Wonder if propane-powered tractors are used in any other countries. If they are used in your country please chime in. Pics will be at the links.
By
Dave Mowitz
While investigating vapors coming from a gas tank vent of a new Ford Model T in 1910, Walter Snelling filled a glass jug with the fuel from that vehicle. A chemist with the U.S. Bureau of Mines, Snelling noticed the volatile vapors forming in the jug were causing its cork to pop out repeatedly. In his lab, Snelling began experimenting with the vapors, hoping to discover ways to control and hold them.
In the process, he found that propane was one of the components of the liquefied petroleum gas (LP gas) mixture.
Soon after his discovery, Snelling took steps to put propane to work for lighting, cooking, and cutting metal. Snelling went on to work in 1913 with Frank P. Peterson, Chester Kerr, and Arthur Kerr to develop a way to distill LP gas during the refining of gasoline, which launched the propane industry in the United States.
But then, starting in the 1940s and lasting until the early 1970s, LP gas-and propane-powered tractors flourished across farms and fields.
To clear up any confusion about LP gas and propane, LP gas is a crude oil product made of propane, butane, and isobutane. Propane fuel does not include any other gases. The terms LP gas and propane often are used interchangeably. In this story, the fuel will be referred to as propane.
The answer to that question was economics.In the early 1940s, you could fill a tractor tank with propane for 3¢ a gallon while gas was selling for 18¢ a gallon.
As a bonus, propane also had a higher octane rating than gas.
Due to propane’s low car-bon generation and greatly reduced motor oil contamination, tractor engines running on the fuel had extended lives compared to gas power plants. Until recently, it was not unusual to find Minneapolis-Moline propane power plants built in the late 1960s operating on irrigation pumps in the High Plains.
While diesel fuel was also more affordable than gasoline, the engines burning that fuel were more expensive to build and buy. In time, farmers would come to justify the extra expense due to the greater power generated by a diesel engine.
But in the early 1940s, the fuel news in farm magazines was propane.
The Model U got the honor of burning butane and was the flagship of the Minneapolis-Moline line, which the company started referring to as “LP gas burners.” That burner was a four-cylinder, 283-cubic-inch engine that had the same bore and stroke (4.25×5.00 inches) as a Minneapolis-Moline gas engine. However, the engine’s compression ratio was 6.8 to 1, instead of 5.4 to 1 for the gas engine.
At first, the Minneapolis-Moline propane burner sales were slow. But in the early 1950s, propane became more readily available at prices that made its drawbacks, such as the large round
tank, easier to accept. In oil-producing areas where propane was particularly inexpensive (Texas, Oklahoma, and the southern Midwest), farmers rushed to convert existing tractors to propane or purchase factory-built propane tractors.
This trend caught the eye of other tractor manufacturers that began introducing propane models as well.
The climax of propane-powered tractors occurred during the 1950s and 1960s. During that time, more than a dozen tractor manufacturers offered tractors with factory-equipped propane engines, and kits that could be used to convert a gas engine to burn propane abounded.
The demand for high-horsepower tractors propelled diesel to No. 1 in sales, with propane power plants fading away in the early 1970s.
The company that introduced farmers to propane, Minneapolis-Moline (later Minneapolis-Moline White), continued to offer these tractors until 1974.
The company even sold a four-wheel-drive propane tractor, theModel A4T-1600 in 1970. Minneapolis-Moline’s commitment to providing propane tractors is witnessed by the fact that it sold more than 30 tractor models with a propane engine option.
Today, no tractors operate on propane. Because a properly tuned propane engine produces no carbon monoxide and soot, engines that burn the fuel are most commonly employed by forklifts, warehouse tractors, or other machines that are operated inside buildings.
Propane-powered tractors: a bygone era
A trip back through time to the heydays of propane-powered tractors and how they became popular in the mid-20th century.By
Dave Mowitz
While investigating vapors coming from a gas tank vent of a new Ford Model T in 1910, Walter Snelling filled a glass jug with the fuel from that vehicle. A chemist with the U.S. Bureau of Mines, Snelling noticed the volatile vapors forming in the jug were causing its cork to pop out repeatedly. In his lab, Snelling began experimenting with the vapors, hoping to discover ways to control and hold them.
In the process, he found that propane was one of the components of the liquefied petroleum gas (LP gas) mixture.
Soon after his discovery, Snelling took steps to put propane to work for lighting, cooking, and cutting metal. Snelling went on to work in 1913 with Frank P. Peterson, Chester Kerr, and Arthur Kerr to develop a way to distill LP gas during the refining of gasoline, which launched the propane industry in the United States.
