CASE STUDY

ON
POTENTIAL OF CNG AS A FUEL FOR VEHICLES

Submitted to Symbiosis Centre of Distance Learning

In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of degree of

POST GRADUATE DIPLOMA IN BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

Submitted by:

REG NO.:

INTRODUCTION
Transport plays a significant role in the overall development of a nations economy. However,
this sector also accounts for a substantial and growing proportion of air pollution in cities. In
addition, the sector contributes significantly to greenhouse gases emissions and is a major
consumer of petroleum fuels.
According to recent WHO estimates up to one lakh people die annually because of the adverse
effect of the air pollution. As per Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) a nodal pollution
monitoring authority in the country, automobiles contribute the highest amount of hydro
carbon in the air as much as 81 % of the suspended particulate Matter (SPM).
Delhi, being one of the most polluted cities in the world, has reached frightening proportions
with over 3000 metric tons of air pollutants emitted in the capital every day. Delhi figures in
the list of six cities, which have acute air pollution problems. The other such cities are
Mumbai, Kolkata, Nagpur, Ahmedabad and Kanpur.
Due to Projected increases in Gasoline/diesel vehicles use, even the strictest feasible emissions
controls on petroleum fuel vehicles will not substantially reduce total emissions. The use of
petroleum for transportation results in large quantities of pollutant emission from vehicles,
refineries and fuel stations. Light gasoline vehicles are a major source of non-methane hydro
carbons (NMHC) and NO the main prcusors in Ozone and the single largest source of CO.
Heavy duty diesel vehicles are significant sources of NO. Particulate matter (PM) and SO. NO
and SO can cause acute and long term illness and premature death, reduce agriculture
productivity, damage materials, reduce visibility and contaminate ground water and coastal
areas. Altogether, transportation continues to be a major source of toxic air pollutants in urban
areas. Air quality is not likely to improve as long as petroleum is the primary transportation
fuel. Methane hydro carbons (NMHC) and NO the main precursors in Ozone and the single
largest source of CO. Heavy duty diesel vehicles are significant sources of NO. Particulate
matter (PM) and SO. NO and SO can cause acute and long term illness and premature death,
reduce agriculture productivity, damage materials, reduce visibility and contaminate ground

water and coastal areas. Altogether, transportation continues to be a major source of toxic air
pollutants in urban areas. Air quality is not likely to improve as long as petroleum is the
primary transportation fuel.
Overview of the transport sector in India
In India, the share of the transport sector in GDP (gross domestic product) in 1997/98 was
7.3% (1993/94 prices). Road transport and the railways account for the majority of this
contribution. The transport sector is also the second largest consumer of energy, next only to
industry and commercial energy consumption about 98% of which is in the form of HSD and
gasoline, grew at the rate of 3.1% per annum in the 1970s and at 5.6% per annum in the 1990s
The relationship between transport and emissions in India is established via the use of fossil
fuels. The linkage between transport and the environment is particularly visible in the urban
transport sector due to the dominance of road transport. In addition, the transport sector
accounts for a large and growing proportion of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions.

GROSS CARBON EMISSIONS FROM ALTERNATIVE

TRANSPORT FUELS
The method used in this research has two main components. The first is an examination of
each energy industry in detail, using primary sources of data from power stations, oil refineries
and anhydrous ethanol production from molasses. The processes involved in each case are
examined, taking into account energy use in any necessary auxiliary activities to evaluate the
total carbon emissions. The second component is a detailed examination of one specific form
of public transport. This is a three-wheeled 8-seater used in the city of Lucknow in North
India. It is chosen because it is available with a petrol or compressed natural gas (CNG) sparkignition engine (and hence could alternatively be ethanol-fuelled) and in a battery-electric
version. Both parts of this data-gathering have been specific to the situation in India. In energy
conversion the refinery crude composition and processes, basic resources of biomass and the
mix of primary energy for electricity generation are different in each country. The types of
vehicle used also vary considerably from region to region. It is observed that while CNG and
electric-powered vehicles may have low and zero tailpipe emissions respectively, gross
pollution from such vehicles and their associated resource systems maybe significant. In the
case of electrically-propelled vehicles the gross carbon emission is comparable with that for
similar petrol-engine vehicles since about 80 % of electricity production in India is fossil-fuelbased. In comparison, CNG shows a reduction of about a third. Alcohol-fuelled vehicles, by
comparison, can show neutral (i.e., zero net) carbon emission. The importance of gross
pollution assessments in rational choice of a fuel cannot be overemphasised.
A life-cycle or so called well-to-wheel analysis of a fuel draws attention to the fact that
CO2 is produced not only in the combustion of a fuel at the point of use but also during
extraction, refining and transportation of the fuel. This indirect CO2 production is generally
associated with energy inputs in these processes but may also be related to the inherent nature
of the processes involved (Figure1).

Figure 1. Net energy and gross CO2 emissions

G = gross energy produced by combustion of fuel
F = total feedback energy in fuel production processes 1, 2 and 3 = F1 + F2 + F3
N = net energy available from the fuel = G F
1. CO2 emissions
The sum total of such direct and indirect CO2 emissions may be termed gross CO2 emissions.
It should be pointed out here that, apart from CO2, emission of other polluting agents from a
fuel such as SOx, NOx, particulates, aldehydes and lead might also be considered. The present
study is limited to CO2 emission because of its serious implications for global warming. For a
transport fuel, the term life-cycle refers to althea events that begin from the source and end
at the wheel. In particular it includes stages of feedstock extraction, fuel processing and
refining, fuel transport, fuel storage and distribution, and finally combustion in the engine of a
transport vehicle to power its wheels. As a practical example, gross CO2 emission has been
evaluated for an important alternative transport fuel, bioethanol produced in Indian conditions,
and this has-been compared with that for oil, compressed natural gas (CNG) and electricity. A

new figure of merit for grading a fuel was proposed by the authors in earlier papers [Prakash
et al., 1998; 2000] -- linking net energy and gross pollution from fuel, where bioethanol was
taken as an example. Now this work has been extended and the current paper assesses the
gross pollution from various transport fuels on a per kilometre basis, when actually used in
similar passenger vehicles for public transport under Indian conditions.
2. Significance of bioethanol as petroleum substitute in India
India is one of the largest sugar-cane producers in the world and its sugar industry is the
second largest among the Indian process industries, next only to cotton textiles [Gehlawat,
1990]. The estimated annual sugar-cane production in India [MoF, 1997] is 274 million tonnes
(Mt) of which about 51 % are processed in sugar mills, 39 %is used in small gur and
khandsari (raw and crude sugar) units and 10 % is used as seed material [Ravindranathand
Hall, 1995]. The main by-products of the sugar industry are bagasse and molasses. Molasses
accounts for about 5 % of the mass of the cane crushed and a yield of 285 litres (l) of ethanol/t
of molasses can be achieved [Gehlawat, 1990]. Considering only the molasses available from
sugar mills, this source can potentially produce two million m3 of ethanol a year. The annual
consumption of petrol in road transport in India [TERI, 1997] is about 4.7 million m3. The
calorific value of ethanol is 21.1 MJ/l compared with 31.8 MJ/l of petrol [Yacoub et al., 1998],
resulting in a potential of petrol substitution by ethanol in road transport of about28 % (on
equivalent energy basis) under Indian conditions From practical considerations, however, it
would be easier to introduce gasohol (petrol containing 10 % anhydrous ethanol by volume) as
a transport fuel, since the introduction of this blend would require no engine modifications and
vehicle volumetric fuel consumption essentially remains unchanged [SEIS, 1980]. With the
introduction of gasohol, the annual petrol saving potential in road transport would be
approximately 0.5 million m3 at the current level of petrol consumption in India. Such a
substitution should directly reduce petroleum imports and replace octane-boosting lead alkyls
in petrol, as have been done successfully in many countries [Hall and House, 1995].
Blending of ethanol with petrol provides additional benefits. The changes in refinery
operations that are required to produce fuel of the same octane number without lead reduce the

quantity of fuel that can be produced from a barrel of crude oil. This is because reforming
lower octane-rating hydrocarbon components to increase the percentage of more complex
octane-boosting molecules alters the chemical constitution of the petrol. This reforming
process consumes additional energy in the refining process energy directly lost from every
barrel processed. The addition of ethanol to petrol
Table 1. Process energy requirements
Process

Energy consumption Energy recovered

MJ/I

Fermentation
Distillation
Dehydration
Effluent treatment
Auxiliary equipment
Total

MJ/I
0.95
11.88
4.84
3.30
0.21
21.18

11.27
11.27

effectively gives the required octane boost and the reforming requirement is correspondingly
reduced. This means that every barrel of petrol blended with alcohol produced decreases crude
oil demand, not only by the quantity of petrol directly replaced by ethanol but also by the
crude oil saved through the value of ethanol as an octane enhancer [SEIS, 1980Unleadedpetrol
is now available in India but its use can create its own problems. Fuels containing high
proportions of aromatics and olefins produce relatively higher concentrations of hydrocarbon
compounds that have a potential to participate in reactions leading to the production of the
harmful photochemical smog. In addition, some aromatic compounds are known to be
carcinogenic and nerve toxins. For these reasons, the current trend favours the lowering of
aromatics content in petrol [Al-Farayedhiet al., 2000].

