Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/112433
news and notes technology in the U.S. can be attributed to the systems based approach that recognized the essential aspect of cleaner, ultra-low sulfur diesel fuel as being the foundation for making large scale changes in engine design and enabled the use of emissions control technology that today result in near zero emissions of particulate matter,��� Schaeffer said. ���Today, lower-sulfur diesel fuels are not widely available or utilized in all parts of the world. The World Fuels Charter, established by engine and vehicle manufacturers in the U.S., Japan and Europe, lays out such a blueprint for aligning fuel composition and implementation policies with environmental and other societal objectives. ���Whether or not this new study results in more scientific consensus on the role of black carbon emissions on the earth���s climate remains to be seen. We do know that the most dramatic changes in history to fuels and emissions levels from diesel engines have occurred after the study period of 1750 to 2000. We look forward to understanding how these changes to both the levels of emissions and their composition inform current scientific understanding and future policy choices,��� Schaeffer said. ���Over the last decade in particular, the diesel industry has invested billions of dollars in development of cleaner diesel fuels, advanced engines, and emissions control technology. The greatest benefits from these new technologies come as they are introduced into the population. Today we estimate that more than one-third of all the heavy-duty commercial trucks on the road in the U.S. are 2007 or later model year and have the most sophisticated emissions control technology. ���Beyond meeting low particulate and NOx emissions standards, manufacturers of medium and heavy duty trucks and engines for the U.S. are now on course to meet the first-ever greenhouse gas reductions and fuel economy standards ever enacted. These new standards that begin in model year 2014 will reduce CO2 emissions by 10 to 23 percent depending on type of truck,��� Schaeffer said. Diesel Emissions Reduction Act Important In Modernizing Older Diesel Engines ���Beyond the new technology advancements in reducing particulate emission, the opportunities for modernizing and upgrading existing diesel engines and equipment will also be important in reducing black carbon,��� Schaeffer said. ���We continue to work with national environmental and health organizations to increase funding for the highly-successful voluntary and incentive-based Diesel Emissions Reduction Act, which is helping to modernize and upgrade older diesel engines in school and transit buses, commercial trucks, construction and agricultural equipment, and marine vessels.��� California Air Quality Improvements Aided By Diesel Advancements The California Air Resources Board (ARB) has identified the top-10 contributors to PM 2.5. Diesel engines and equipment rank as the 8(th) and 9(th) highest contributors, Schaeffer said, behind: 1) wildfires, 2) residential fuel combustion, 3) managed burning & disposal, 4) paved road dust, 5) unpaved road dust, 6) fugitive windblown dust, 7) farming operations. According to the ARB, diesel particulate emissions from on-road heavy-duty trucks have declined from 7.5 percent in 1990 to 3.8 percent in 2008, with future projections in 2020 for the category to account for only 1.6 percent of all emissions. ���According to the ARB, from 2008 to 2020 in California, emissions of all sources of particulate emissions are expected to increase, while emissions from diesel engines and equipment are decreasing,��� Schaeffer said. ���The projected total PM inventory increase from 2008 to 2020 is a 3.2 percent increase. However the eight categories of dieselpowered equipment noted above are reducing their PM 2.5 by 58 percent during the same timeframe.��� For more information, visit www. dieselforum.org. OO / Owner���operator/ March 2013 / / 26 OO 0313_text.indd 26 2/4/13 3:52 PM