If there is no path available, you can make your own. This saying applies perfectly to this Valoriza project that created the first heavy-duty vehicle 100% powered by dual-fuel.
The need to cut back on expenses and our commitment to the environment led Valoriza to upgrade the engine of heavy-duty vehicle fueled with compressed natural gas (CNG) to make it hybrid, able to run also on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).
The higher prices of natural gas for the consumption of our vehicle fleet led us to entrust the upgrade of one truck of our heavy-duty vehicle fleet from CNG to a hybrid engine to an external tech company.
“To do this transformation we collaborated with EVARM, a company specializing in upgrading engines. It consisted in an 18-Tn truck with an 8-liter CNG engine, and the challenge was to turn it into a dual-fuel vehicle, meaning, fueled with both CNG and biogas or bio LPG”, explains Jesús Hernandez Sanchez-Gallego, Head of Machinery and Equipment at Valoriza.
“We achieved that transformation by assembling an injection system parallel to the vehicle’s original system, with its own injection map so that the original engine could run on the new fuel as well”, said Hernández.
“After over 15,000 km and more than 300 work hours, we obtained a comparison, and after overcoming multiple technical inconveniences, we were able to land on a similar degree of consumption with both types of fuel. You can select which fuel to use with a remote on the dashboard”, he affirmed.
One kilogram of NCG is €1.20, while one liter of LNG is €0.70. This dual-fuel system can power a 100% ECO vehicle, with a lower carbon footprint. Using biogas or bio LPG would cause 30% les CO2 emissions compared to CNG.
The LPG we use is 100% propane and CNG is methane. The latter has greater volume and needs to be stored at higher pressure (around 250 bars) in high-pressure tanks, while propane can be stored in a liquid state in a conventional storage tank and yields similar autonomy levels.
This transformation was done on a waste bin collection truck that performs the service in A Coruña. We are currently preparing to apply the same dual-fuel modifications to two rear load trash trucks from the solid urban waste collection service in Madrid, as well as to another 13 vehicles in A Coruña.
