Car Advice
  • Home
  • »  Manly servo first to use new fuel pump technology

Manly servo first to use new fuel pump technology

By Matt Brogan |

A Manly service station has become the first in Australia to use new petrol vapour capture technology on its fuel pumps.


Widely used throughout Europe and the US, the new nozzles contain a seal or hose which captures up to 95 per cent of vapours at the bowser, including benzene – a known carcinogen.

NSW Climate Change and Environment Minister, John Robertson, said the new pumps significantly reduce health risks and said the difference will be obvious to drivers.

“One of the first things customers will notice when refuelling at a service station with this technology is that the overpowering smell of petrol is missing.

“The second thing is that there are no shimmery vapours, or smog forming pollutants escaping from the tank,” he said.

Robertson said the vapour capturing nozzles would reduce smog-forming emissions by around 5000 tonnes each year.

“This makes it the single biggest initiative underway in the Greater Metropolitan region to tackle air pollution.”

NSW is the first state to implement fuel vapour regulations, and from July 2010, all new and refurbished service stations in Sydney, Newcastle, Wollongong and the Central Coast will be expected install the pumps.

by Tim Beissmann (with The Manly Daily)


 
  • Hung Low

    Good idea and about time it was implemented.

    Toyota Guru & Reckless 1 will be disappointed with the inability to get a free ‘high’ when refueling though!

  • Andrew M

    Another area where LPG is ahead of petrol.

    Cant wait to see next year when manufacturers stop taking LPG as a joke

    • MJ

      How about CNG, Compressed Natural Gas? We get Natural Gas into our kitchens for cooking, and in Delhi the buses run on CNG…

      I would think Natural Gas is cheaper than LPG…we should start making cars that run on CNG!

  • Old Dog

    I wonder how they got the bowser so dirty so quickly…?

    • Minnow

      I think it can be retrofitted? But thats not a new bowser as all the vapours are still visible.

  • jojo

    This was compolsury mandated in Switzerland 15 years ago…and we call ourselves a clever country!!!!!

    • Cupid Stunt

      You’re not so bad, there’s plenty of good stuff Australia leads in. I remember a machine some Aussie made that converts old polythene milk carton into car fuel. Think the Irish bought it to use. V clever stuff.

    • Evolution

      Agree wholeheartedly jojo, these pumps have been mandatory elsewhere in the developed world for over a decade, are we such a third world country? Or is this yet another example of a back room deal between legislators and their boardroom mates to save the oil companies the cost of a refit?

  • Yanzo

    why didn’t they do this before?

  • JEKYL & HYDE

    what about the increased safety factor(re:ignition,explosion).it should be brought in now…

  • Safety Frist

    Okay so give us the full story, once they have captured the Vapours, what happens then??? Like do they store them or do they just release them elsewhere??
    Removing the vapours from point of fuelling is a great idea, all for it. But seeing as the green lobby have jumped on board and are trying to score mileage out of it
    [Quote]“The second thing is that there are no shimmery vapours, or smog forming pollutants escaping from the tank,” he said.[end]

    then tell us what happens next??? Or are they just going to use this to puch prices up (for the cost of the roll out) and there for the amount we pay in tax just so that we can supposedly feel good about the enviroment???

    • Minnow

      The vapour turns back into fuel, just like the vapour recovery systems on cars already. All cars have a carbon canister that turns fuel vapour back into petrol then feeds into the inlet. Only catch is the vapour is of less quality fuel.

  • joseph

    The vapours go back into the under ground tank.The tanks are vented, but not much comes out. The fuel tankers hook up a vapour recovery on the petrol when delivering, recovering some vapour whilst they discharge. A greater safety initiative would be customers actually behaving themselves on the forecourt.

  • Carl Paine

    When I first read that titles, my first reaction was: “Manly Servo? Then how did the women do it?” (sorry in advance)

  • Simonsez

    That all sounds fine , just so they haven’t worked out a way to actually suck some
    of the fuel back as well.

  • Shak

    have a guess of what car is in the pic. Oh and all those posts saying that we should have had this years ago are partly right. But no use complaining now, we have them so be happy.

    • Devil’s Advocate

      Accord Euro. You could have at least asked for something a little harder. However there would be a lot that wouldn’t know because it isn’t a Ford or Holden!!! TIC ;-)

      • Shak

        Just trying to see how mnay trainspotters are on the site. if you want somehting harder, guess if its a man or a woman filling up.

  • arlester

    That would be a man at a Caltex servo filling up with VORTEX.. Which is good because 95 is the minimum for those cars

  • Shak

    ^^ Very good now tell me what time of day and which Caltex it is??

  • arlester

    no idea but quite obviously it was raining. So maybe Tassie?

  • The Photographer

    11:15 am last tuesday at Manly Caltex 86 Pittwater Road, I took the picture.

  • Anthony Y

    Stage I vapour recovery systems have been in use in Australia for more than 20 years. Now, belatedly, Australian governments are moving to mandate the implementation of Stage II vapour recovery systems. As others have observed, these have been in use in parts of Europe for a very long time. For New South Wales, see http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/air/petrolvapour.htm.

  • Seo

    Good they are FINALLY catching up to fumeless fuel of LPG

    Does not flow unless its screwed into the fuel tank filler.

    ******************

    Saw this in California DECADES ago, why the hold up?

  • sean

    here in brisbane we can’t cng at all thanks to brisbane city council and i’m 10 km from the city and if put cng lines i would have a car running on cng and fueling it at servo station and there would be alot more taxis running on cng and i would run a cng generator in the back yard of the house and have a gas stove and hot water and the bbq on cng and anyone who has cng town gas it would be very easy to install a cng generator and someone my perents know he runs the bbq on cng and all he did was changed the injectors on the burners and no imbarasing moments of running out of gas when having a bbq and he would more likely to fuel the cars up with cng