Is it time for a gasoline engine tractor?

[Kubota 2350]

+1. An excellent use for an otherwise useless resource.

AND............it is renewable forever.:laughing:

And useless forever.

 

[ultrarunner]

The 318 was a very good motor.

Only once did it leave my stranded and that is when the timing chain went... less than $40 in parts and I was back on the road... happened near the house buying gas.

It is basically retired now... had it parked out back and basketball sized boulder came down the hillside bank and did a number on the back door...

For 40 years I have desired a barn/warehouse and have not been able to make it happen... came close a few times but no cigar.

 

[GManBart]

Diesels tractors (or generators etc) engines have low specific power. Typically around 20-25 HP/liter. They run, at full throttle, only at less than half of the power they could possibly generate if used to full potential. That is why they last forever. Give them more fuel and/or add turbo and you can easily more than double or even triple the power.
Many manufacturers have tractor models with various power output using exactly the same engine with different injection pump setting.

I never said otherwise, but your statement is only partially true. Go look at diesel generators and you'll see that very few are rated for continuous duty. The same thing is true of diesel engines in boats. They both normally have very specific duty cycle limitations. If you want a continuous duty diesel engine for a generator or boat, the price goes up very significantly.

 

[ultrarunner]

All the Diesel Gensets I have are dual rated.

There is one rating for continuous duty and a significantly higher rating for standby power.

Continuous is typically de-rated anywhere from 20 to 30%

There is no difference in design/build only on how it is used.

 

[Redneck in training]

I never said otherwise, but your statement is only partially true. Go look at diesel generators and you'll see that very few are rated for continuous duty. The same thing is true of diesel engines in boats. They both normally have very specific duty cycle limitations. If you want a continuous duty diesel engine for a generator or boat, the price goes up very significantly.

Continuous duty will have bigger engine with low specific power. Backup duty will have smaller (cheaper) engine with greater power. Tractor diesels have are low specific power so they can be run continuously at PTO speed. While in example car diesel is seldom run continuously at high power.

 

[Redneck in training]

No, the upgrades took a number of years to be implemented and paid off, with some variation from refinery to refinery. The last refineries were upgraded around 2010. The average time to amortize those costs was supposed to be around 5 years going off a couple of industry sites.

You're completely guessing when you say that ULSD refining equipment is becoming worn. Refineries didn't spend $8B just to have to spend it again in a few years because they didn't build a system that would last for a long time.

The process is called hydrotreating. You heat up diesel with sulfur to turn it into vapor then mix in Hydrogen at high pressure. Hydrogen reacts with sulfur. Then gas is cooled down. Diesel liquefies and sour gas is separated and fed in a special burner where the hydrogen is burned and what is left is sulfur. I commissioned control system for several of those units in the US and Middle East. I don't know what is costs to build one of those but my guess is several hundred million per unit. The unit typically runs for several years then it is shut down and "turned around". It might need new catalyst, refractory, calibration, overhaul of the compressor and pumps, new control system every 10 to 12 years and this sort of things.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

Tractor diesels have are low specific power so they can be run continuously at PTO speed.

Sure you can run them "continuous" at pto speed, what you "can't" do is pull "full power" out of the pto on a continuous basis...

Well you can, but it will drastically shorten the engine life...

SR

 

[GManBart]

All the Diesel Gensets I have are dual rated.

There is one rating for continuous duty and a significantly higher rating for standby power.

Continuous is typically de-rated anywhere from 20 to 30%

There is no difference in design/build only on how it is used.

Not necessarily.

Diesel generators typically come in Continuous, Prime and Standby configurations. Continuous and Prime are different mostly in that Prime are designed for a fairly set load and Continuous have a variable load. Standby have higher outputs for their given size, but are limited in how many hours they can run at that setting.

Continous/Prime rated generators typically have a larger cooling system, different alternators and are almost always run at a lower RPM than standby systems....1200-900 versus 1800 for standby.

The generators you have may be different, but it's possible to get a diesel generator rated for continuous 100% power....they're just expensive.

 

[ultrarunner]

They are all Onan Gensets powered by turbo Cummins Diesels...

Our typical rating is 150 kW Standby and 125 Prime.

These are used for emergency power for medical facilities and go from stop to speed with load in 6 to 8 seconds... not exactly optimal for any engine... most have 20 to 25 years in service and I would hope for many more but they are now under the Bay Area Air Quality Management District which has plans to sunset older units... and collects an annual fee to remain operational...

 

[GManBart]

Continuous duty will have bigger engine with low specific power. Backup duty will have smaller (cheaper) engine with greater power. Tractor diesels have are low specific power so they can be run continuously at PTO speed. While in example car diesel is seldom run continuously at high power.

Okay, so you're posting this because it agrees with what I've already said and contradicts your earlier post? :confused3:

Tractors are essentially continuous duty applications. Some generators are continuous duty applications, some are not....which is what I said. Most diesel applications aren't actually continuous duty.