Experimental investigations and operational performance analysis on compressed natural gas home refueling system (CNG-HRS)

Abstract

Compressed natural gas can be globally used as fuel for combustion engines to reduce CO2 emission without negative impact on economy. Lack of refueling infrastructure is one of reason why NGVs shares only ~1.6% in total vehicle fleet worldwide. Operational tests ofCNGhome fast refueling station were performed to investigate: (i) natural gas demand, m3/h; (ii) energy consumption, kW/h; and (iii) total cost of one refueling. Two scenarios for operational tests were developed to monitor and collect data. Safety tests for leakage, fill pressure change, interrupted power and gas supply, temperature, and unexpected failures were performed. This article present results of operational and safety tests of compressed natural gas home, fast refueling station (CNG-HRS) based on one stage hydraulic compressor. The average duration of HRS full operating cycle was 7 h and 32 min (buffering and refueling mode). The average electric energy and natural gas consumption for one full cycle was 5.52 kWh and 7.5 m3, respectively. Safety tests results for leakage, fill pressure change, interrupted power and gas supply, temperature and unexpected failures demonstrated valid operation of HRS which positively affects the general safety level. To compare HRS with large scale CNG refueling infrastructure the costs of 1 Nm3 CNG was estimated for both solutions. Results shows that home refueling appliance might be become a solution for filling the gap in CNG refueling infrastructure.