3. Gross carbon emission from anhydrous ethanol in India.

In the case where bioethanol is to be used in India as a petrol blend in road transport without
engine modifications, the use of anhydrous ethanol is essential [SEIS,1980]. Hence it is
important to carry out energy and environmental analysis of anhydrous ethanol production
from molasses as practised in India. With this objective, energy inputs in ethanol production
were obtained from a representative industrial alcohol plant located in the state of Uttar
Pradesh (UP), India. The plant, which has a production capacity of 100 m cube/day, is
operated on a three-shift basis (24 h/day). The production process consists of three stages:
fermentation, conventional distillation and dehydration, followed by effluent treatment that is
now mandatory for all distilleries. Energy consumption in each of these stages is in the form
of process steam and power derived from backpressure steam turbines. These turbines use
steam generated at 4.5 MPa (gauge) from bagasse-fired boilers.Bagasse is obtained through
backward integration of the distillery with a sugar mill having a cane-crushing capacity of
8000 t/day. The mill-wet bagasse contains about 50 % moisture and has a calorific value
[Gehlawat, 1990] of 9.5 MJ/kg.
Data recorded from the boiler and the back-pressure turbine used gave the following results:

1 kg of steam generation requires 0.45 kg of bagasse, i.e., 4.3 MJ of primary energy.

1 kWh of power generation requires 7 kg of steam,i.e., 30 MJ of primary energy.

About 1400 m3 of spent wash produced per day from100 m3/day of distillate is
treated biologically via anaerobic digestion, generating biogas. Approximately 35m3 of
biogas is generated per m3 of spent wash. This biogas, containing about 60 % methane
and having an approximate calorific value 23 MJ/m3, is fed directly into the boilers to
save bagasse.

The energy consumption recorded during various stages of ethanol manufacture is

summarized in Table 1 and more detail may be found in a previous paper by the
authors[Prakash et al., 1990].
4. Carbon emissions and uptake

There are significant carbon emissions in the form of CO2 during the production process of
ethanol. A large amount of CO2 is released during fermentation, as well as in the burning of
biogas and bagasse in the boilers used. CO2would also be released in transporting ethanol
from the distillery to the point of use and, of course, in its eventual combustion. In all of the
above processes (except traditional transportation), however, the raw material used (molasses)
and energy inputs (bagasse and biogas) are derived from biomass (sugar-cane) from the nearby
fields. Therefore, one can safely assume that much of the carbon released is eventually
absorbed through photosynthesis insular-cane. Hence, in this case, gross carbon emissions
minus carbon uptake may be considered to be nil or, almost, very small.
5. Gross carbon emissions from oil and CNG
An accurate assessment of gross carbon emissions froma fuel requires a detailed energy
analysis of its production process. However, indicative values of carbon release rates (as CO2)
for fossil fuel processing and combustion are available [Goldenberg et al., 1988] and are given
below:
Gross carbon emissions from natural

13.5 kg per GJ released in combustion

19.9 kg per GJ released in combustion

46 MJ/kg

42.9 MJ/kg

gas
Gross carbon emissions from
petrol
Specific energy content of
natural gas [Baruah, 1993]
Specific energy content of petrol
[Yacoub et al., 1998]
Hence, gross carbon emissions from natural gas = (0.0135 kg/MJ) (46 MJ/kg)
= 0.62 kg C/kg of fuel
and gross carbon emissions from oil= (0.0199 kg/MJ) (42.9 MJ/kg)
= 0.85 kg C/kg of fuel

Figure 2. Typical Vikram vehicles: 410P petrol-engined (left) and

EV electric-powered (right)
To obtain the feedback energy requirement for CNG, energy data for compression were
obtained from the Gas Authority of India Ltd as follows.

In a typical CNG plant, natural gas is compressed from about 40 bar to 250 bar
through reciprocating compressors in a two-stage process.

The total electricity consumption in the process (compressor motors, oil pumps,
cooling water pumps, valves, etc.) was estimated to be in the range 0.6-0.7 kWhe/kg of
natural gas.

The initial compression of natural gas to 40 bar from the lowest pressure of about 3 bar
consumes an additional 0.2 kWhe/kg of natural gas.

Hence, the aggregate electricity consumption in compression averages about 0.85

kWhe!kg of natural gas. Carbon emissions (as C02) in conventional (coal-based)
electricity generation [Brown, 1992] are approximately 0.25 kg C/kWhe. About 80 %
of the utility power generation in India [MoF, 200 I] is thermal (mainly coalbased) and
the remaining 20 % comes from carbon-free (hydro and nuclear) resources. Therefore,
I kWhe power generation in India is associated with approximately 0.2 kg C emission.

Hence, gross carbon emission from I kg CNG = 0.62 + 0.85 x 0.2 = 0.79 kg C

6. Gross carbon emission from electric vehicles

To estimate gross carbon emissions from electric vehicles, practical data was obtained from
Scooters India Limited (SIL) at Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh), India. SIL is involved in the
manufacture, running and maintenance of its fleet of 8-seater three-wheelers. These are called
Vikram temposand are used for public transport in the city (Figure 2). Each vehicle uses 12
lead-acid traction batteries (6 V, 200 Ab) which run a DC series motor (72 V, 5.5 kW). The
average range of the vehicle on one charge is about 100 km and the data recorded from the
charging station shows electricity consumption in the range 16-18 kWhe for fully charging a
discharged battery bank. Since I k Whe power generation in India is associated with approximately 0.2 kg C emission (as in the above paragraph), gross carbon emission from SIL's
electric vehicles is estimated as:
[(0.2 kg C/kWhe) x (17 kWhe)]/ [(l00 km) x (8 passengers)] = 4.3 g C/passenger-km
7. Comparative assessment of gross carbon emissions from various transport fuels
Apart from manufacturing electric vehicles, SIL is also involved in the manufacture of petroland CNG-driven 8-seater three-wheelers for public transport. These are also known as Vikram
tempos as they are similar to the electric vehicles in design, but have an engine of 3.4 kW (200
cm3, 2-stroke) and steel chassis, unlike the fibre-reinforced plastics used for electric vehicles.
There is also a diesel vehicle but this is smaller and not directly comparable so has been
omitted from this study. Fuel consumption in the petrol and CNG-driven tempos was observed
as follows.
I kg CNG is required for 35 km average run or I I petrol for an average run of 18 km.
Considering gross carbon emission from petrol and CNG per kg of fuel, gross carbon emission
from SIL' s tempos is evaluated as: 4.4 gC/passenger-km for petrol-driven vehicles and
2.8 gC/passenger-km for CNG-driven vehicles. A comparison of the gross carbon emissions
from various transport fuels in Indian conditions is shown in Table 2.

