According to Scania, the new fuel is tailored to diesel combustion and, as well as being efficient, it produces almost 20% less nitrous oxide compared to standard diesel. In addition, the fuel reduces carbon dioxide emissions by up to 80% and particle emissions by almost 30%.
The new NExBTL fuel will now be subjected to environmental and operational trials, starting in autumn 2007 and lasting until the end of 2010.
The tests will involve monitoring exhaust emissions and engine conditions with different mixes of the fuel into standard diesel, in distribution vehicles and shuttle vessels in the Stockholm region, as well as city buses in Helsinki.
Scania said that six of its city buses will form part of the trial. Four of them will run on 100% NExBTL, while two will run on normal diesel. The project also involves tests with various mixes on some 100 vehicles operated by Posten Logistik, the logistics division of Swedish Post, and two to three ships in the Stockholm archipelago operated by Waxholmsbolaget.
Scania’s laboratory tests corroborate that bio-based synthetic diesel has great potential, said Hasse Johansson, group vice president of R&D at Scania. Simply switching to such fuel from standard diesel can significantly improve emissions. The possibility of mixing it freely with standard diesel makes the fuel interesting for old vehicles and engines as well.
There is no reason to wait ‘a few more years’ for better alternatives. With the renewable fuels and the technologies available today we are off to a head start, making a significant contribution in reducing carbon dioxide emissions, concluded Mr Johansson.
Scania is already using environmentally friendly fuel options and has used bioethanol as fuel for adapted diesel engines in its city buses sine the late 1980s.
