In make it easier to understand how youcan get better fuel economy from your diesel engine, let’s go back to basics to give you a little more knowledge about the fuel itself.
By doing this it is easy to see how cost savings can be made and how a better fuel consumption rate (miles per gallon, or mpg) will give you an overall cheaper diesel fuel cost.
One of the very important points to acknoweldge is that a well maintained, smooth running engine is about the most important factor in achieving better fuel economy. Further, many of the problems that occur with diesel engines relate to fuel quality, which can occur in several ways.
1. It can vary from shipment to shipment
Even if you use the same vendor each time you fill up with diesel, there can be changes in the fuel they are providing. The diesel quality can change, even in a small way, with each shipment your vendor receives. The key variables are:
* Cetane: this is the level at which the fuel will self ignite, with acceptable levels being between 40 and 45. Because the levels can change with every delivery, the are not widely known. The starting and combustion roughness of your engin can be affected by the cetane level.
* The ‘weight’ or specific gravity of the diesel will affect the fuel’s heat content. Lighter fuels (Type 1) have a lower cloud point and is generally regarded as better in colder temperatures. The heavier diesel (Type 2) has good lubricating qualities, and if they are both the same price, the heavier fuel generally gives better fuel economy.
* The viscosity of the fuel governs the efficiency at which fuel travels through the high pressure parts of the injection pump. Type 1 will reduce your fuel economy because it tends to have more fuel leakage.
Purchasing your diesel from truck stops is generally regarded as the best way to ensure you are buying a quality product. These retailers would go out of business fast if they began to supply inferior fuel.
2. Using a fuel reformulator
After millions of miles of road tests around the world, there can be no doubt that using a fuel reformulator will reward you with better fuel economy resulting in cheaper diesel fuel costs.
These reformulators, like Ethos FR, should not be confused with ‘fuel additives’ – the type sold in automotive retailers. These are alcohol or gasoline based products that actually increase your fuel costs because of the quantity you need to add to each tank.
The main reason for treating diesel is to provide better lubrication, to ensure all the desired working parts of the engine are lubricated, running smoothly. Many drivers don’t realise that since low sulfur fuel was able to be used on road vehicles, the life expectancy of the fuel injection system has dropped by up to 25%.
The lubricating and cleaning esters in this fuel reformulator are show-stopping technology in action. Its use results in fuel burning more completely, and gives an appreciable net gain in mileage per gallon – meaning cheaper diesel costs overall.
Posts Tagged ‘Diesel Engine’
Saving on Diesel Fuel
December 31st, 2009Fuel-Cell Cars: The Wave of the Future?
December 24th, 2009Hydrogen fuel cell cars are expensive and impractical. So why would we even consider them? With gasoline prices well over $4 per gallon and reduction of CO2 emissions a priority, all alternative fuels and future car technologies are getting a closer scrutiny these days. Not only that, if a proper infrastructure was created, Hydrogen could very well be the world’s next propulsion fuel. Its cheap and abundant. . . so what are we waiting for? What are they, and how do they work? Hydrogen can be burned in a combustion engine or be converted back into electricity through a fuel cell. In an internal combustion automotive engine, gasoline or hydrogen can be used in a dual-fuel system that will suffice until a widespread hydrogen infrastructure can be built. These dual fuel cell systems are much like the electric hybrids like Toyato’s Prius, yet they use hydrogen rather than electricity to supplement the gasoline. In the long-term, with an infrastructure in place, hydrogen-on-demand vehicles can use either a hydrogen compound for internal combustion, or a fuel cell can create electro-mechanical energy and water. A fuel cell isn’t as complicated as a conventional gas or diesel engine and isn’t subject to high temperatures, corrosion or some of the structural weaknesses found in other types of engines. This affords a flexibility and durability for Hydrogen fuel cells. Hydrogen is processed through the fuel cell and combined with oxygen to create electricity. This newly formed energy is sent to pistons to propel the car forward (or reverse if you like). These fuel cell cars promise zero emissions and pollutants, with the only tailpipe emission being water vapor. Fuel-Cells are basically a combination of a battery and an engine making them a very unique advancement in car propulsion systems. Every year more and more efficient fuel cells are churned out by engineers and factories propelling the hydrogen car possibilities forward. Fuel-Cell conventions and conglomerates abound and with more and more government grants focusing on Fuel-Cell and Hydrogen Car development, the future continues to get brighter for Hydrogen Fuel-Cell cars. While there is concern that putting hydrogen fuel cell cars on the road is as bad of an idea as was the ill-fated Hindenburg, experts say the two aren’t related, and recent advances in car technology include development of safe, on-board hydrogen storage systems. Infrastructure and hydrogen highways. If you’re not familiar with the term, a hydrogen highway is a chain of hydrogen-equipped filling stations along a road. What will it take to make it happen? Norway started the HyNor Project in 2006; Japan has several stations, as does Germany, and California now reports having 25 stations in place from San Diego to Sacramento. All of these stations will add to a momentum of change and will hopefully give rise to a new determination to improve on present Hydrogen powered vehicle prototypes in order to begin to switch our fleet of petroleum based cars. The Hydrogen car will arrive even if it takes time: The future is now.
Alternative Fuel Autos Sale Exceeds Estimates by 50 Percent
November 1st, 2009Car buyers are now opting for fuel efficient vehicles offered by different car manufacturers. This is what the Auto Alliance announced as a way to start the celebration of the National Alternative Fuel Autos Week.
The group of car makers reported that there are now 10.5 million alternative fuel vehicles on U.S. roads according to 2006 sales data from R.L Polk and Co. The data also shows that last year alone, more than 1.5 million alternative fuel vehicles were sold. The figure surpasses the expectation of the auto industry by as much as 50 percent.
Today, car makers based in the U.S. or abroad are offering 60 models of alternative fuel vehicles. These include hybrid electric vehicles, flex-fuel vehicles which can run on a combination of gasoline and bio-ethanol, and diesel engine equipped vehicles which gets its juice from biodiesel.
Dave McCurdy, the President of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, has this to say during the announcement: “There are 10.5 million Alternative Fuel Autos on the roads and highways of every state across the country. We are happy to see that consumers are, in fact, discovering the alternatives that are available to them on dealership lots nationwide. We believe that the numbers of Alternative Fuel Autos on the roads continues to rise because consumers can choose from a variety of autos that reduce fuel use while still providing the utility, safety, performance and comfort they seek.”
While there are a lot of alternative fuel vehicle out in the market, car manufacturers are still looking for ways to develop more technology which will be employed by their vehicles to make them more fuel efficient. Alternative fuel vehicles are not the only vehicle to be produced with concern for the environment in mind though.
Conventional vehicles are also equipped with features that make them more fuel efficient and more eco-friendly. These features include fuel injectors, variable valve timing, continuously variable transmission (CVT), and exhaust filtration devices like the Nissan catalytic converter. These features allow even conventional vehicles to consume less fuel but still perform at the highest possible level.
In order to offer more fuel efficient vehicles, members of the Alliance have created partnerships with the alternative fuel industry to make alternative fuel more available to consumers. As of today, members of the Alliance have created over 25 partnerships with other industries to facilitate the development of newer alternative fuel technology.
The aim of the group is emphasized on McCurdy’s statement. “Having exceeded our sales expectations in 2006, we hope that 2007 will be another banner year for sales of Alternative Fuel Autos. This year marks the first-ever National Alternative Fuel Autos Week and automakers hope to draw more attention to the availability of these autos currently for sale.”
By: RyanThomas