8. Conclusions
It is concluded that bioethanol, as produced in India, can play a significant role in reducing
life-cycle carbon emissions. If used as a petrol blend, it can help reduce oil imports as well as
reduce aromatics pollution from unleaded petrol.
Table 2. Gross carbon emissions from various transport fuels

Indicative values of gross carbon emissions from various alternative transport fuels have been
evaluated and are presented in Table 2. The table shows that gross carbon emissions from
electric vehicles are significant and are comparable with those from oil-fuelled vehicles, while
CNG is the least polluting among conventional fuels. This shows that although some fuels
may be "clean" locally, they can cause considerable pollution on a global basis. The study
further demonstrates that gross pollution from a fuel would decrease if clean and renewable
energy resources were used in its production process, as in the case of bioethanol manufacture
in India.
The study needs to be extended, of course, to assess gross emissions of other pollutants from a
fuel, e.g., SOx, NOx, particulates, aldehydes and lead, to obtain a comprehensive gradation of
fuels, thereby helping in the rational choice of a fuel.
A comparison with similar life-cycle assessments for automobile fuel/propulsion system
technologies for North America is provided below which further corroborates the conclusions
drawn above.

Comparison with similar life-cycle assessments for automobile fuel/propulsion system

technologies
Comparing fuels and propulsion systems requires a comprehensive, quantitative, life-cycle
approach to the analysis. It must be more encompassing than well-to-wheels analysis. Wellto-wheels comprises two components, the "well-to-tank" (all activities involved in producing
the fuel) and "tank-to-wheel" (the operation/driving of the vehicle). The analyses must include
the extraction of all raw materials, fuel production, infrastructure requirements, component
manufacture, vehicle manufacture, use, and end-of-life phases (dismantling, shredding,
disposal/recycling) of the vehicle. Focusing on a portion of the system can be misleading. The
analysis must be quantitative and include the array of environmental discharges, as well as
life-cycle cost information, since each fuel and propulsion system has its comparative
advantages. Comparing systems requires knowing how much better each alternative is with
respect to some dimensions and how much worse it is with respect to others. Since focusing
on a single stage or attribute of a system can be misleading, e.g., only tail pipe emissions, the
lifecycle implications of each fuel and propulsion technology need to be explored.
MacLean and Lave [2003] have provided a very detailed review of a dozen studies on the lifecycle implications of a wide range of fuels and propulsion systems that could power light-duty
vehicles in the US and Canada over the next two to three decades. The studies vary in the
fuel/propulsion options they consider, the environmental burdens they report and the
assumptions they employ, making it difficult to compare results. All of the studies, however,
include the "well-to-tank" and "tank-to-wheel" activities and the majority of the studies
include a measure of efficiency and greenhouse gas emissions associated with these activities.
Comparison has been limited to these activities and measures.
Table Al provides a summary of the ranges of efficiency and greenhouse gas emissions
reported in the studies for the well-to-tank portion for the various options. For the well-to-tank
portion for the production of electricity, renewable fuels and hydrogen, differing fuel production pathways are most important. Owing to the range of different production options for
these fuels (as well as other issues such as study assumptions), results are much more variable.

In addition, there is less experience with producing these fuels, resulting in more uncertainty.
It is important to distinguish between total and fossil energy required for production when
comparing efficiencies among the fuels. Petroleum-based fuels have the highest efficiency for
the well-to-tank portion when total energy is considered. However, if only fossil energy is
considered, biomass-based fuels such as ethanol become more attractive.
The tank-to-wheel portions are more difficult to compare. Each study uses its selected vehicle
(e.g., conventional sedans, light-weight sedans, pick-up trucks) and many present assumptions
regarding the vehicle efficiencies. The studies, however, do not generally report the range of
assumptions or test conditions.
Table A1. Comparison of life-cycle inventory studies: well-to-tank
efficiencies and greenhouse gas emissions

Notes
1. Efficiency (%) is defined as: (energy in the fuel delivered to consumers/energy inputs
to produce and deliver the fuel) 100, e.g., 100 MJ of energy input results in 80-87
MJ of petrol delivered to the consumer.
2. Negative GHG emission values for ethanol result from carbon sequestration during
feedstock growth as well as if a credit is given for selling excess electricity (produced
through cogeneration schemes) to the grid and therefore offsetting CO2 emissions
from conventional electricity generation.
The well-to-wheel results (the sum of the well-to-tank and tank-to-wheel activities) of the
studies are still more difficult to compare. The baseline vehicle (with a few exceptions) is a
current petrol-fuelled ICE port fuel injection vehicle; it combines an efficient well-to-tank
portion with a relatively inefficient tank-to-wheel portion. A direct injection diesel vehicle is
considerably more efficient and therefore results in lower emissions of carbon dioxide even
though the carbon content in the diesel (and hence the well-to-tank portion of the C02
emissions) is higher than that in petrol. Fuel-cell vehicles have a high theoretical efficiency
but generally a low-efficiency well-to-tank portion, which offsets some of the vehicle
efficiency benefits.
Table A2 shows the ranges of values reported in the life-cycle studies for the well-to-wheel
greenhouse gas emissions. All of the fossil fuel options result in emissions of large amounts of
greenhouse gases. Ethanol and hydrogen have the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions significantly. This, however, is highly dependent on the pathways for ethanol and
hydrogen production, especially the amount of fossil fuel inputs during production. Some of
the hydrogen options result in higher greenhouse gas emissions than those of a petrol ICE
vehicle. Results for hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) are dependent on the efficiency
improvements over conventional vehicles that are assumed.A numerical comparison of C02
emission data presented in Table A2 with those reported in Table 2 should be made with
caution. The large differences in numerical values arise from the differing manner in which
C02 emissions have been expressed. In Table 2, emissions are expressed in grams of carbon
(only) released as CO2 per passenger-km travelled. In Table A2, emissions are in grams of

C02 equivalent per km travel of the vehicle examined. C02 equivalent refers to the amount of
carbon dioxide by weight emitted into the atmosphere that would produce the same radiative
forcing as a given weight of another greenhouse gas, e.g., methane or oxides of nitrogen.
Carbon dioxide equivalents are the product of the weight of gas being considered and its
global warming potential.
Table A2. Comparison of life-cycle inventory studies: well-to-wheel
greenhouse gas emissions

Numerical differences not withstanding, broad conclusions drawn by MacLean and Lave are
very similar to what has been obtained under Indian conditions in this article: all of the fossilfuelled vehicles (including electricity-driven) result in large GHG emissions. The two options
that have potential for the largest GHG emission reductions are the ethanol and the hydrogenfuelled vehicles if the fuels are produced with little or no fossil fuel inputs.

COMPRESSED NATURAL GAS (CNG)

What is CNG? Properties of Natural Gas:
CNG is the short form of Compressed Natural Gas. The Natural Gas has less energy density as
compared to Liquid Fuel and hence it is compressed to over 200 Kg/cm (g) pressure to make
it CNG for use in the automobile sector. In its natural form it is colourless, odourless, nontoxic and non-carcinogenic. However, this natural gas is mixed with an odorant to add flavour
similar to the odour of LPG from a domestic cylinder so as to facilitate detection of its
leakage. The typical composition and physical properties of CNG (i.e. Compressed Natural
Gas) is as follows:
Typical Composition:
Methane : 88%
Ethane

: 5%

Propane : 1%
CO2

: 5%

Others

: 1%

____
Total

: 100%

Physical Properties:
Non-toxic Natural gas being lead/sulphur free, its use substantially reduces harmful engine
emissions. When natural gas burns completely, it gives out carbon dioxide and water vapour the very components we give out while breathing!
Lighter than air Natural gas being lighter than air, will rise aboveground level and disperse
in the atmosphere, in the case of a leakage.
Colourless Natural Gas is available in the gaseous state, and is colourless.
Odourless The gas in its natural form is odourless, however, ethylmercaptan is later added
as odorant so as to detect its leakage.

Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) is used as a fuel in transport sector in many countries. It is a
safe, clean burning and environment friendly fuel. It has been established that exhaust
emissions like hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide are significantly reduced as compared to
other fuels. Toxic emissions such as lead and sulphur are completely eliminated. Existing
petrol vehicles can use CNG by fitting a conversion kit. The CNG converted vehicles have the
flexibility of operating either on petrol or on CNG.
An experimental programme to use CNG as fuel in transport sector in the country was
initiated by GAIL in 1992, whereby CNG was made available in Delhi, Mumbai and Baroda.
The supply of CNG in Mumbai and Delhi are managed by two joint ventures viz. Mahanagar
Gas Nigam Ltd. and Indraprastha Gas Limited respectively and in Surat and Ankleshwar, by a
private company. The average cost of converting a petrol car to CNG is about Rs.35,000.
There are over 10,000 CNG converted Petrol vehicles in Mumbai and over 3000 such vehicles
in Delhi. 11 buses of DTC are running on CNG in Delhi, with 2 existing diesel buses
converted to CNG on trial basis.
CNG dispensing retail outlets on mother-daughter concept as well as online dispensing units
have been set up in Delhi. Under the former system, Natural Gas is compressed and filled into
truck mounted cascades (basket of cylinders) in the mother compressor station and transported
to daughter units for dispensing to CNG vehicle. The mother station initially set up in
Ghaziabad has been re-located and brought near to Delhi at Sarai Kale Khan, in May97. At
present there are seven daughter and four on-line dispensing retail outlets in Delhi. Further
expansion of the infrastructural network to 80 CNG outlets is proposed by March 2000. The
process of acquiring land sites to set up the required number of outlets is going on.

WHY CNG?
Reasons for switching over to this alternate fuel are mainly:
1. Economic benefit: The cost of CNG is almost a third of the cost of Petrol in terms of
calorific value resulting in substantial saving in fuel cost, and investment on the CNG
kit is paid back in a short period
2. Environment friendly: The use of CNG as a fuel reduces vehicular exhaust emissions
significantly. Carbon Monoxide emissions are reduced by 70 to 90% and Hydrocarbon
emissions by 40 to 60% as compared to vehicles that use the conventional fuel - Petrol.
Carbon Dioxide emissions, a cause for global warming, are also reduced significantly
by 10%
3. 100% Income Tax Depreciation: Corporate Organisations, firms, etc. can claim 100%
depreciation on a CNG Conversion Kit as this is a pollution controlling equipment.
Organisations that buy CNG Conversion Kits should consult their Income Tax
Consultants and avail of the depreciation benefits
4. Flexibility and ease of use: The basic engine characteristics of a vehicle are retained
while converting it to run on CNG. The vehicle therefore is capable of running either
on Petrol or CNG at the flick of a switch on its dashboard.
The Fuelling Process
There are very few CNG refuelling stations. Of the ones that exist, there are three basic types.
Fast fuelling stations which take five to ten minutes for refuelling, ideal for retail roadside
pumps. Slow fuelling stations which take from five to eight hours to fill, ideal for a fleet of
vehicles which have a long idling time. Combined Fast and Slow fuelling stations which can
cater to both the above categories.CNG is stored at compression stations which are directly
connected with the gas pipeline. Here the gas is compressed to a required pressure and aids
fuelling. CNG can also be transported to other retail outlets by cylinder trucks. these trucks
carry a number of cylinders which provide CNG to fuel stations which are not connected by

pipelines. These fuelling stations could be placed alongside petrol and diesel pumps too. the
whole process requires proper infrastructure and transportation.
Bi-fuel Possibility
Vehicles can also be operated in the dual mode like Petrol-CNG and Diesel-CNG.
Experiments of these kinds have been conducted on vehicles by TELCO,Kirloskar Cummins
Ltd., Ashok Leyland, IBP, OIL, Delhi transport Corporation and Gujarat Road Transport
Corporation. The results were quite satisfactory.
The Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) has requested vehicle manufacturers to nominate
workshops and undertake conversions on their vehicles. The actual performance could be
monitored by the Indian Institute for Petroleum (IIP), Kit suppliers from Italy and New
Zealand have joined hands with oil marketing companies and vehicle manufacturers to train
and initiate conversion from petroleum products to CNG.
Many countries around the world, including India, have abundant reserves of natural gas.
Hopefully, it is only a matter of time when things begin to take a turn for the better and CNG
would be as prevalent as petroleum products.
What does the kit comprise of ?
1.

The Cylinder: The cylinder is used to store CNG at a working pressure of 200 bar. It is
fitted with a shut-off valve and a safety burst disc. The cylinders are type approved by the
Chief Controller of Explosives, Government of India.

2.

The Vapour Bag: Fitted onto the cylinder, the Vapour Bag is used to enclose the cylinder
valve and the pipes connecting it and is vented out of the car

3.

The High Pressure Pipe: This High Pressure Pipe connects the refuelling valve to the
CNG Cylinder and Pressure Regulator

4.

The Refuelling Valve: The Refuelling Valve is used to refuel the CNG cylinder

5.

The Pressure Regulator: The Pressure Regulator has a Solenoid Valve to shut-off gas
supply to the engine. The CNG stored at a high pressure in the cylinder is reduced to just
below atmospheric pressure by this unit. This negative pressure is also a safety feature
that will not allow gas to pass through when the engine is not running.

6.

The Gas-Air Mixer: The Gas-Air Mixer is a unique component, specially designed to
suit each engine model. It precisely meters gas fed into the engine.

7.

The Petrol-Solenoid Valve: The Petrol-Solenoid Valve is used to cut off petrol supply to
the engine when it is run on CNG

8.

The Selector Switch: The Selector Switch is fitted at the dashboard, enabling the driver
to choose either the CNG mode or the petrol mode of operation. The electronics built into
this unit also ensures safety by switching off the gas solenoid whenever the engine is
switched off. It also serves as a fuel indicator for the quantity of CNG available in the
cylinder

POLLUTION REDUCTION IN CNG FUELLED VEHICLES

The use of CNG in vehicles has lead to considerable reduction in air pollution as is evident
from the following data:
A.

Auto rickshaw Three wheelers:

B. Passenger Cars:

C. Diesel Buses:

Pilot project of GAIL:

Objective: A pilot project was initiated by GAIL (India) Ltd. in collaboration with
Indian Institute of Petroleum, Dehradun to establish the feasibility of using CNG as an
alternative to liquid fuels such as Diesel & Petrol used by buses & automobiles in 3
cities namely Delhi, Mumbai & Baroda.

Infrastructure of GAIL under pilot project: 1 Mother station was initially put up at
Ghaziabad which has since been shifted to Seakale Khan. This mother station was
feeding to 5 daughter stations in Delhi. 3 Nos. online stations were added making total
9 Nos. of Cogitations during the pilot phase of the project. The station design and
safety norms followed were as per New Zealand standards.

CNG CONSIDERED AS ALTERNATIVE FUEL:

CNG is totally safe. It is non-toxic, non-corrosive and non-carcinogenic (totally free from
cancer inducing agent). CNG being predominately methane (CH4) is 0.6 times lighter then
air while petrol is 3-4 times heavier. Being lighter then air, it disperses fast unlike petrol or
LPG, which tends to remain around the place of leakage. CNG does not catch fire easily, as it
requires a much higher concentration of 5.15% in the air to ignite against the 1.8 % required
for petrol. CNG also requires a higher ignition temperature of 540 O C as compared to with
petrol, which requires 232-282 O C, which prevent CNG from catching fire as quickly as petrol.
CNG cylinders are very robust materials, which minimizes the chances of leakage. CNG
promises a breath of fresh air and is environmental friendly. CNG is lead-free and
substantially reduce the harmful engine emission to keep the surroundings and air clean.
CNG INTRODUCED AS ALTERNATIVE FUEL:
A special report of Environmental Pollution and Control Authority (EPCA) Committee headed
by Sh. Bhurey Lal comprises of Secy. Transport, Delhi Government, A member from Center
for Science and Technology and a member each from Ministry of Environment and Ministry
of Petroleum suggested use of CNG in all commercial vehicles in NCR in addition to ban on
registration of diesel cars in Delhi. However, the Delhi Government was in favour of propane
gas as alternative fuel and set up a propane gas station for DTC buses but the Center did not
approve the propane conversion kit. Even the option was not favoured by Sh. Bhurey Lal
Committee. Thus the Honble Supreme Court accepted CNG as alternative fuel for Gasoline
and diesel vehicles.

