Equipment World Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/521868
IV was our Tier 4, Stage III equaled Tier 3. And their Stage IIIb equaled our Tier 4 Interim. Since European and U.S. regula- tions have been nearly identical for more than a decade, presum- ably the United States will adopt the same standards as Stage V at the same time and likely call them Tier 5. But the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has not yet said if it wants these new regulations or when. California, however, is fol- lowing the developments in Europe closely and may seek to create their own regulations along the same lines as Stage V, Payne says. The Tier 5/Stage V emissions regulations won't be a huge change from the current level of tech- nology, Tier 4 Final, says Oliver Lythgoe, product concept marketing for Perkins. But it only makes sense for engine manufacturers to begin preparing for what will probably be required by 2019 and 2020, he says. The scope of Stage V in Europe, however, will differ somewhat from all the regulations that came before it, says Payne. Previous regs exempted engines under 24 horse- power. Stage 5 will likely cover all engines regardless of horsepower. The rules for fl ex credits and tran- sitional engines, which gave some manufacturers breathing room in the old regulations, would likely be restricted in a Stage V scenario, Payne says. The Europeans are also grap- pling with advocacy groups and non-governmental organizations that come bearing wish lists. One of those requests is to lower the NOx limits on smaller engines, Payne said. All of this is currently under discussion, but the new regs in Europe will be fi nalized and written into law by 2016 with implementation to come later. Stage V/Tier 5 regulations will be relatively easy to meet with technol- ogy that's currently available. Most manufacturers will have a solution on the shelf, ready to go, once the regulations and timelines are an- nounced, says Lythgoe. What regulators want to get rid of is ultra-fi ne particles of soot in diesel exhaust, sub-micron level June 2015 | EquipmentWorld.com 84 maintenance | continued A brief history of emissions regulations Manufacturers of heavy diesel engines have been scrambling for more than a decade to meet in- creasingly restrictive exhaust emis- sions. From Tier 1, which started in 1995, to Tier 4 Final regs, which kicked in between 2008 and 2015, the new technology to make diesel engines cleaner absorbed tens of billons of dollars of R&D and forced OEMs into a furious arms race to meet the deadlines. In many cases it also doubled the cost of a heavy- duty diesel engine. Everyone is in compliance now, but not everyone met their targets on time. Fines were levied, lawsuits got ugly, stock prices tanked and it was tense for a while. The fi rst big technology change came with Tier 2 and increased EGR rates, but to meet Tier 3 emissions restrictions manufacturers had to use diesel particulate fi lters and diesel oxidation catalysts. In many cases this also required a step up to common rail fuel systems, elec- tronic controls and huge boosts in injection pressures. With Tier 4 Final, a mixture of some or all of these technologies came into play along with selective catalytic reduction. And it wasn't just engines. Diesel fuel had to be altered, bringing the sulfur levels down from 3,000 parts per million to less than 15 ppm. Lube oils had to be reformu- lated three times to handle the increased heat loads and absorb all the exhaust fl owing back into the cylinders. For Tier 4 Final an entirely new product – diesel exhaust fl uid – and a dosing system to spray it into the exhaust stream, had to be added to almost all diesel engines greater than 75 horsepower. It was enough technological change to make the Space Race from the 1960s look like child's play. But in the end, exhaust emissions from heavy-duty diesel engines were reduced by more than 95 percent. Kohler KDI 3404 The Kohler KDI 3404 engine, the largest in the com- pany's line of diesels, was shown for the fi rst time at Intermat. The company packaged the selective catalytic reduc- tion module and the die- sel oxidation catalyst in one canister with room left over for a DPF, when or should that become necessary. The 3404 boasts four valves per cylinder, single stage turbo, high pressure common rail, solenoid injectors and an electronically-controlled EGR valve that is liquid cooled by a water/air heat exchanger. selective catalytic reduc- tion module and the die- left over for a DPF, when necessary. The 3404 boasts single stage turbo, high pressure common rail, solenoid injectors and an electronically-controlled EGR valve that is liquid cooled by a water/air heat exchanger.