This is equivalent to CO2 emissions of just 79g/km.
One of the greatest benefits of natural gas cars is that they can also be powered by alternative fuels such as renewable bio-methane. This fuel is produced from plant by-products which do not compete with food crops. New methods being explored for producing bio-methane include obtaining it from straw, which will further reduce the dependency on classic natural gas.
In Germany, for example, a study by the German Biomass Research Centre in Leipzig showed that up to 13 million metric tonnes of straw remain unused each year. This could theoretically power four million natural gas vehicles. A facility for producing bio-methane from straw has been operating in Germany since February 2012.
FIRST
The first new car model to be designed for natural gas was the 2002 Golf Estate 2,0 BiFuel - a natural gas powered compact class car. In 2006, the Caddy 2,0 EcoFuel was launched by Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles along with the Touran 2,0 EcoFuel. These two models extended Volkswagen's natural gas drive into city delivery vehicles and compact vans.
In 2009, the Passat debuted a pioneering 1,4 TSI EcoFuel with its twin charging supercharger and turbocharger. The new engine offered better performance than before in the field of natural gas drives. In the same year, Volkswagen adopted this drive system for the Touran as well.
By the end of 2012, the company offered six natural gas powered vehicles in various classes: the Caddy 2,0 EcoFuel, the extended Caddy Maxi 2,0 EcoFuel (each 80kW), the Touran 1,4 TSI EcoFuel, the Passat and Passat Estate 1,4 TSI EcoFuel (each 110kW) and the entirely new Eco Up! (50kW).
In 2013, the new Golf will also debut in an EcoFuel version. In this vehicle, Volkswagen is offering one of the world's most versatile natural gas vehicle programmes.
NATURAL GAS
Natural gas exhibits a significantly higher energy content than petrol or diesel: 1,0kg of natural gas is equivalent to 1,3L of diesel or 1,5L of petrol. The energy content of 1,0kg natural gas amounts to 11,69kWh; the associated quantity of diesel yields 9,86 kWh, the energy content of petrol is 8,77 kWh.
In addition, gas can be obtained, in a manner that is CO2-neutral, from alternative, renewable raw materials and then combusted. In the combustion of industrially generated biomethane, it has the same chemical structure as natural gas - the amount of CO2 released is equivalent to the amount previously absorbed by the plants during their growth. It is crucial to note that biomethane is obtained from plant by-products and not from the food produced by the plant, which excludes any sort of competition with the food chain.
Natural gas and biomethane, hydrogen and methane fuels produced by electrolysis, will be important elementary building blocks to become independent of fossil-based oil. Cars like the Volkswagen Eco up! will help in producing CO2-neutral gas. Acceptance of these cars will also mean the refilling station infrastructure as well as governmental support for this type of clean drive will grow.
In Germany, there were around 97 000 natural gas vehicles in mid-2012, showing growth of 4,3 per cent over the previous year. In Italy, the inventory of natural gas vehicles doubled from 382 000 to 785 000 cars between 2005 and 2011. Here, natural gas vehicles are promoted with tax advantages, rebates in new car purchases and exemptions from certain traffic rules. In addition, extension of the natural gas refilling station network is subsidised.
In Germany, it is expected that the number of natural gas vehicles will rise up to 4 per cent by 2020 - around 1,4 million vehicles. Biomethane, often referred to as bio-natural gas, continues to increase in importance thanks to its eco-friendly properties and the possibility of producing it through the industrial processes. Even when 'pure' natural gas is used, CO2 emissions are reduced by 24 per cent compared to petrol engines.
The CO2 emissions situation is further improved when biomethane is used: When 20 percent biomethane is added to the natural gas at the refilling station this, by itself, reduces CO2 emissions by 39 percent. When fuelled with pure biomethane, the cars emit up to 97 percent less CO2.
Source www.netcarshow.com.
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The car can run on straw which means the fuel is not produced in competition with food.