CNG TECHONOLOGY (TESTED & EXPERIENCED)

CNG has been successfully used as auto fuel in several countries. As of now, there are more
than 12 lakh CNG driven vehicles in the world. Argentina, Canada, Italy, New Zealand and
USA are among the countries where CNG is being used as auto fuel for some years/. Pakistan
is also successfully running a staggering 1, 60,000 vehicles on CNG. Almost entire transport
system is running on CNG in Pakistan. This conversion process has been on the past five to
six years. Most vehicles in Japan run on LPG, but, now they are also opting for CNG. Even
Bangladesh is also in its way to convert its transport fleet to CNG mode. In India, Mumbai has
been the first to use the CNG mainly for taxies.
VEHICULAR AIR POLLUTION IN DHAKA: The air pollution in few big cities of
Bangladesh is a very serious concern. As per a World Bank Study, as many as 15000 deaths
(5000 in Dhaka), a million cases of sickness requiring medical treatment and 850 million cases
of minor illness can be avoided annually if air pollution levels in the countrys four principal
cities are reduced to match standards in force in developed countries. The same report further
estimates the economic cost of these avoidable deaths and sickness to be US $ 200 to 800
million every year. Dhaka has heterogeneous traffic flows. Three wheelers, out of which
ninety percent are two stroke engines baby taxis and two wheelers, are dominant in the vehicle
fleet in terms of both number and mileage. The number of two stroke engine three wheelers
has tripled from 1990-96. Air pollution levels in Dhaka are considerably higher than the
Bangladesh standards or the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines for residential
areas. Most experts here blame three-wheelers with two-stroke engines and the heavy-duty
diesel vehicles for the high pollution levels. They see leaded gasoline as the principal source
of lead in the atmosphere. As many countries have phased out leaded gasoline, Bangladesh is
also working on the problem. Due to pressure from green lobby to reduce air pollution in
Dhaka, the government decided that three-wheelers would be made to run on non-polluting
compressed natural gas (CNG). Initially, all such decisions remained on paper. The reason
might be that there was support for converting three-wheelers to CNG instead of banning them
so as to prevent the sudden unemployment of at least 250,000 people. Here it is worth
mentioning that motor vehicles per thousand people in Dhaka city is still low in comparison to

other capital cities of developing countries but the likely higher economic growth in the future
with even faster increase in population will definitely result in fast growth in vehicles fleet in
Dhaka. Besides the composition and size of vehicle fleet, poor maintenance, excessive
commercial use, fuel adulteration, use of lubricants of sub standard quality and poor
management of traffic will further result in severe congestion and vehicular pollution in
Dhaka.
Keeping in view the above problems, Dhaka Urban Transport project was launched by the
Government of Bangladesh and the Dhaka City Corporation. The International Development
Association (IDA), the World Banks concessionary arm approved the credit of US $ 177
million for the project. The Government also wanted to develop an Air Quality Management
System to reduce Dhakas severe air pollution. The World Bank provided Bangladesh a $ 4.7
million Learning and Innovative Loan in 2000 for a Bangladesh Air Quality Management
Project (AQMP) under which Dhaka would pilot new ways of controlling urban air pollution.
Next step in the direction of reducing air pollution in Dhaka is to popularize the use of CNG
vehicles, as in many other cities of the world.
ECONOMICS OF CNG VEHICLE PROGRAM IN DHAKA: Worldwide, improving air
quality in urban settings has been a long-standing planning objective and road transport using
diesel vehicles has been identified as major contributor to such air pollution. To help address
this problem, increasingly stringent vehicle emission standards came in to force worldwide. It
also stimulated research into alternative fuels and technologies that promise cleaner and lower
emissions. Various fuels that are alternatives to diesel and petrol have been proposed for use in
vehicles. Alternative fuel vehicles use such fuels as compressed natural gas (CNG), liquefied
natural gas (LNG), methanol, ethanol, bio-diesel fuel and propane. Among these fuels, Natural
Gas, either in the form of CNG or LNG, is more in the news. Reasons behind the popularity of
these fuels are economic as well as environmental. Many countries like Argentina, Canada,
Italy, New Zealand and United States of America have substantial NGV programs. Brazil,
Chile, China, Colombia, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Pakistan and Thailand are in various
phases of developing such programs.As early as in 1985-86, Bangladesh Petroleum
Corporation started a project to use CNG in vehicles instead of Gasoline. The World Bank

donated Tk 225.1 million to initiate the project. The primary objective of this project was to
reduce vehicular emissions as combustion of CNG produces less pollutant than the
gasoline.After a decade in 1996, there were only 86 vehicles converted under the project,
while in that year the volume of traffic in Dhaka only was composed of 84411 cars, 9135
buses, 15600 trucks, 66360 three wheelers and 121156 two wheelers. In year 2002, there were
only five CNG filling stations in Dhaka, out of which 4 has been established by Rupantarit
Prakritika Gas Company Limited (RPGCL) and one was in joint venture between a Chinese
company and RPGCL. The gas supply to these filling stations was quite erratic, particularly
during morning hours when gas pressure decrease due to domestic use. The need was felt to
create an efficient transmission and distribution network to improve and secure a reliable
supply of gas. Further, as conversion of vehicles to CNG has now become imperative to save
the city from the menace of air pollution that has turned the capital into almost a 'gas
chamber', need was felt to set up number of CNG filling stations to cater the growing demand
when large numbers of vehicles get converted to CNG. Realizing the urgency the Bangladesh
Government has taken up the CNG conversion process issue within its 100-day action plan for
implementation. To expedite the process, the government has already given permission to 13
private companies to set up CNG conversion units. The economic benefits arising from the
CNG vehicle program in Dhaka are expected to accrue to consumers of various categories
such as vehicle owners, users of transport, workers and the economy in general. Additionally,
benefits on account of improved environment and thus health status of the population in
Dhaka and macroeconomic contribution of the CNG program for further development of the
energy and particularly, gas sector are equally important.
Economic Benefits to Vehicle Owners & Users: The amount of consumer surplus
(economic benefits) arising from CNG Program will directly benefit the vehicle owners.
Operating cost of CNG vehicles is lower than that of vehicles run on alternate fuel i.e. petrol
or diesel. Thus vehicle owners will benefits from reduced operation costs in terms of resource
cost savings. For instance, if hundred percent of the bus fleet of the Dhaka is converted to
CNG, the present value of likely stream of economic benefits in terms of resource cost savings
in the coming twenty years period, at twelve percent rate of discount, will be about 16000
million Taka. Similarly, the conversion of whole vehicle fleet of Dhaka to CNG will fetch the

present value of likely stream of economic benefits in terms of resource cost savings over a
twenty year period, at twelve percent rate of discount, to the tune of 32000 million taka.
However, the experience shows that vehicle owners will not transfer a portion of consumer
surplus to end-users. Therefore, intervention by Government / administration is required to
ensure that end users of transport also get a share in consumer surplus arising from transport
component in the proposed project.
Benefits to Operators of Filling Stations: Another potential beneficiary of the CNG
program will be the CNG filling station operators because the demand for CNG as fuel is
going to increase and they will earn from the increased sale of CNG. Initially, the profit might
not have been significant because of low gas pressure leading to sub optimal sale proceeds at
the end of the day. However, their income will significantly increase due to the program that
will ensure the regular supply of gas with optimum pressure
Network Benefits: Total consumption of gas by vehicle fleet of Dhaka will be less than the
supply of gas provided by an optimum size of the transmission and distribution network.
Therefore, consumers of other categories such as households, commercial or industrial
consumers will consume the additional supply of gas, over and above the consumption by
transport in the city. Discussions (by author a year back) with RPGCL, the distributor of gas in
Dhaka, revealed that presently, the supply of gas is less than demand, particularly during peak
hours. It results in lower than optimum supply pressure in the existing gas distribution network
and thus existing consumers did not get the proper supply of gas. As suggested by officials of
RPGCL, the investment in up gradation and augmentation of gas transmission and distribution
network will help in improving the supply of gas to existing consumers by maintaining
optimum supply pressure in the network. The possible consumers of the additional supply of
gas by the upgraded network may be grouped under to heads depending upon the physical
location of the newly added transmission and distribution network and its area of coverage.
First group will be households and commercial consumers in the Dhaka city and other
possible consumers may be industries in the outer periphery of Dhaka. In case of first group of
consumers, i.e. household and commercial, economic benefits on account of improved

