Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/625735
46 commercial carrier journal | january 2016 EquipmEnt: PC-11 OIL gent next year target carbon dioxide (CO2) and other GHG. "Add a whole host of engine design changes that will enter the market in 2017, and the need for a more modern engine oil becomes obvious," he says. Whitacre says the biggest single performance improvement the new oils will offer will involve oxidation control – the ability of the oil to withstand high temperatures for long periods without breaking down. This new characteristic ultimately may create opportunities for longer oil- change intervals in fleet operations. According to Whitacre, heavy-duty diesel engine OEMs recognize there are two main oil components that impact long change intervals: Total Base Number Depletion and the Oxi- dation Number. "There used to be a third consideration – soot levels in the engine," he says. "That is becom- ing less important as diesel exhaust emissions systems have improved." Fleets used to have to drain oil be- cause pre-2010 engines produced a lot of soot due to increased exhaust gas recirculation (EGR). But soot control has been addressed by improvements in CJ-4 oils and the advent of ultra- low-sulfur diesel fuel. "Modern diesel engines today are a lot cleaner in that regard," Whitacre says. Details on 2017 engines are few at the moment, but Whitacre says they generally will run 5 to 15 degrees hotter than today's engines. "OEMs have really stressed that the new oil have the ability to stand up to hotter temperatures," he says. "We're not talking large temperature increases, but it is very important to carefully balance all the heat transfer that goes on in these engines, and that puts a bigger demand on the oil itself. We have to make sure that when the new oil gets hot, it doesn't break down." Also, much work has been done to make certain the new oils will work with preexisting engine systems. "PC-11 brings no new filtration requirements from engine manufac- turers or oil suppliers," says Jonathan Sheumaker, technical adviser for liquid filtration research and tech- nology at Cummins Filtration. "The media and technology we Lower high-temperature high-shear (HTHS) viscosity means thinner oil that can improve fuel economy by reducing the amount of horsepower required to pump it throughout the engine. But some worry a lower HTHS viscosity will come at the expense of wear protection. Shell showed off the durability of 'thinner' oil in this engine teardown demonstration last year.