Compressed Natural Gas Vehicle Conversion
With growing interest in the benefits of using compressed natural gas (CNG) to power automobiles, some vehicle owners have considered CNG conversion. Both gasoline and diesel vehicles can be converted to run on compressed natural gas, which is less expensive and mostly produced domestically.
The Natural Renewable Energy Laboratory issued a detailed report on the federal government’s own experiences with vehicle conversion after about nine-hundred federal trucks, vans, and other autos were converted. It found that changes in emissions varied depending upon the type of vehicle, with compressed natural gas conversion generally bringing about reduction in some emission types but increases in others.
The report stated that a vehicle which was originally designed to run on CNG (not converted) was tested and compared, giving substantially better environmental results. The report concluded that converted vehicles helped reduce usage of imported fuel, despite their questionable environmental status. A report on cleanairnet.org also indicated that emissions are not generally reduced by vehicles which have undergone conversion.
According to energy.gov, it tends to be less costly to fuel a compressed natural gas powered vehicle. However, the cost of conversion is somewhat expensive. The same website indicates that converting an automobile to run on CNG costs about $2,000-4,000 dollars. Still, this is much less expensive than purchasing new CNG vehicles to replace them.
Overall, although there is some question about the environmental benefits of vehicles converted to run on compressed natural gas, they increase national self-sufficiency by reducing the need for imported oil, as well as decreasing operating costs.