network for supply of gas will be in terms of resource cost savings because the cost of natural
gas is lower than that of other alternate fuels. In other words, consumers will be able to get
same amount of energy, which they used to get from alternate fuels, by spending less. Such
benefits will occur to existing as well as new consumers. In case of use of gas in industry, the
economic benefits will be in terms of net incremental output (net value added) to the economy.
The quantum of such benefits depends upon the type of industries likely to consume the
additional supply of gas. Discussions with officials of RPGCL indicated that a few gas based
power plants have been proposed in Dhaka region, which may be the likely consumers of the
additional gas supply. This possibility becomes even more likely in the light of the fact that the
gas based power plants in Bangladesh are not getting the requisite supply of gas for power
generation. However, possibility of supplying gas to industries in outer Dhaka region
simultaneously with the supply to CNG filling stations may not be feasible because of the
incompatible spatial patterns of industrial development and spread of city. Therefore, the
network benefits are more likely to occur to household and commercial consumers.
Health Benefits due to Reduced Pollution : Proportionate share of Dhaka in reported cases
of death and sickness was taken on the basis of proportionate share of Dhaka in the total
population of major cities of the country and thus, economic benefits associated with reduced
health problems due to use of CNG was estimated for the city. The benefits in terms of savings
in cost of health impact due to air pollution was estimated under three heads, viz. loss of
human capital deaths due to air pollution, loss of work person days on account of sickness
due to air pollution and expenditure on treatment.
The estimated cost of health problem due to air pollution in Dhaka comes to about Tk 25000
million per year. In other words, Tk 25000 million as health benefits can occur to the
economy, if an air pollution level in Dhaka is reduced to match standards in force in developed
countries.
Macro Economic Benefits -Foreign Exchange Savings: It is generally argued that market
for gas in Bangladesh is limited This argument seems misplaced when demand scenario for
gas in Bangladesh is analyzed in the context of possibilities of replacement of other imported

fuels such as petrol and diesel by gas. Judging from the size of the oil bills in the BOP, the fact
of the matter

appears

to be that Bangladesh

had been an energy deficient

country.Projections[ by Power System Master Plan (PSMP) put the likely growth in energy
demand in Bangladesh at 10% per annum. Assuming the same rate of growth in demand for
petrol and diesel, calculations reveal that demand for these energy products is going to be
more than four times after 15 years.
Projected* Demand for Petrol and Diesel in Bangladesh
000 MT
Year
Petrol
Diesel
1995-96
174.00
1303.00
2000
280.00
2098.00
2005
451.00
3378.00
2010
726.00
5438.00
2015
1169.00
8755.00
Projections are based on power demand forecasts made by the Power System Master
Plan (PSMP), which predict that power demand is going to grow at 10% per annum in
the country.
Keeping in view the current import bill of the country for these fuels, limited available
reserves of petroleum and exploration activities there, the domestic production is not going to
meet this increasing demand. To meet the increasing demand for petrol and diesel there are
two options available with the government- either increase the imports or replace the use of
these fuels by domestically produced natural gas.
The first option has no economic logic. For example, in 1995-96, 1007 thousand MT of diesel
was imported which was valued at 183 Million US$. Assuming that the ratio between
imported fuels and domestic production will remain the same, as at present, and demand
growth will be as predicted by PSMP, the likely quantum of import of diesel alone will be
about 6700 thousand MT in 2015.
Projected Imports of Diesel in Bangladesh
000MT

Year

Diesel

1995-96

1007

2000

1621

2005

2610

2010

4206

2015

6775

Thus, considering the existing level of imports of these products and precarious position of
foreign exchange reserves, Bangladesh cannot afford to depend on imports of energy fuels to
meet the increasing demand.The other viable option is to replace the petrol and diesel by
natural gas as a fuel in industry and transport.For example, let us consider the case of
replacing use of imported diesel by domestically produced natural gas in the industry and
transport sector, and resulting foreign exchange savings. Since the replacement of diesel with
gas is a gradual process and takes few years to fully materialize, the savings in foreign
exchange will be smaller in the initial years. But after 4-5 years such savings will pick up.
Thus the import substitution may save the country foreign exchange to the tune of about US$
90 Million in 2005, which may increase to about US$ 330 Million in 2010.
Other Prospects: Presently, the industry contributes only about 18% of GDP in Bangladesh.
But the analysis of historical changes in structure and composition of GDP in industrialized
and newly industrialized countries indicate that the relative share of industry, transport and
services sector in the GDP increases with the increase in per capita GDP and industrialization.
With such structural changes in the economy of Bangladesh, the per capita consumption of
energy will also increase and, in this context, the role of gas sector as a strategic sector to pick
up the economic growth is very crucial. As the demand for energy increases in the economy
the gas sector will develop further and cater to the demand either by increasing supply in its
present pattern of usage and or through import substitution. The CNG vehicle program in
Dhaka will play the role of catalyst to speed up the process of development in the gas sector.
Here, it is timely to comment that the need is to link energy sector growth strategy with trade,
business, industry and agriculture growth strategy in the mid to long term. Besides, further
development of gas sector will help Bangladesh to export gas to earn foreign exchange.

Although the decision to export gas is a political one, but possibilities of export are
intrinsically related with the development of domestic market for gas. Activities related with
development of domestic gas market such as CNG program in Dhaka give impetus to gas
exploration and infrastructure development activities, and thus set the stage for export of gas.
Ultimately, it will help in picking up the industrialization and economic growth through
forward and backward linkages and thus further expansion of the domestic and international
market for gas.

GETTING INTO THE CNG MODE

HOW TO GET PETROLEUM VEHICLES INTO CNG MODE:

Petrol/diesel vehicles can be made into CNG mode by:

Replacement of petroleum vehicles into new CNG vehicles Retro fitment with new
CNG engines

Conversion of petrol/diesel vehicles to CNG mode

CONVERSION TECHNOLOGY APPROVAL OF:

Conversion technology was developed by the Indian Institute of Petroleum, Dehradun (U.P).
The technology was reported to be quicker and extremely cost effective. Delhi Government
approved this scheme of conversion of petroleum vehicles into CNG mode on 20.10.1999. The
Honble Supreme Court on 16.2.2001 ordered that only those CNG buses to ply on Delhi
Roads which are certified by the Retro fitting companies authorized by any of the following
testing authorities:
Automobile Research Association of India, Pune (Maharashtra).
Vehicle Research & Development Establishment, Ahmednagar (VRDE).
Indian Institute of Petroleum, Dehradun (U.P).
On the basis of approved conversion technology, the conversion of diesel bus to CNG mode is
first major technology achievement of India in the World.

Transporters/Operators have been cautioned to get it install the CNG kits at a workshop
authorized by its suppliers or Manufacturer.
PROBLEMS FOR CNG COMPLIANT BUS BODIES:

Government envisaged the body fabrication problems. No single fabricator was able to supply
the bus bodies as required in view of the limited time. Hence the body fabrications work was
allotted to distant body fabricators at Mumbai, Jamshed Pur and Ahmedabad in addition to in
and around Delhi. Couple of months was wasted in getting the Railway to ferry the CNG
chassis to distant body fabricators. Later on the chassis were transported through pullers,
which costed an increase of Rs. 1 lakh per bus body fabrication because Indraprastha Gas
Limited shown its inability to provide mobile cascade enroute for filling CNG chassis.
CNG - TECHNOLOGY:
The authorized manufacturers built up about 2200 new CNG buses, which started plying on
Delhi Roads by using an obsolete ignition system, which resulted a incident of fire causing
injuries to five persons on 5.8.2001.
These buses have a distributor based ignition system, which can be dangerous if the CNG
cylinders are leaking. The distributor produces sparks, which ignites the CNG gas inside the
ignition chamber. In addition, distributors also produce sparks outside the chamber. This
makes them vulnerable to the highly inflammable CNG. It is a first generation system, which
has been discarded in many countries. It is not known that why our manufacturers in India are

