Which fuel REALLY performs the best? | Utilimarc Fleet FYIs

Gretchen Reese (00:24):

Hey, there. Welcome to the Fleet FYIs Podcast, the weekly podcast by Utilimarc that reveals how you can make the most of your data for smarter fleet management. My name is Gretchen, and every week, you'll hear from me or some of the industry's finest in candid conversations that will not only shed some light on over two decades worth of fleet data insights, but also some of the industry's hottest talking points and key metric analysis with the aim to help you better understand your fleet from every angle.

(00:52):

But before we begin, if this is the first time you've heard our show, thanks for stopping by. I'm so glad you decided to come along for the ride with us. But I've got a quick favor to ask you. Once you finish today's episode, if you could take a few minutes to leave us a review on your favorite podcasting platform, we would really appreciate it. Give us a rating, five stars I hope, or tell us what you liked, or leave us a comment or a question about what you've heard in today's episode. If we haven't yet covered a topic that you're interested in hearing more about, let us know. We would be happy to go over it in detail in a later show.

(01:34):

Hello everyone, and welcome back to another episode of the Fleet FYIs Podcast. Alternative fuels are on the top of many fleet managers minds these days, and fleets are increasingly exploring new ways to get the job done whilst remaining operationally efficient, cost-effective, and sustainable. Three main pillars there. As you'll notice, there's a theme with this show. But as a result, many fleet managers are actually introducing a mix of hydrogen, electric, and natural gas-powered vehicles into their fleet to work alongside your traditional petrol-powered and diesel-powered internal combustion engines, as I'm sure you all know. And other managers might be a little bit more apprehensive to take the leap into this, we'll call it unchartered territory, especially if it risks compromising fleet efficiency.

(02:21):

I'm sure if you're not one of those folks, you probably know at least one or two. I know I sure do, and it's completely fair. Alternative fuels can sometimes be a little scary, especially if you've never used them before. But to compare different fuels, we can look at their gasoline gallon equivalent. This is what we call a GGE, and this is the amount of fuel basically that is needed to equal the same amount of energy contained in one gallon of gasoline. Something that you should keep in mind, however, is that fuels have varying efficiency and experience loss of energy from the point of fueling to powering the vehicle in motion. This is true for every single vehicle, or every single fuel for every single vehicle. It's not just more so one or the other.

(03:03):

Now, in today's episode, I wanted to discuss how these different fuels perform in terms of gasoline gallon equivalent, operational efficiency, and the big kicker, cost. Let's dig in. So first up, we have gasoline and diesel. Now, I'm sure, so gasoline or petrol and diesel are the most commonly used fuels all around the world. This we all know, and we have known for a very long time. They've got numerous applications in all types of vehicles, in machinery, from cars to aircraft, to construction equipment. And in terms of fuel efficiency, diesel actually has a higher energy density, containing about 15% more energy than gasoline itself. It's also a much thicker fuel though, making it slower to evaporate within the tank. You've probably heard of the term phantom drain.

(04:17):

We've talked about it on our site before in a recent article and actually in a recent podcast. So if you haven't listened to that one yet, make sure you do. But same phenomenon with internal combustion engines. Due to evaporation, sometimes you can lose some fuel within your tank. It stinks, but it's something we all deal with. Now, a direct comparison. One gallon of diesel contains the same amount of energy as 1.12 gallons of gasoline. 1.12. Though fuel economy ranges widely from vehicle to vehicle, again, this we all know, the average diesel car would need around 2.94, roughly 3 gallons of diesel to drive 100 miles, which cost about $16.35 accounting for today's record high fuel prices. In comparison, if we look at the average petrol-powered car, it would probably require about, I would say, just under 4 gallons. So maybe 3, 3.8 gallons, which would cost you around $17.77.

(05:14):

Now, for fleet managers, diesel's higher price is something that could offset the better fuel economy of diesel vehicles. And, however, with a diesel engine having fewer components though, one would also have to consider the fewer maintenance costs associated with the diesel-powered vehicle. So there's some costs and benefits there. If we take a look at electricity, next up, we've got four fuels that we're looking at today. But second up, we have electricity, as the world slowly, but surely moves towards electric vehicles. We all know, we're not going backwards here. Electrification is happening, whether we want it to or not. Electricity is becoming another prominent fuel option for fleets. And the EV market depends on lithium-ion batteries, which store energy within vehicles and determine the vehicle's capacity and range.

(06:01):

Now, unlike gas and diesel, electricity cannot be measured in gallons. Instead, electricity is actually measured in what we like to call kilowatt hours. Not just we like to call it that. That's what the industry calls it. Kilowatt hours, with each kilowatt hour corresponding with about 0.03 gallons of gasoline equivalent. That's that GGE we were talking about a little bit earlier. So if we look at this on average, an EV requires about 30 kilowatt hours to reach 100 miles worth of charge or range. And considering the average electricity prices in the US today, that would probably cost a little over $3. So if we take that, that would be maybe $9 for a full tank of gasoline. I think my car right now, if I look at it in the warm weather. Because, of course, you know get more out of your fuel in the warmer months, I think I maybe get about 350 miles on a full tank.

