Westport Innovations Inc. has announced a new on-board storage solution that provides top performance for vehicles using liquefied natural gas (LNG).
According to Westport, the new Westport LNG Tank System will be available in 120 and 150 gallon capacities and is optimized for spark ignited (SI) engines. It will begin shipping by mid-2013. Westport says tank system features proprietary technology and is expected to provide customers with the ability to fuel even the largest SI engines on a single tank and deliver extended range.
Some features of the new tank are said to include:
- Tanks that can run for 350-450 miles, respectively, on cold (unsaturated) LNG fuel.
- Fuel flexibility with the ability to carry both cold and warm LNG.
- Universal system design allows for any OEM to integrate.
- Advanced driver display that indicates not only the LNG fuel levels, but also status and diagnostic information about the tank and integrated pumps.
“Our early production systems tested with the Cummins Westport ISX12 G in a Peterbilt 384 truck have proven to have excellent performance characteristics and superior operating results on a single tank,” says Steve Anderson, Westport HD vice president of business development. “We believe this is the only on-board fuel system for LNG-fueled engines that can operate on a single tank using range-extending cold LNG.”
