Open AccessAdvanced Vehicle Testing Activity: Low-Percentage Hydrogen/CNG Blend Ford F-150 Operating Summary - January 2003
Author(s) -
D Karner,
J E Francfort
Publication year - 2003
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Reports
DOI - 10.2172/809114
Subject(s) - compressed natural gas , gasoline , hydrogen , hydrogen fuel , hydrogen fuel enhancement , hydrogen vehicle , waste management , environmental science , miles per gallon gasoline equivalent , alternative fuels , automotive engineering , compressed hydrogen , green vehicle , natural gas , liquid hydrogen , alternative fuel vehicle , engineering , fuel efficiency , diesel fuel , fuel cells , hydrogen storage , chemical engineering , chemistry , internal combustion engine , mechanical engineering , organic chemistry
Over the past two years, Arizona Public Service, a subsidiary of Pinnacle West Capital Corporation, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy's Advanced Vehicle Testing Activity, tested four gaseous fuel vehicles as part of its alternative fueled vehicle fleet. One vehicle operated initially using compressed natural gas (CNG) and later a blend of CNG and hydrogen. Of the other three vehicles, one was fueled with pure hydrogen and two were fueled with a blend of CNG and hydrogen. The three blended-fuel vehicles were originally equipped with either factory CNG engines or factory gasoline engines that were converted to run CNG fuel. The vehicles were variously modified to operate on blended fuel and were tested using 15 to 50% blends of hydrogen (by volume). The pure-hydrogen-fueled vehicle was converted from gasoline fuel to operate on 100% hydrogen. All vehicles were fueled from the Arizona Public Service's Alternative Fuel Pilot Plant, which was developed to dispense gaseous fuels, including CNG, blends of CNG and hydrogen, and pure hydrogen with up to 99.9999% purity. The primary objective of the test was to evaluate the safety and reliability of operating vehicles on hydrogen and blended hydrogen fuel, and the interface between the vehicles and the hydrogen fueling infrastructure. A secondary objective was to quantify vehicle emissions, cost, and performance. Over a total of 40,000 fleet test miles, no safety issues were found. Also, significant reductions in emissions were achieved by adding hydrogen to the fuel. This report presents results of 16,942 miles of testing for one of the blended fuel vehicles, a Ford F-150 pickup truck, operating on up to 30% hydrogen/70% CNG fuel