Performance and Emissions of Diesel and Alternative Diesel Fuels in Modern Light-Duty Diesel Vehicles

Manuch Nikanjam; James Rutherford; Peter Morgan

doi:10.4271/2011-24-0198

Conventional diesel fuel has been in the market for decades and used successfully to run diesel engines of all sizes in many applications. In order to reduce emissions and to foster energy source diversity, new fuels such as alternative and renewable, as well as new fuel formulations have entered the market. These include biodiesel, gas-to-liquid, and alternative formulations by states such as California.

Performance variations in fuel economy, emissions, and compatibility for these fuels have been evaluated and debated. In some cases contradictory views have surfaced. “Sustainable”, “Renewable”, and “Clean” designations have been interchanged. Adding to the confusion, results from one fuel in one type of engine such as an older heavy-duty engine, is at times compared to that of another fuel in another type such as a modern light-duty engine.

This study was an attempt to compare the performance of several fuels in identical environments, using the same engine, for direct comparison.

Results of a large-scale fleet test and emissions test to evaluate the performance of several diesel fuels in a modern heavy-duty diesel (HDD) engine were presented in an earlier technical paper.

That study was followed by a more recent article describing the results of emissions and performance of the same fuels in an older heavy-duty industry-standard engine.

This article is the third and the final in this series and includes three modern light-duty diesel vehicles (BMW 335d, Volkswagen Jetta TDI, and Chevrolet Silverado) to evaluate emissions and fuel economy with a number of diesel fuels that cover a range of products being used in the North American market. EPA, California, Texas LED diesel, biodiesel, biodiesel blends, and gas-to-liquid fuel were tested in this program.

Federal Test Procedure (FTP), Highway Fuel Economy Test (HwFET) Procedure, US06 Test Procedure, and 0-to-60 mph wide-open-throttle (WOT) were utilized for emissions, fuel economy, and power effects evaluation.

This document will provide a detailed description of this project along with statistical analysis of test results for eight diesel fuels.¹

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Performance and Emissions of Diesel and Alternative Diesel Fuels in Modern Light-Duty Diesel Vehicles 2011-24-0198

SAE MOBILUS