(06:58):

So the equivalent of a full tank for me, nine bucks. Not bad, especially seeing as I just spent, I think, today over $55 at the pump. I would be very okay with that. But I digress. Electric vehicles are also far more efficient than internal combustion engine vehicles because EVs convert around 80% of energy to power at the wheels compared to around the 20% for internal combustion engine vehicles. Something to think about there. If we move on to hydrogen, one alternative fuel, it's piqued the interest of many automakers looking to invest into cutting edge sustainability solutions is hydrogen for fuel cell electric vehicles. We've also talked about that on our blog in the past, which you should definitely take a look at if you haven't yet already.

(07:43):

Now, fuel cell electric vehicles, sometimes you see these as the acronym FCEVs, they work similarly to battery electric vehicles with an electric motor and no internal combustion engine. However, they do use a propulsion system that converts hydrogen into electricity to power the motor. Hydrogen is measured in pounds or kilograms with each gallon of gasoline equating to about one kilogram of hydrogen. And depending on the vehicle, fuel cell EVs need about 1.6 kilograms of hydrogen to run about 100 miles, which could cost you just under $30. I think the exact total is something like $26 something or another, but it's right under 30 bucks, which is a pretty, pretty high cost, especially when you look at the other options that are in the alternative fuel market today.

(08:32):

But in addition to the lack of vehicle options available, especially right now, a major barrier to fuel cell EV adoption is their operational inefficiency. When it comes to power to vehicle drive, around 60% of total energy is lost by the time the car is in drive. So when you're looking at just how much it would cost to fill your tank with this or to fill up your vehicle to be at full power, the cost doesn't really become worth the actual energy efficiency of this technology. And this loss of energy occurs because energy needs to be transferred from wire to gas and back into electricity with each transition, which is also called electrolysis. We talked about this in a recent episode. It takes a toll on the energy that's ultimately available for use.

(09:18):

Now, whilst this sounds like a bit of a deal breaker for hydrogen vehicles, don't worry, I'm with you there, it's pretty helpful to remember that the lower efficiency or the lower energy efficiencies of gasoline and diesel as well. Now, last on my list, I wanted to talk about CNG today. And compressed natural gas has been used for decades, and it's ideal for converting medium to heavy-duty internal combustion engines to be more sustainable. We've already been through this many a time on this show. And CNG is a fossil fuel just like gasoline and diesel, but it's considered to be the cleanest of the bunch when you're looking at alternative fuels in general, and it makes it a very attractive option for fleets that are looking to go green. At the pump, CNG is typically sold in gallons of gasoline equivalent, again, GGE, with each GGE equaling 5.66 pounds of CNG. So just under 6 pounds of CNG.

(10:14):

Fueling takes about the same amount of time as it would with gasoline and diesel, but the compressed natural gas is stored in a high pressure cylinder aboard, just instead of with the fuel tank. Now, to drive about 100 miles in a CNG vehicle, it would take about two and a third GGE, making CNG more efficient than both gasoline and diesel put together. National average prices of CNG are just above around $2, I think, for GGE today. So about 100 miles worth of fuel would cost you about $5.80. All things considered, CNG is pretty noteworthy, especially as a contender for fleets that are looking to improve on sustainability and cut costs without having to completely overturn their fleet. Because if you don't want to overturn your fleet, this uses some of the similar infrastructure that's already installed and it really only takes a couple of tweaks within your engine. So something definitely to think about there.

(11:36):

But having spent this entire last episode discussing and comparing these top fuels and how they perform, I think it's pretty clear to see that each comes with their own list of pros and cons, pretty similar to most things when we look at fleet management and really even just life in general. And ultimately, the right fit comes down to a fleet's individual needs and goals, as well as their budget and their priorities. And for fleets prioritizing sustainability and emissions reductions, electric vehicles could seem like a no-brainer. However, for fleets with heavy-duty trucks who don't have EV options available or do not want to electrify, a fuel like CNG could be a really, really good short-term solution until the EV market either expands its offerings or until there's other ways to make internal combustion engines more sustainable. Regardless, it's worth taking a closer look at your fleet's vehicle and fuel mix to see if potential changes could be made in any areas.

(12:30):

We're not recommending that you do make these changes. However, it is worth taking a look at, just even if it's out of curiosity alone. And luckily, technology is constantly advancing, which can mean better fuel efficiency in newer vehicles and less loss of energy throughout the whole wells-to-wheels fuel cycle. I'd love to hear what you think though. Let me know. Send me an email. Tag me on LinkedIn, use the hashtag, #UtilimarcFleetFYIs. Send me a carrier pigeon. You know the drill by now. Anyways, that's all from me this week. I am looking forward to chatting with you again next Friday. Ciao. Hey, there. I think this is the time that I should cue the virtual high-five because you've just finished listening to another episode of the Fleet FYIs Podcast. If you're already wanting more content, head over to utilimarc.com, which is Utilimarc with a C, U-T-I-L-I-M-A-R-C.com, for this episode's show notes and extra insights coming straight from our analyst to you. That's all from me this week. So until next time, I'll catch you later.