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Should American Trucks Run On DME?

Have you heard of DME? Unless you are a European truck driver or fleet technician, it’s likely you haven’t. DME – otherwise known as dimethyl ether – is an alternative fuel that has the potential to change the fuel landscape as we see it.

Proponents argue that DME fuels vary a number of significant advantages over their conventional counterparts. For one, DMEs can be sourced from a variety of feedstocks. They also burn cleaner and do not require ultra-high pressure or cryogenics.

At ambient temperatures, DME is a clean, colorless gas. While it has yet to make a big splash in trucking, it’s been used for decades in the personal care industry as an aerosol propellant. Under moderate pressure it can be liquefied and used as a vehicle’s fuel.

Where Does It Come From?

DME can be produced from both coal or natural gas, but also from renewable sources. Whether it be paper waste, agricultural byproducts or municipal waste, DMEs can come from a variety of renewable energy sources.

In Sweden, DME is made from “black liquor,” which is a waste product from the country’s timber industry. In the same country, the Volvo Group is rolling forward with plans to demonstrate real-world results for trucks running on DME. Early prototypes are hitting the road as we speak.

Even so, they have no plans to release it companywide throughout their manufacturing processes. As the DME-powered engine remains in testing phases, Volvo is not convinced the market is ready for the switch.

A Global Push

One of Volvo’s DME projects is running in California, and uses fuels provided by a stateside DME manufacturer that can produce up to 10,000 gallons of DME per day. In fact, DME can now be used legally in all 50 states. If you harness it as a natural waste gas, it’s even eligible for a Federal Renewable Standards deduction.

But it isn’t just in the United States where DME is getting attention. As it proves itself a solution, not just for fuel and energy challenges, but also landfill and waste challenges.

As China grapples with some of the worst air quality in that country’s history, there’s a lot of pressure to improve air quality around the globe. With lower levels of nitrogen oxides and the total absence of sulfur oxides, DME combustion goes a long way for congested urban areas looking for better air quality.

In fact, China is now the largest producer of DME in the world, with over 60 plants in operation. Last summer, a Chinese consortium received government certification to test a DME-fuel engine that could satisfy Euro 6 emissions standards. The engine is now being tested on short-haul heavy-duty street sweeper and garbage trucks.

In September, Ford and Germany teamed up to test the first DME-run passenger car. The three-year, 3.5-million-euro project aims to determine the uses and feasibility of using DME engines in every-day vehicles.

Moving Beyond Petroleum

While oil prices have been historically low for quite some time, no one believes they will stay like that forever. As volatility around the world increases, there’s growing consensus around the world that countries need to be energy independent from the middle east or other countries. Even in an environment of low oil prices, that dynamic continues.

Now the question remains, will the manufacturing sector follow the energy sector, or vice versa? Already Washington State has passed a law providing alternative fuel tax credits, of which DME is includes. So perhaps it won’t be manufacturing or energy, but a simple flight to the nearest solution once fuel standards change on a local or federal level.

Either way you look at it, as government agencies increasingly see the benefits of DME, eventual adoption is nearly a foregone conclusion. With regulations to be met and citizens to satisfy, DME – as fuel of the future – can finally move us beyond petroleum.

 

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