Where did propane fit?
Fast-forward to 1941. Until this time, kerosene, gasoline, and diesel fueled tractors across farms and fields. Kerosene and distillate fuel use was falling away, gas was fueling an increasing number of tractors, and diesel was gaining a foothold in farm horsepower with Caterpillar’s introduction of its Sixty Diesel in 1932.But then, starting in the 1940s and lasting until the early 1970s, LP gas-and propane-powered tractors flourished across farms and fields.
To clear up any confusion about LP gas and propane, LP gas is a crude oil product made of propane, butane, and isobutane. Propane fuel does not include any other gases. The terms LP gas and propane often are used interchangeably. In this story, the fuel will be referred to as propane.
The cheapest fuel around
Propane has 27% less energy than gasoline, and because propane rapidly turns to vapor at normal temperatures and atmospheric pressures, it must be stored under pressure in welded tanks. So why did Minneapolis-Moline introduce a tractor that could burn propane in 1941?The answer to that question was economics.In the early 1940s, you could fill a tractor tank with propane for 3¢ a gallon while gas was selling for 18¢ a gallon.
As a bonus, propane also had a higher octane rating than gas.
Due to propane’s low car-bon generation and greatly reduced motor oil contamination, tractor engines running on the fuel had extended lives compared to gas power plants. Until recently, it was not unusual to find Minneapolis-Moline propane power plants built in the late 1960s operating on irrigation pumps in the High Plains.
While diesel fuel was also more affordable than gasoline, the engines burning that fuel were more expensive to build and buy. In time, farmers would come to justify the extra expense due to the greater power generated by a diesel engine.
But in the early 1940s, the fuel news in farm magazines was propane.
Minneapolis-Moline’s pioneering tractor
The expanding availability of propane and butane fuel caught the eye of Minneapolis-Moline, which was aggressively seeking tractor innovations to expand its market. In December 1940, the company notified dealers that it approved the equipment to burn the fuel consisting of a “butane fuel tank, carburetor, regulator, filter, manifolding, cylinder head, rotary gauge, valves, and special piping and fittings. Tentatively, we will have butane equipped machines available for shipment from factory about April 1, 1941.”The Model U got the honor of burning butane and was the flagship of the Minneapolis-Moline line, which the company started referring to as “LP gas burners.” That burner was a four-cylinder, 283-cubic-inch engine that had the same bore and stroke (4.25×5.00 inches) as a Minneapolis-Moline gas engine. However, the engine’s compression ratio was 6.8 to 1, instead of 5.4 to 1 for the gas engine.
Propane vs. butane
When comparing the two main fuel gases that come from liquefied petroleum gas distillation, the most important difference is the boiling point of the gases. Propane has a boiling temperature of -43.6°F, while butane’s boiling temp is 28.4°F. This means propane will continue to vaporize and turn to gas in colder climates. When stored as a liquid, propane exerts a greater pressure than butane, making it more suitable for exterior storage and use.At first, the Minneapolis-Moline propane burner sales were slow. But in the early 1950s, propane became more readily available at prices that made its drawbacks, such as the large round
tank, easier to accept. In oil-producing areas where propane was particularly inexpensive (Texas, Oklahoma, and the southern Midwest), farmers rushed to convert existing tractors to propane or purchase factory-built propane tractors.
This trend caught the eye of other tractor manufacturers that began introducing propane models as well.
The climax of propane-powered tractors occurred during the 1950s and 1960s. During that time, more than a dozen tractor manufacturers offered tractors with factory-equipped propane engines, and kits that could be used to convert a gas engine to burn propane abounded.
Propane power faded away
By the late 1960s, pro-pane prices had risen and diesel technology had improved, boosted by the advent of turbocharging. At this juncture, propane provided fewer economic advantages than diesel fuel.The demand for high-horsepower tractors propelled diesel to No. 1 in sales, with propane power plants fading away in the early 1970s.
The company that introduced farmers to propane, Minneapolis-Moline (later Minneapolis-Moline White), continued to offer these tractors until 1974.
The company even sold a four-wheel-drive propane tractor, theModel A4T-1600 in 1970. Minneapolis-Moline’s commitment to providing propane tractors is witnessed by the fact that it sold more than 30 tractor models with a propane engine option.
Today, no tractors operate on propane. Because a properly tuned propane engine produces no carbon monoxide and soot, engines that burn the fuel are most commonly employed by forklifts, warehouse tractors, or other machines that are operated inside buildings.
