Fuel gas-powered scooter

A fuel gas-powered scooter is a scooter powered by fuel gas. Fuel gases include such fuels such as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), compressed natural gas (CNG), biogas and hydrogen (HICE). Hydrogen (hydrogen internal combustion) use in two-wheelers has only recently being started to be looked into, mainly by developing countries, to decrease local pollution at an affordable cost.[1]

Police checking a scooter in Shanghai. Sometimes phony LPG tanks are attached to scooters to skirt the law against petrol engines.

LPG scooters are in use in China and many parts of Southern Asia.

Incentives for using fuel gas in scooters

Fuel costs

Each different fuel comes at a different price. These prices depend on the country, and even differ between gas stations. Scooter owners may decide to use whatever fuel that is cheapest and which is also locally available.

Petrol bans in cities

Shanghai has banned petrol scooters/mopeds and only allows LPG scooters to be used in the city due to air pollution.[2][3] About 190,000 gasoline mopeds were eliminated between 2001 and 2004, replaced by 140,000 LPG mopeds as of 2004, at which time the city had over 100 LPG refueling stations.[3] In 1996 the city's 500,000 gasoline mopeds were blamed for one fifth of the air pollution in Shanghai, so in 1997 the city stopped issuing new license plates for them.[3] In 2000, the city stopped renewing plates for existing gasoline mopeds, so all of them expired by 2008.[3]

Low emission zones in cities

Low emission zones are present in many cities. Fuel gases such as hydrogen, CNG, LPG, ... may allow for reaching the appropriate limit to enter the city in which such LEZ's are present (depending on which European emission standard or US emission standard is being used in the LEZ).[4]

Conversion kits for petrol scooters

Petrol-powered scooters can be fitted with a conversion kit. Conversion kits for CNG for example exist for some popular motorcycle models.[5][6][7]

See also

Notes
  1. Hydrogen-Fueled Internal Combustion Engines, see page 7
  2. Associated Press (16 June 2008), "Shanghai hikes LPG price, aiming to counter shortages", The Hindu, Shanghai, retrieved 2011-04-12
  3. Cao Li (30 November 2004), "Shanghai phasing out old mopeds from streets", China Daily (North American ed.)., New York, NY, p. 3
  4. A comparison of exhaust emissions from vehicles fuelled with petrol, LPG and CNG
  5. ITUK Launches CNG Conversion Kit for India’s Scooters
  6. Launch of CNG-fueled Two-Wheelers in Mumbai
  7. CNG-fuelled Scooters Launched

References


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