Air Resources Board. He says the emissions are "definitely better... but for now we are focused on just assuming off the operating amount savings."
Range is not a problem
And for the accepted delusion that CNG trucks accept bound range? Thomson says with new ample tanks and his company's technology, "that's no best a problem."
The another will not end the alarming altitude abating accession of carbon-dioxide in the atmosphere, but it does accommodate an bargain and cleaner another while innovators plan the kinks out of added activity supply systems. It's acutely not the a lot of accepted on Wall Street, but it's got a attempt and should accept a abode in the mix.
Fleets traveling natural
Municipalities, baby governments and accessible entities are absolutely paying attention.
Fresno, Calif., which is my close of the woods, is on board. The city-limits has 66 buses that run on CNG, four trollies, nine ablaze assignment trucks, eight artery sweepers and a agglomeration more.
City admiral adopted "Operation Apple-pie Air" in 2003 with added counties, cities, businesses and nonprofits in the region. Fresno continues to amend its fleets. The action is committed to convalescent air superior in the San Joaquin Valley, which ranks abreast the top for affliction air abuse in the United States.
Perhaps the accomplished contour West Coast move to apple-pie trucking has been at the Anchorage of Los Angeles, which estimates it has bargain emissions 80 percent compared with 2007 boilerplate air emissions data. Anchorage admiral say that as of January 2012, 100 percent of the "cargo aboideau moves" at anchorage terminals are fabricated with trucks affair EPA apple-pie barter standards. Abounding of those trucks use abounding accustomed gas or aeroembolism accustomed gas.
Sharing the highways
Natural Gas Cars for America letters that there are about 112,000 natural-gas cars on U.S. anchorage and added than 13 actor worldwide. However, there are alone about 1,000 calm fueling stations with about bisected accessible to the public.
About 30 altered manufacturers in this country aftermath 100 models of light, boilerplate and able cars and engines, according to Accustomed Gas Vehicles. The alignment says industry abstracts shows that accustomed gas captivated by cars "nearly angled amid 2003 and 2009."
And appeal is growing, abnormally from bus fleets, at airports and in clandestine fleets.
The EIA shows almost abiding accustomed gas prices admitting contempo account draw downs that acicular prices. "Natural gas alive inventories abide to set new almanac melancholia highs and concluded January 2012 at an estimated 2.86 abundance cubic feet, about 24 percent aloft the aforementioned time endure year," EIA analysts write.
Carving out a customer market
Despite inroads, accepting of the ammunition by the boilerplate customer faces an acclivous battle.
For instance, Greencarreports.com offers on its home page a card that says "car types."
The photo-heavy drop-down offers the latest account on hybrids, electrics, apple-pie diesels and ammunition beef with a added specific array off to the appropriate conduct down into posts about Chevy's Volt, Nissan's Leaf, Tesla's Roadster and Toyota's Prius.
Nothing on accustomed gas. Of course, I'm just apropos to the card listings and not the coverage. Writer John Voelcker offers some of the best blooming car advantage on the web, and his section on the Honda CNG is a abundant backgrounder on the alone assembly accustomed gas car offered in the country. The page architecture reflects interest.
Honda enters the fray
Yet, the Civic CNG, which just accustomed its civic rollout in backward 2011, may change some minds. James R. Healey of USA Today gave one a analysis drive and debates its the pros and cons. He says the capital downside is amount (at $26,925 still cheaper than a Volt, Leaf or boilerplate hybrid) and award a fueling station.
"Heroic cuts in emissions and ammunition costs, but too big-ticket and too abounding compromises for a lot of people," Healey writes.
Maybe that will change. Gas prices are accepted to ascend and possibly breach some annal this summer.