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To: Izzy Dunne

The Texas “boom” pretty much relies of sophisticated and high unit cost extraction methods, which are not practical unless the price becomes and REMAINS more than the break-even point.

One thing this price level will do is encourage a LOT of investment in “fracking” in places where it is not yet being undertaken, and a large shift to use of compressed natural gas as motor fuel. Liquified natural gas is a much more concentrated way to haul around a supply of methane, except it has to be kept below its critical temperature of -260°F, not an easy task under most field conditions. Which makes that mode not practical for parking all day at the lot or inside a closed garage.

Now, compressed natural gas has its own set of problems, one of which is the tanks themselves. It is possible, and may someday be practical, to handle extreme pressures (THOUSANDS of pounds per square inch) in quick-fueling sites, but until then, it may be more sensible to have swap-out tanks, much like the propane tanks on your barbeque grill. The line valve is cut off, the empty tank is swapped for a full one, and once put into place, the valve opened. You pay for the difference between the weight of the full tank and its equivalent empty weight, according to the tares weight stamped on the tank.

An awful lot of infrastructure is tied up in the tanks. And all that has to be amortized some way. Tanks do have a limited lifetime before failure (which could be catastrophic).


9 posted on 07/03/2013 10:08:34 AM PDT by alloysteel (Unattended children will be given a Red Bull and a free Kazoo. Reminds me of Congress...)
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To: alloysteel
It is possible, and may someday be practical, to handle extreme pressures (THOUSANDS of pounds per square inch) in quick-fueling sites, but until then, it may be more sensible to have swap-out tanks, much like the propane tanks on your barbeque grill.

CNG vehicle fueling is not a complicated technology. It has been done for decades and the equipment has long since been standardized.

The real problem is a chicken / egg issue. Not many want to buy a CNG vehicle without convenient places to refuel. Not many want to invest in a CNG refueling system without a sufficient customer base to repay the initial cost and make a profit.

A few companies are spending money on this, but it is still very limited locations to refill.

http://www.afdc.energy.gov/fuels/natural_gas_locations.html

10 posted on 07/03/2013 11:05:24 AM PDT by thackney (life is fragile, handle with prayer)
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