Oil & Fuel New diesel rules

[Darren]

In the past, I think it was in Western Canada, I heard of injection pumps failing within three months after being placed in service because of low sulphur diesel. I'm not sure if it's only the high mileage pumps that will have problems.

If a pump that was designed from scratch for low sulphur diesel there shouldn't be a problem. For folks with older equipment it could be a real problem unless they know to use an additive.

 

[JATO_RaT]

We've been running low sulphur for years now on old pumps never designed for it, my truck is a perfect example, a Ford 7.3 IDI diesel. My International 454 tractor built in 1973 is running beautifully still and also gets low sulphur. Neither get an additive. Maybe I'm lucky or maybe the diesel in Canada is different then what we use in California where perhaps the toughest EPA rules apply simply because of the shear volume of diesels out here. (Canada with about 25 million folks and California with about 33 million yet in a much smaller area)For glimpse of where diesel technology including fuel are going, just take a look at California, we seem to be about 5 years or more ahead on restrictions, good or bad. Rat

 

[John_Mc]

One alternative is available now: Bio-diesel or a B20 blend (20% Biodiesel, 80% petroleum-based diesel). Bio-diesel has significantly more lubricity than our current petro-diesel, with the added advantage of significantly reduced pollution (it's basically "greenhouse-gas-neutral").

I believe several European countries currently have significantly tighter specs for sulfer in their diesel than our current so-called "low-sulfer" diesel. They've figured out how to make it work, I'm sure we can too. Several European countries also require that all diesel sold be at least "B20" blend of Bio-Diesel. Whether this is for pollution requirements, to reduce dependance on foreign oil, or for lubricity, I can't say. But at least it's nice to know the alternatives are already out there.

John Mc

 

[Anonymous Poster]

On the one hand, this will be a real issue for farmers, who are stretched very thin dollar-wise as it is.

On the other hand, bio-diesel using soybean oil will likely go way up in sales, helping farmers.

On a gas engine when we lost lead, on the next major engine rebuild you had to install hardened valve seats, and then you were good to go on unleaded.

I suspect about the same thing when we lose sulfur - it'll cost us to upgrade something (pump probably?) but the fuel companies will have an additive package that makes up most of the problems.

--->Paul