Washington's Clean Air Cars

Under the Clean Air Act of 1970 Detroit has until 1975 to clean up automobile emissions, the prime source of smog in the nation's skies. As if to set a good example for the automakers, the Government has already begun practicing what the Act preaches. The General Services Administration, which is responsible for the maintenance of 54,000 federally owned vehicles, has converted 1,023 of the autos so that they now use compressed or liquefied natural gas, or butane and propane for fuel. The change reduces the autos' air pollutants by nearly 90%. Eventually the entire federal fleet may be converted to the new fuels.

Expensive Thermos. Natural gas is cheaper (about 3-c- less a gallon) than regular gasoline, but converting an automobile to use liquid natural gas is an expensive operation: $625 to $750 per car. The major cost is for the tank that holds the gas, a complicated thermos-type bottle into which the liquid gas is poured at--259DEGF. A tank pressure of 70 lbs. per square inch forces the liquid into a combination pressure regulator and heat exchanger. The heated gas is then mixed with air in the carburetor and flows into the cylinders, where it burns more completely than ordinary gasoline vapor.

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