natural gas

A gasoline tank can catch fire if there's a leak onto the hot exhaust
pipes, but it won't go BLEVE on you.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BLEVE

 

AND your point being? Seems to me life would be pointless without
risks to life and limb... Saftey is for people who are already dead
inside.

 

Also seems like there are enough CNG vehicles out there
to be able to talk about real world risk statistics instead of
just hypotheticaly possible accidents.

Explain to me again how riding motorcycles is otherwise
riskless ? How does your risk of a CNG explosion compare
to your risk of becoming a hood ornament on a minivan
driven by a distracted soccer mom ?

 

I dunno, what are the statistics?

I never made any speculation but I do think it is safe to say that if
mountes like many gasoline tanks (inside the perimeter of the frame)
the risk would be no greater. But that's mere speculation on my part.
I suggest you ask someone who has done the research.

I do find you question valid and you bring a good point...but I doubt
if anybody has researched the matter without bias against motorcycles.

p.s. you will excuse me for pissing off krusty. It's easy to do.

 

A gasoline tank can catch fire if there's a leak onto the hot exhaust
pipes, but it won't go BLEVE on you.

I have seen crashes on the race track where five motorcycles were down
and two of the gas tanks came off and tumbled down the track in
flames. I also saw a crash where the clipon handlebar managed to
puncture the gas tank, spilling all the fuel onto the exhaust header.

But a BLEVE is something else. A BLEVE produces a fireball that rises
way up in the air.

So go out and do something risky, right now, don't delay...

But don't report back, I need to watch South Park now.

Tell that to the man with the ticket book...

 

Been there seen that on a Harley...fire made the gas hot enough to
boil and form the vapor cloud. Not something you want to see.


South park? That is so 90's. It sucks also...maybe that's why you like
it.

 

I think that's a given. ;^)

 

.. wrote:
....

After the arson investigator interrogated me to do with my car going up
in flames, but not in a BLEVE, and after being a little panicked, I had
warned bystanders away from a possible gasoline explosion, he told me
that tire explosions are much more frequent than gasoline tank ones.

 

'Gas' in the Brit sense. ie: "not petrol:

That's the CRT

Unburnt? Lower.

It surprised me as well. It was one reason why gas-powered trucks didn't
take off here. They started building 'em, and they were nice and clean,
and then CR diesel engines, ultra low sulphur diesel, and the invention
of the CRT all came at the same time.

I was working for the biggest road haulage organisation in the country
at the time: the Freight Transport Association. It surprised them as
well, but the tests showed it was true, and gas truck just faded away.

The only area where gas trucks stilll really score is noise: they're
definitely quieter.

 

Lovely, isn't it, when you discover a new term on Wiki and start
blathering as if you'd known about it all your life.

 

I wouldn't. Gas storage and transport really is incredibly safe. The
vessels are incredibly tough: the fittings are designed so that if
they're severed, leaks are cut off, etc etc. Just consider how much
bottled gas is moved around the world by road already. Accidents are
very rare.

You're bound to get more accidents as gas engines are more widely
used, but I'd say that the present high pressure petrol or diesel
fuel systems arguably offer a greater risk. Look at the way vehicle
fires seem more prevalent (no, I have no stats to prove either way)
since the universal adoption of FI rather than carbs.

I'd certainly be interested to see vehicle fire stats figures, if
anyone's got any.

 

A nationwide bottled gas company had an acetylene storage facility in
Kansas City.

Over the years, most of the neighborhood became residential, but the
junkyard-looking acetylene storage facility continued in operation
until one day an acetylene bottle leaked, the gas was ignited, the
ensuing fire heated other acetylene bottles and they started
exploding.

The bottled gas company wanted to rebuild their facility after the
inferno, but were denied a permit...

 

The range of a CNG-fueled vehicle has not been discussed yet, but I
suppose the gas cylinder would weigh more than the gas it contained.

Can you imagine riding a motorcycle with a 10-gallon, 75-pound gas
cylinder mounted in the convential position?

 

Nope, I didn't learn about BLEVE's from Wikipedia. BLEVE's were a
topic in my firefighter training at the oil refinery.

 

So? Petrol stations and oil depots catch fire too.

 

You suppose wrong. Try humping empty and full hot air balloon gas
cylinders around: you soon appreciate the difference.

It's been discussed elsewhere. I've said: the problem with gas-fuelled
vehicles is the relatively limited range. Gas conversions - CNG or LPG
- ar quite common in Britain, chiefly to things like V8 powered Range
Rovers which (a) have the interior space for the fuel tank and (b)
cost a fortune to run on pump petrol. Most of these (if not all) are
duel-fuel: the gas tank is an extra installation.

Quite a few motorcycles mount their fuel tanks elsewhere. It would be
interesting to see what designs would come out from a gas-fuelled POV,
though. For example, you could store gas inside the frame....

 

Heh. Memo to self: CNG, LPG, CNG, LPG. A CNG tank is indeed likely to
be heavier.

 

We are in agreement that tires blow first. What I saw was a gas fire
that acted like a BLEVE. It was weird to be sure. The owner over filed
his chopper after a long ride on a hot day. Apparently when the fuel
got boiling hard it was putting out enough vapor to cause a BLEVE.
Didn't take out the gas station but the pump got crispy enough to need
replacement. But that was 1984 and the details are hazy.

 

They don't weigh that much...half that or less.

 

Well, that would get you down to the off license store, wouldn't it?