using the dangerous technology. China has been the latest to ban this obsolete technology.
These new CNG buses with distributor based ignition system are moving bombs on our roads.
They need immediate replacement.
No doubt CNG is a safe fuel, but if it is exposed to sparks, it bounds to catch fire. The safest
option is third generation distributor less ignition kits. It produces sparks inside the ignition
chamber and not outside. It is entirely controlled by computer driven system. It is learnt that
this technology is being adopted by our conversion companies.
SAFETY NORMS FOR CNG-RUN-SYSTEM:
Safety norms for CNG run vehicles have not been notified till now. It is learnt that the draft
safety norms drawn by Bureau of Indian Standards are under process of approval and are
likely to be finalized and approved by the end of this year i.e. 2001. There are no
comprehensive legally enforceable rules to govern the safety of CNG vehicles plying on Delhi
roads and interim draft prepared by the Pune based Automobile Research Association of India
is only document which lays down the safety standards. Safety norms should be specified in
the Central Motor Vehicles Rules. In the absence of Law, many violators can go scot-free.
CNG run vehicles norms are in the nascent stage globally as well. The norms evolved by the
International Organization of Standards (ISO)- the Apex body under the United States
Umbrella are also in the final draft stage.
Safety and maintenance go hand by hand, when one talk about CNG with Delhis entire
commercial vehicles fleet being converted to the CNG mode, safety concerns need to be
addressed on priority. Norma applicable to diesel buses are being adopted for CNG buses.
INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT FOR CNG RUN SYSTEM
Indraprastha Gas Limited which is a joint venture company of Gas Authority of India (GAIL)
Ltd., Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd., and the Govt. of Delhi is the only company
responsible for supply of CNG for Delhi Transport System.

Infrastructure development for supply of CNG in the city of Delhi has a vital role for efficient
CNG transport system. Under distribution net work IGL set up Mother stations, on line
stations, Daughter booster stations, daughter stations for proper dispensing of CNG through
out Delhi. The purpose of these stations are briefly discussed hereunder: Mother Station: A station, which is attached to the gas pipe line and which delivers CNG at a
pressure of 250 Bar to Cascades.
On line Station: A station which is on line and has a smaller compressor to deliver CNG to
vehicles at 250 bar.
Daughter booster station: A daughter station with its own compressor (Booster).
Daughter station: A station which receives a cascades (CNG tank) from a Mother Station
The biggest compressors which are installed in mother stations have a flow rate of 1100 kg per
hour. For on line stations, a smaller compressor is used which can fill 250 kg per hour. Both
these compress the gas up to 250 bar pressure and can serve two dispensers at one time i.e.
they can help to fill up four vehicles at one time (one dispenser is used to fill two vehicles).
Therefore, lack of adequate number of compressors in a dispensing station can result in the
dispensers becoming non-functional. There is an other type of compressor called booster,
which is used only in daughter station to increase the pressure of the gas, when pressure in a
Cascade drops to about 180 bar from the required filling pressure of 200 bar while dispensing
gas. In the absence of booster, it is not possible to dispense gas once the pressure level falls to
180 bar and then this Cascade has to be changed.
A study done by IGL in Daughter Station without booster in Delhi connecting three wheelers
showed the following effect of low pressure with reference to filling of the cylinders
Pressure observed
200 bar
180 bar
165 bar

CNG filled in

Filling time in

kg
3.5 (full)
3.15
2.89

seconds
90
67
48

150 bar

2.63

29

At the pressure of 150 bar it is not feasible to fill the cylinder any more and the Cascade is to
be changed and replaced with a new one. In other words, once the pressure drops in a Cascade
of a Daughter Station, very little gas gets filled up in the vehicles cylinders. It means that the
efficiency of the dispensing CNG at daughter station would depend on the number of cascade
available of adequate pressure. As learnt there are only 120-125 Cascades for 47 Daughter
Stations in Delhi @ approximate 3 Cascades for each Daughter Station. Out of these 3
Cascades only one Cascade is in use, other is getting filled up at Mother Station and the third
is in the transit. There are 74 dispensing stations for supply of CNG in Delhi, the location of
which is given in table 2 (Annexure).
Perusal of table 2 reveals that the distribution of dispensing stations is not spread out
uniformly in the NCT of Delhi. It is proposed to set up 50 more dispensing stations at the
existing petrol pumps where the land is available. By Sept. 2001 there is a proposal to increase
the dispensing stations from 74 to 87 and to convert 9 existing Daughter Stations into Mother
Stations. Implementation of the scheme in pipe line would give a great relief to the CNG
vehicle operation. There are ten CNG dispensing stations which are running on generators in
the lack of electric power. A polluting fuel is being used to supply non polluting fuel clearly
shows the lack of planning. Now IGL is planning to purchase gas engine generated
mechanically compressors.
Along with infrastructure development, the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Govt. of
India has to increase the allocation of natural gas for meeting the demand of CNG transport of
Delhi, so that, there is no deficiency of CNG for smooth and efficient running of transport
system of Delhi.
HOW ULSD IS ENVIRONMENTALLY ACCEPTABLE
Diesel supply in Delhi has 0.05% sulphur content. Although, it meets Euro II standards, but it
is not defined as environmentally acceptable fuel. ULSD (Ultra-Low- Sulphur- Diesel) with

0.003-0.001 % of sulphur content, when used with exhaust fitments like CatalyticRegeneration-Trap (CRT) Gadget similar to a catalytic converter, which cost much more, is an
environmentally acceptable fuel. A major problem in use of the ULSD is that the adulteration
can not be ruled out in this fuel which makes the ULSD environmentally unacceptable. As of
now ULSD is not available in the country, then, either we have to import or upgrade the
existing refineries. India being a developing country is neither in a position to develop the
advance technology for upgrading its refineries to be able to produce ULSD nor the capacity
to import from the other countries.

DEVELOPMENT OF CNG INFRASTRUCTURE IN DELHI (INDIA)

SECTOR-WISE EMISSIONS* IN DELHI
(Metric Tonnes per Day)

With the increasing number of pollutants in Delhis air and with the background of increasing
trend in the use of CNG in the other parts of the world, Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was
filed in the Honble Supreme Court of India in 1985 seeking intervention in this matter. The
Honble Supreme Court had directed the Government of India to take initiative in promoting
the use of CNG, an established clean fuel in the world as transport fuel in Delhi to control the
increasing levels of ambient air pollution.
Formation of IGL

Supreme Court gave directive to GAIL in July1998 to expand theCNG

infrastructure and to increase the number of CNG stationsfrom 9 to 80 by March 31,
2000 in Delhi. It also directed Delhi Govt.to convert entire city bus fleet, autos &
taxies from liquid fuel toCNG/Clean Fuel.

Subsequently in Dec.1998 Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL) was incorporated as a

joint venture company of GAIL, BPCL & Govt. ofNCT of Delhi to regard to the CNG
expansion program in Delhi.

Issues of land allotment: Govt. of NCT of Delhi holding 5% equity in IGL helped
IGL in getting the allotment of lands, permissions for laying pipelines and in getting
electricity connections.

Uncertainty on vehicles conversion: While IGL was formed to install 80 CNG

stations there was an apprehension whether the DTC buses would be available for
CNG usage. Besides all the autorikshaws, taxis and private buses were also to be
converted for CNG use. Tremendous efforts were required to convince DTC, Bus
Operators and Delhi Administration for the conversion of vehicles to CNG in such a
short time. Today there are more than 87,000 vehicles in theNCT of Delhi, which are
running on CNG.

Type of CNG Stations:

Four types of CNG stations have been developed in Delhi. These are as follows:
Mother Station: Mother stations are connected to the pipeline and have high compression
capacity. These stations supply CNG to both vehicles and daughter stations (through mobile
cascades). Typically they have the facility of filling all types of vehicles buses/autos/cars.
The Mother station requires heavy investment towards compressor, dispensers, cascades,
pipelines,tubing etc.

TYPICAL CNG MOTHER STATION

Online Station: CNG vehicle storage cylinders need to be filled at pressure of 200 bars. On
line Stations are equipped with a compressor of relatively small capacity, which compresses
low pressure pipeline gas to the pressure of 250 bar for dispensing CNG to the vehicle
cylinder. The investment in an online station is midway between daughter station and mother
station.

