Results from the First Year of Operation of the Federal Methanol Fleet at Oak Ridge National Laboratory

摘要

The Oak Ridge National Laboratory has completed over one full year of operation of ten vehicles for the Federal Methanol fleet Project; five of the vehicles are fueled with methanol. Nearly 100,000 miles were accumulated on the vehicles in a nearly trouble-free operation during the first year. Energy consumption for the methanol cars was slightly higher than for the gasoline cars, most likely as a result of shorter average trip lengths for the methanol cars. Iron and lead have accumulated at a greater rate in the lubricating oil of the methanol cars. Drivers ratings of vehicles reflected some dissatisfaction with the cold-weather performance of the methanol cars, but the cars have no special provisions for cold weather. Otherwise, drivers' ratings have been very similar between methanol and gasoline cars. 10 refs., 4 figs., 5 tabs.