New-Generation Diesel Engines Deliver Reduced Emissions, Fuel Savings And Cleaner Air To The Mid-Atlantic Region

New insights on the clean air benefits delivered by new generations of diesel technology and the technology’s potential to reduce mobile-source emissions

Hunt Valley, MD (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) - Today at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Air Management Association’s (MARAMA) Mobile Sources Training Workshop, experts from the Diesel Technology Forum highlighted new insights on clean air benefits delivered by new generations of diesel technology and the technology’s potential to reduce mobile-source emissions, including those attributed to commercial truck and workboat fleets. The Forum also offered perspective on the outlook for commercial trucking technologies and fuels in the region, including the potential for including diesel, hybrid, natural gas and electrification technologies.

MARAMA is comprised of the state and local air pollution control agencies from Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia and Philadelphia and Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. The coalition’s mission is to enhance regional collaboration so as to prevent and reduce air pollution impacts in the Mid-Atlantic region as a whole.

“State and local air management professionals in the Mid-Atlantic region must deal with a complex air shed alongside a host of transportation related issues,” said Allen Schaeffer, executive director of the Diesel Technology Forum. “The advanced generation of diesel technologies delivers key benefits today, especially in terms of cleaner air and fuel savings. We appreciate the opportunity to provide perspective on the continued role for advanced technology diesel engines across industry sectors, even amongst other fuels and technologies.”

The Forum’s presentations highlighted the work being done by leaders in heavy duty commercial engines and trucks and large engines in marine and locomotive applications including Caterpillar, Cummins, Daimler, Deere, GM, FCA, Isuzu, Volvo Penta and MTU, as well as the important opportunity that the increasing use of advanced renewable biodiesel fuels brings for further reducing emissions in the Mid-Atlantic region.

The State of Trucking in the Mid-Atlantic RegionThree of the eight states in the region (including the District of Columbia) currently exceed the national average (33%) for the percentage of Class 8 new-technology diesel vehicles on the road (D.C. 48%; MD: 42%; PA: 42%). For the broader commercial trucking fleet (all Class 3-8 vehicles), Pennsylvania is among the top 10 states with the most new-generation diesel trucks, and also has one of the highest adoption rates in the nation (40%). (Read more: New Generation of Diesel Power Now Drives 36% of U.S. Commercial Trucks)

According to research by the Forum, a new-technology Class 8 diesel truck will save 960 gallons of fuel, saving truckers $3,300 in fuel costs. These newest trucks also offer significant clean air benefits: nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions that are 99 percent lower than previous generations, along with 98 percent fewer emissions of particulate matter.

“New-generation diesel trucks are responsible for significant reductions in ozone precursors and ensure continued success in achieving national ambient air quality standards for ozone in the Mid-Atlantic region,” said Schaeffer. “If the rate of adoption of the newest-technology trucks increases across the rest of the region, additional reductions in NOx can be achieved as well.”

Beginning in 2011, all new heavy-duty trucks are equipped with selective catalytic reduction and particulate control technologies, which combine to achieve stringent new EPA emissions requirements for NOx emissions of no more than 0.20 grams per brake horsepower hour (g/BHP-hr.). This is in addition to particulate emissions levels of no more than 0.01 grams per brake horsepower hour (g/HP-hr.) established in 2007.

Other Mobile-Source Concerns in the Mid-AtlanticAccording to research from the Forum and the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), upgrading the older engines that power large applications in the Mid-Atlantic region, including switch locomotives and marine workboats, delivers substantial emission reductions. On a dollar-per-ton basis, these projects are among the most cost effectivewhen it comes to reducing emissions, including NOx.

“Recent research confirms that the fleet of workboats including barges, pushboats and tugs that operate sometimes 24/7 in many MARAMA member regions are twice as old as assumed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s models,” said Ezra Finkin, director of policy for the Forum. “Upgrading these engines with clean diesel models would reduce NOx emissions by about 8 tons per day for communities located near marine terminals in the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and by just under 1 ton per day near the Port of Baltimore.”

Communities near ports and rail yards in the Mid-Atlantic region are among some of the most vulnerable to smog-forming compounds like NOx. Repowering the oldest, largest mobile engines with new-technology clean diesel offers the fastest, most cost-effective option to quickly improve air quality.

Starting in 2015, new clean diesel engines used in marine applications and switcher locomotives in the United States were required to meet Tier 4 emissions standards. Relative to previous generations of technology, the latest clean diesel technologies can reduce emissions, including NOx and fine particle emissions (PM2.5), by 88 percent to 95 percent.

About The Diesel Technology Forum
The Diesel Technology Forum is a non-profit organization dedicated to raising awareness about the importance of diesel engines, fuel and technology. Forum members are leaders in clean diesel technology and represent the three key elements of the modern clean-diesel system: advanced engines, vehicles and equipment, cleaner diesel fuel and emissions-control systems. For more information visit https://www.dieselforum.org.

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