Daughter Station: The Daughter Stations dispense CNG using mobile cascades. These
mobile cascades at daughter stations are replaced when pressure falls and pressure depleted
mobile cascade is refilled at the Mother Station. The investment in a daughter station is least
among all types of CNG stations
There is reduction in storage pressure at daughter stations with eachsuccessive filling. Once
the storage pressure drops, the refueling timeincreases, while the quantity of CNG dispensed
to vehicle also decreases.
Daughter-Booster Station: Installing a booster compressor can eliminate drawbacks of
daughter stations. The mobile cascade can be connected to the dispensing system through a
booster. Daughter booster (compressor) is designed to take variable suction pressure and

discharge at constant pressure of 200 bars to the vehicle being filled with CNG. The
investment in daughter booster station is slightly higher than that of
daughter station.
TYPICAL DAUGHTER BOOSTER STATION

Mega CNG Stations:

Mega CNG stations have been conceptualized to cater to a large fleet of vehicles, particularly
the buses. The objective is to provide comfortable filling experience to the consumers when
they come to the station forefeeling. Mega CNG stations are constructed on much larger plot
of land than that of conventional CNG stations, as a result of which more number of
Compressors and Dispensers can be installed and more number of vehicles can be
simultaneously refuelled at such stations. A Mega CNG station has been commissioned at
Rohini, Sector 23 on July 13, 2003 and a similar station has been put into operation at
Patparganj on June 30, 2003.At present, there are three Mega CNG stations in Delhi. The
CNG Mega station at Patpargang has been constructed at a cost of around Rs.13.5 crores
(USD 3 MM) to simultaneously refuel five buses and eight other vehicles (cars, autos, mini
buses etc.). Built on a plot of size 75m X 40 m, it has the capacity to comfortably refuel CNG
to 800 buses and over 1500 other vehicles daily.
Economics of CNG

The growth of CNG vehicles in the year 2002 was primarily because of economic advantage
of CNG with regard to petrol / diesel. The economics of running the CNG vehicles vis--vis
its operation on petrol /diesel has been worked out at the current price of fuel. The results are
reproduced in the form of the following bar graph:

.
Cities where City Gas Distribution Projects being planned:
As per the directive of the Honble Supreme Court of India dated April 5,2002, in order to
control heavy air pollution due to vehicular traffic, the following cities in India have been
identified for developing infrastructure for distribution of alternative fuel:

.
However, the study of air pollution indicated that the pollution in the cities of Jodhpur and
Jharia is mainly due to dust pollution than vehicular emissions. Also, there are no trunk gas
pipeline in the vicinity of Patna and Varanasi.
Subsequently, in August 2003, Honble Supreme Court of India has issued a directive to the
Union of India and the state governments to draw plans to introduce clean fuels in 11 cities
apart from the existing cities of Delhi and Mumbai. These are:
KOLKATA, CHENNAI, BANGALORE, HYDERABAD, AHMEDABAD, SHOLAPUR,
SURAT, LUCKNOW, KANPUR, AGRA, PUNE
Under its Project Blue Sky, GAIL has already drawn plans to implement city gas projects in
the five cities of Kanpur, Lucknow, Agra, Bareilly and Pune in phases at an estimated
investment of Rs. 554 crores (equivalent to 118Million USD).

The total no. of CNG stations planned to be operational by the end of financial year 2003
2004 would be as follows:1) Delhi

: 120

2) Mumbai, Maharashtra: 88
3) Gujarat

:6

Factors Influencing the Success of CNG Project:

Government commitment to the program

Sustainable economic advantage over liquid fuels

Appropriate CNG technologies

Appropriate program management

OEM support

Safety of CNG vehicles and CNG economic are key factors that determine the success
of CNG program

Environment and Climate Protection

In India a new Auto Fuel Policy has been adopted in October03 and the policy gives a
roadmap for achieving various vehicular emission norms over a period of time and the
corresponding fuel quality up gradation requirements. While it does not recommend any
particular fuel or technology for achieving the desired emission norms, it suggests, taking into
account security of supplies and existing logistics, perspectives, that liquid fuels should
remain as main auto fuel through out the country and that the use of CNG/LPG be encouraged.
The report also recommends measures for improving the present mechanism of checking
pollution for min used vehicles.

Limited natural gas allocation leading to delay in management decisions onexpenditure

commitment

Uncertainty about conversion of vehicles & CNG demand

Lack of indigenous technology

Capital intensive project - a mother station cost would be 5-6 times the cost of a petrol
pump & pipeline need to be in place

Infrastructural constraints (Electricity, land etc.)

Delay in getting permissions from statutory authorities

Objection from local people, encroachment

Low storage capacity of on board cylinders, thus requiring frequent refills

Difficulties For Developing CNG Infrastructure

Limited natural gas allocation leading to delay in management decisions on

expenditure commitment

Uncertainty about conversion of vehicles & CNG demand

Lack of indigenous technology

Capital intensive project - a mother station cost would be 5-6 times the cost of a petrol
pump & pipeline need to be in place

Infrastructural constraints (Electricity, land etc.)

Delay in getting permissions from statutory authorities

Objection from local people, encroachment

Low storage capacity of on board cylinders, thus requiring frequent refills

Lessons Learnt in Implementing CNG Program

IGL in a short span of five years has installed 117 CNG stations in NCT of Delhi in spite of
various hurdles faced during implementation of the program. The following lessons have been
learnt in implementing the CNG infrastructure development program:

Study of geographical spread of CNG vehicles movement is a must to analyze the peak
demand at individual CNG stations

Pipeline distribution infrastructure needs to be in place

Dedicated/adequate mobile cascade filling arrangement continuous supply of gas to

daughter stations.

Involvement of local government/transport authorities

Genuine cylinder kits and spare parts be used for CNG vehicles to avoid accidents

Suitable codes/standards are to be in placed for CNG kit fitment, testing etc.

Safety and performance standards should be in place, monitored and enforced

CNG stations need to be built in large open space to allow multi vehicle and multi
point dispensing

Development of CNG infrastructure needs to be in line with growth of CNG vehicles.

Long term advance planning needs to be carried out

Development of CNG station is time and d capital consuming activity.

CONCLUSION
Delhi is one of the most polluted City in the world, where over 3000 metric tonne air
pollutants are emitted every day. The strictest feasible emissions control can not substantially
reduce the alarming situations till the petroleum is used as a transport fuel.
There is no clean fuel except electricity. CNG, LPG and Propane are gaseous fuels and
environmentally acceptable.CNG is totally safe. It is non-toxic, non-corrosive and noncarcinogenic (totally free from cancer inducing agents). It is cheap and easily available due to
availability of HBJ gas pipeline. Petroleum vehicles can be easily and effectively converted to
CNG mode vehicles. India is the first country in the world, which has succeeded for
conversion of diesel engine to CNG mode.CNG and LPG are the legal transport fuel
gases.CNG technology with distributor based ignition system is a first generation system,
which is an obsolete technology and dangerous. CNG advance technology is third generation
distributor less ignition system, which is computer-controlled system. There is an urgent need
to notify safety norms for CNG run vehicles otherwise the violators will go scot-free.
Emission standards for CNG run vehicles be finalized and notified at the earliest. For healthy
competition, there is a need to register and approve more manufacturers/companies for
providing CNG run vehicles and their components. Infrastructure development for adequate
and efficient supply of CNG needs priority. Allocation for CNG be raised for NCR.ULSD
(Ultra Low Sulphur Diesel) is also an environmentally acceptable fuel if the sulphur content is
in between 0.003-0.001 % and when used with fitment. Its production on commercial basis is
uneconomical.
Compressed Natural Gas has been accepted as an alternative fuel by the public at large. The
stage is set for expanding the network to other cities. The success of CNG Expansion Program
would depend on many factors. The key factors being the economy of CNG vis--vis other
conventional fuels, adherence to safety guidelines and the Government Support. Auto LPG is
also launched on a large scale in the country. At the end of the day, it will be the quality of the
fuel and economics which would be important parameters for the commercial success of auto

fuel. The emphasis would be on fuels with lowest emissions. However, CNG is here for the
time being till a better fuel is discovered offering better economics
to the users.