Waste collection truck powered by natural gas

Dennis Eagle, a manufacturer of refuse vehicles, has developed a truck prototype which uses an IntelliGas High Density Compressed Natural Gas (HDCNG) Fuel Storage System. The natural gas fuel system is said to be a world first, providing the ability to perform a full shift of between nine and 10 hours without the need to refuel.

The prototype is part of a Suez Environnement fleet of 30 refuse trucks being used to collect waste, recycling and garden organics for the Northern Adelaide Waste Management Authority (NAWMA). While 23 of the trucks run on CNG, this is the first truck operating on the Australian-designed HDCNG fuel system.

“It uses natural gas at pressures of 350 bar (5076 psi) to improve fuel density and halve the space claim of regular CNG,” said IntelliGas Group Chairman Jim McDonald, who claimed the prototype has 50 to 80% greater fuel capacity than conventional CNG-powered trucks.

“It means the truck can travel a similar range to its diesel-powered counterparts before refuelling, while producing significantly less noise,” he added.

“The truck also produces up to 25% less greenhouse gas emissions than diesel engines, significantly less harmful particulate pollution and the fuel is cheaper than diesel too.”

Furthermore, because natural gas is an abundant Australian fuel, using more of it domestically helps to reduce Australia’s reliance on imported fuel.

Development of the dual-control truck prototype took around six months, while development of the HDCNG technology itself has been ongoing for the past five years. Suez Environnement expects to receive another two HDCNG-powered prototypes in the near future to continue testing of the truck in different areas.

Image caption: The Dennis Eagle - 6x4 - ISL G HDCNG prototype.