What Is CNG
Basics
Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) is a readily available alternative to gasoline that’s made by compressing natural gas to less than 1% of its volume at standard atmospheric pressure. Consisting mostly of methane, CNG is odorless, colorless and tasteless. It's drawn from domestically drilled gas wells or in conjunction with crude oil production.
Natural gas powers more than ten million vehicles on the road today. Unfortunately, only 150,000 of these are being used today in the U.S. The average growth rate in the U.S. shows a 3.7% per year since 2000, as contrasted with a booming global growth rate of 30.6% per year. Expanding the numbers of CNG fueling stations would allow for the increase of CNG vehicles on U.S. roads. There are 12,000 around the world, yet the U.S. claims about 1,100. More stations will continue to be built in America in the coming years.
However, as gasoline prices continue to rise, American interest in CNG is rising accordingly. And with good reason – CNG costs about 40% less than gasoline, it emits up to 90% less emissions than gasoline,* there’s an abundant supply and it’s produced right here in America. So it’s affordable, clean, abundant and American.
*Emissions reductions may vary by pollutant and make/model of vehicle.
Safety
When used as an automobile fuel, compressed natural gas (CNG) is stored onboard vehicles in tanks that meet stringent safety requirements.
Natural gas fuel systems are "sealed," which prevents spills or evaporative losses. Even if a leak were to occur in a fuel system, the natural gas would dissipate up into the atmosphere – unlike gasoline, which in the event of a leak or accident, pools on the ground, creating a fire hazard.
Natural gas has a high ignition temperature, about 1,200° Fahrenheit, compared with about 600° Fahrenheit for gasoline.
Natural gas is not toxic or corrosive and will not contaminate ground water.
Focus on Operations
It takes a great deal of effort and expertise to locate and extract natural gas. Located miles beneath the surface, high-tech engineering practices are coordinated with environmental guidelines to bring up the gas and process it in the safest manner possible. This can take months to complete. The processes employed for natural gas exploration and production can be found on this page. Please look over these fact sheets for detailed information on horizontal drilling, hydraulic fracturing and water usage.
History
The history of compressed natural gas (CNG) as a transportation fuel dates back to World War II. Natural gas vehicles are a proven technology that have been enhanced and refined over the years into a convenient and extremely safe method of transportation. Daily use of natural gas vehicles can be found throughout the United States in a variety of applications.
Demand CNG NOW!
It’s up to us, America’s consumers, to insist that legislators implement policies to accelerate growth in NGV manufacturing, purchase and use. This includes incentives for cash-strapped automakers to produce a wider range of natural gas vehicles, incentives for American consumers, governments, and businesses to buy natural gas vehicles and incentives for the installation of CNG dispensers at more gasoline retailers. We need to demand to be heard and give Americans the opportunity to use a clean, American fuel.