Adsorbed Natural Gas Conversions for Motorcycles
July 29th, 2008 by Paul Crowe - "The Kneeslider"
Adsorbed Natural Gas (ANG) is a technology that’s been around for a while but has been getting more attention for the obvious reason that gasoline prices are forcing us to look at alternatives and I wondered recently which technology would eventually win. ANG conversions for motorcycles are interesting because they can be used to convert 2 stroke engines, as well as 4 strokes, over to this cleaner burning alternative.
Adsorbed natural gas is the technology that uses a filler material inside the gas canisters that allows it to hold more natural gas at the same pressure or the same amount at a lower pressure. Although most of us are familiar with compressed natural gas (CNG), the cylinder pressures (200-250 bars) involved make some folks a little nervous, even though the cylinders are very safe. Fill that cylinder with the right material and you can lower the pressure (30-70 bars) and still have the same amount of natural gas. Even better, with the lower pressures involved, you can use other shapes besides cylinders which obviously makes fitting them into odd places a lot easier. Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) is even more difficult to handle than CNG.
One company, Energtek, Inc., has just announced a plan to power motorcycles in Asia with ANG, the only modification necessary is a $200 conversion. The ANG is stored in canisters that can be swapped out in less than 1 minute. To work on a large scale, natural gas filling stations would be necessary to stock the containers so someone can pull up and purchase a full one for the swap, something which should not be too difficult to set up, certainly easier than setting up a CNG refueling station.
I’ll be watching this develop, it sounds like it has a lot of potential.
Link: Energtek
Related: Which Motorcycle Engine Technology Will Win?
Posted in Alternative Fuels, Engines, Motorcycle Accessories, New Technology
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16 Responses to “Adsorbed Natural Gas Conversions for Motorcycles”
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July 29th, 2008 at 12:25 pm
So instead of a flamed gas tank on your harley, you get a tan cylinder, haha.
What about performance?
July 29th, 2008 at 12:40 pm
Im all over this. Heck, for smaller bikes, it cant be any different than the conversions for LPG and CNG to power a gas generator.
There is a company right now working on a similar approach to storing hydrogen as a burnable fuel in cars.
I would do one for a daily get me to work bike.
July 29th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
Retains the existing I-C engine….retains the sound and look. It will be interesting to see the mpg numbers and any performance variances.
July 29th, 2008 at 1:15 pm
Ohhh…do I see a new engineering feat for a hidden universal tank design? A flexible internal canister made with reinforced metal fibers perhaps?
July 29th, 2008 at 6:17 pm
I think this kinda stuff is really cool! I’ve worked with adsorbed hydrogen storage systems, they typically use metal hydride powder and steel cylinders and as a result are extremely heavy. If this ANG technology could be adapted/transferred to store hydrogen, it’d make hydrogen that much more viable as an IC energy source. I’ll definitely be keeping a close eye on Energtek’s progress with this ANG pilot project. Thanx for the excellent article Kneeslider!
July 29th, 2008 at 8:54 pm
Could I get a DIY kit for that $200 price? I’d bet I’m not the only one who’d like to grab a beater bike and try this ANG technology for myself!
July 29th, 2008 at 10:20 pm
Lets not forget about nuclear power!
July 29th, 2008 at 11:23 pm
Nuclear power????
How do you turn the bloody thing off????
July 30th, 2008 at 12:21 am
MotoWebbi - you dont, you use it to power the house at night
July 30th, 2008 at 12:26 am
If there were a place I can get natural gas quickly and easily, I’d be interested in converting. If one could fill up at home that would be really cool.
July 30th, 2008 at 2:45 am
Love the idea! and I think most people that commute on bikes will be thinking the same thing!
July 30th, 2008 at 3:43 am
I saw an interesting development recently; a 2-stroke with controled ignition and injection which can run on gas if necessary.
July 30th, 2008 at 8:00 pm
Nuclear power ??? You’ll need a lead seat . This ANG stuff sounds pretty neat .
August 1st, 2008 at 8:01 am
Fantastic, I love it!
How big would the canister have to be for a range of, say, 200 miles?
September 7th, 2008 at 10:07 pm
Someone here asked about filling up the bike’s gas cylinder at home with CNG - yes, it’s possible. Look here for a home-based fuel system that takes natural gas from typical household feeds and compresses it for use in vehicles: http://myphill.com/
September 19th, 2008 at 11:22 pm
The problem with the “myphill” solution is that is expensive, breaks down and is not adapted to the ANG pressure range.