Getting The Most Out Of Your Alternatively Fueled Diesel Vehicle - Proper Maintenance and Optimization for Performance, Emissions, and Efficiency

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1 Getting The Most Out Of Your Alternatively Fueled Diesel Vehicle - Proper Maintenance and Optimization for Performance, Emissions, and Efficiency Tom Judd Colorado Biodiesel

2 Biodiesel Related Mechanical Issues This discussion is in no way to be considered complete, or comprehensive. If you have questions PLEASE ASK! If you have information that isn't shared in this class and feel is pertinent, please SHARE IT!

3 General Diesel Maintenance Filters Fuel lines Diesel purge/diesel Kleen Valve adjustment Injector service (test/balance)

4 General Diesel Maintenance Valve adjustment is a common procedure Anyone can learn to do this on their own car Be prepared to get greasy!

5 General Diesel Maintenance Use protective equipment doing any work Patience, no matter what

6 General Diesel Maintenance Compression testing for baseline (cheap testers can be had at HFT - OK)

7 General Diesel Maintenance Checking and adjusting injector pump timing (timing chain elongation over time changes timing relative to cam timing.)

8 Diesel Emissions Smoking Turbo (fuel/air ratio imbalance) ALDA (fuel ratio adjustment) Bad fuel Water? Algae? Glycerol? Soaps?

9 Diesel Emissions Smoking (cont'd) Improper warm-up (ambient relative to engine temps) Bad glow plug(s) Testing

10 Diesel Emissions Air filtration Blocked flow Plugged filter Off-brand filter Air intake restrictions (bird/mouse)

11 Biodiesel Related Maintenance Fuel Filters Flexible fuel lines (NR, Buna, etc.) Filler cap gaskets Filler neck seals Pump fittings with seals

12 General Diesel Maintenance Don't forget the chassis and other related components! Wheel bearings Differential Transmission Synth lubes Filters Adjustments

13 Common Biodiesel Related Repairs Filter plugging for the first few tanks will be a common problem due to the aggressive cleaning action of Biodiesel

14 Common Biodiesel Related Repairs Older fuel hoses swell or decompose (replacement with most new factory hose and any Viton hose will solve this issue)

15 Common Biodiesel Related Repairs What we all know: NR, Buna-N, Nitrile seals rot/decompose in presence of Biodiesel.

16 Biodiesel Related Maintenance Injector cleaning

17 Biodiesel and Rubber Natural Rubber no longer used Buna-N, Nitrile, etc. do swell over time Most vehicles mfg AFTER 1992 are OK for Biodiesel use as-is!

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19 Biodiesel and Fuel Lines Gates 4219G is certified for use with Biodiesel

20 Biodiesel and fuel lines

21 Common Biodiesel Issues

22 Common Biodiesel Issues

23 Common Biodiesel Issues Up to 10% less power Higher gel temp Decomposition of NR, Buna and Nitrile Injector Coking/Nozzle plugging NOX can be increased Availability

24 Coking Symptoms Smoking Hard starting Lack of power Rough engine Ford F250 Powerstroke, ~30K miles on B100. Mild coking issues noted

25 Biodiesel Related Mods Injector pop testing and balancing (experimenting with nozzles and pop pressures)

26 Biodiesel Performance Pros Cetane ~5-10 points higher than petro diesel Smoother/quiet running Cleaner fuel system Cleaner combustion chamber

27 Biodiesel Performance Pros Less Soot/emissions (cont d): In the 1996 study performed by the Southwest Research Institute, the effect of oxygen content (by percent oxygen) on the production of particulates, smoke and soot was studied using the same Cummins diesel test engine cited above. The study established, for example, that a B-20 blend (approximately 2% oxygen for RME-20) reduces particulate soot by approximately 30% (from 0.06 for diesel no. 2 to 0.04 G/HP-Hr for rapeseed methyl ester at 20%.) Technical Handbook for Marine Biodiesel In Recreational Boats - Randall von Wedel, Ph.D

28 Biodiesel Performance Pros Less Soot/emissions (cont d): B100 has shown about a 50% reduction in particulate matter (PM or soot) emissions. Biodiesel FAQ, Union of Concerned Scientists Oil life extended with reductions in suspended soot

29 Biodiesel Performance Pros Substantial increase in fuel lubricity means longer pump life: Even low blends of biodiesel are highly effective at enhancing the lubricity of diesel fuel. The typical blend used for lubricity enhancement is 2% biodiesel mixed with 98% diesel (B2). NBB - Low Blends of Biodiesel: A Guide to Different Blend Levels

30 Biodiesel Performance Pros This is a photo of the Quantity Adjuster housing on the BioPod after 42,000 miles years on B100. Bob Armantrout

31 Biodiesel Performance Pros Here's a photo of my friend Shaun's 2000 Golf with over 62,000 B100 miles - it is immaculate! Bob Armantrout

32 Somebody Likes Us! Using biodiesel in a conventional diesel engine substantially reduces emissions of unburned hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, sulfates, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, nitrated polycyclic aromtic hydrocarbons, and particulate matter. - Answers.com

33 Conclusion Don t worry, if you screw up a mechanical thing, it CAN be fixed! We are all at the front of a many-generations quest for the health of our living environment. Fuel costs will only go up.

34 Colorado Biodiesel PO box Boulder, CO