HP Taxis, Prins Alternative Fuel Systems and SBL-Automotive revealed versions of the plug-in hybrid range-extended electric LEVC TX taxi and VN5 van allowing the range extender engine to run on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and compressed natural gas (CNG) and their renewable counterparts of biopropane and biomethane. The LEVC TX and VN5 are manufactured by London EV Company (LEVC), a subsidiary of Geely.
Adopting these fuels allows carbon emissions from the range extender engine to be reduced by 10% when LPG is used, 20% when CNG is used and by 99% when renewable biomethane (in place of CNG) and biopropane (in place of LPG) are used.
Biomethane and biopropane are drop-in replacement fuels for CNG and LPG and require no changes to refuelling infrastructure or to a vehicle already evolved with a bi-fuel fuel system (CNG or LPG). All of these fuels are available today and also offer 30-50% operating cost savings. Further savings are expected as biomethane and biopropane production volumes continue to ramp up.
Compared to the vehicle range using petrol, the LPG/biopropane tank provides a further 90% of this range and the CNG/biomethane tank provides a further 70% of this range. Based on LEVC’s WLTP-based range figures of 64 miles using the battery and a further 319 miles using the 36 litre petrol tank (i.e., total range 383 miles) the bi-fuel evolutions therefore deliver a further 287 miles for LPG/biopropane and 223 miles for CNG/biomethane.
Total range is therefore 670 miles for the bi-fuel LPG/biopropane evolution and 606 miles for the bi-fuel CNG/biomethane evolution. A number of fuel tank solutions are also being developed for the VN5 including placing the tanks under the floor rather than in the payload area.
Conversion costs are still in development but the target is for the system paying for itself in 12 to 18 months.
Source: Green Car Congress