Summary

In Milan in April 2002, at its 27th meeting, the Executive Committee of the IEA Implementing Agreement of Advanced Motor Fuels (AMF) decided to start a new Task on alcohols and ethers as oxygenates in diesel fuel (Task 26). Originally the Task was designed to focus on practical experiences of using alcohols/ethers as oxygenates in diesel fuel. Compared with the original project plan, a more detailed chapter about fuel properties was added to the final report, also dealing with limitations of blending low-boiling components into diesel fuel. Befri Konsult of Sweden carried out the initial part of the work. The report was finalised by TEC TransEnergy Consulting Ltd (Finland) in cooperation with Turku Polytechnic (Finland).

Storage and handling regulations for fuels are based on the flash point. The problem with, e.g., ethanol blended into diesel is that ethanol lowers the flash point of the blend significantly even at low concentrations. Regarding safety, diesel-ethanol blends fall into the same category as gasoline. Currently, various standards and specifications set rather tight limits for diesel fuel composition and properties. It should be noted that, e.g., E-diesel does not fulfil any current diesel specification and it cannot, thus, be sold as general diesel fuel. Some blends have already received approvals for special applications. The critical factors of the potential commercial use of these blends include blend properties such as stability, viscosity and lubricity, safety and materials compatibility. The effect of the fuel on engine performance, durability and emissions is also of importance. So far, no engine manufacturers have indicated they will extend warranty coverage to their equipment when operating with E-diesel. The reports on field tests with oxygenated diesel fuels are rather scarce, especially reports on recent tests. There are, however, some reports available on engine tests and tests with trucks, buses and even off-road equipment. Most of the available test results identified fuel economy and cost as the only appreciable differences between E-diesel and conventional diesel fuel. Most emissions tests with heavy-duty engines confirm the effect of a substantial reduction in PM when running with E-diesel. The typical range for PM reduction is 20 – 40 %. Most studies also report reduced NOx emissions. Earlier, there were a lot of activities with E-diesel in Sweden. For the time being, California and Brazil are leading the development of E-diesel.

Participants

• Canada
• Italy
• Japan
• United Kingdom