{"id":2154,"date":"2019-09-05T17:47:36","date_gmt":"2019-09-05T17:47:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/quicktransportsolutions.com\/blog\/?p=2154"},"modified":"2019-09-05T17:47:38","modified_gmt":"2019-09-05T17:47:38","slug":"the-fleet-technicians-log-getting-fueled-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/quicktransportsolutions.com\/blog\/the-fleet-technicians-log-getting-fueled-up\/","title":{"rendered":"The Fleet Technician\u2019s Log: Getting Fueled Up"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In today\u2019s edition of our Technician\u2019s Log Series<\/a>, we are going to shift gears, pun intended! In the first part of our series, we talked about brake linings, certainly an important topic. Yet, there are more than just brakes to consider. Today we will talk about the latest shop trends in fuel. We\u2019ll start with a fuel source that has been on these pages before but is ever evolving: Biodiesel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What\u2019s the Latest on\nBiodiesel?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

To be frank, biodiesel is an advanced biofuel that is both\nrenewable and biodegradable. It is also generally cleaner burning than\npetroleum fuel. Biodiesel can\nbe used<\/a> not just to power cars but also to power buildings. It is produced\nmainly from cooking oil, waste animal fats, and other high-grade biodegradable\noils. The good part of biodiesel is its ability to have what is called\n\u201cfeedstock flexibility.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This means that biofuel can be made from almost anything. As\nmanufacturing processes for converting biofuel become more advanced, the\nchemical processes involved become less costly. Called transesterification, the\nprocess that converts the fatty acid into a fuel are incredibly streamlined,\nwhich still meeting the ASTM standards required to ensure it is a safe fuel.\nConsider that B20 biofuel is nearly identical in ASTM specs to standard Number\n2 fuel. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

B20 essentially stands for biodiesel mixed into a petroleum\nproduct\u2019s blend. So, a B20 biofuel would contain 20% biodegradable material and\n80% petroleum mix. A B5 blend would include 5% biodiesel. It is unlikely we\nwill ever get to a point where biofuel completely replaces petroleum, but we\nare certainly getting closer to it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some of the biggest advantages for technicians taking a\nsecond look at biofuels include money, performance, and efficiency. As an\nexample, biodiesel often costs far les than petroleum diesel counterparts.\nThere are also state and federal incentives for companies to shift to biofuel.\nIt isn\u2019t taking a fleet much to see how switching to biofuels can have a big\nimpact on the bottom line. As big box retailers and other companies work to\nmeet their carbon-reduction guidelines by 2025 and 2030, they will increasingly\nturn to renewable fuels to make that happen. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Biofuels also offer a significant performance advantage over\nregular fuels. In many cases biofuel will outperform petroleum fuel in\nefficiency, torque and horsepower tests. The ASTM spec for biodiesel requires a\nminimum Cetane number of 47, where as a diesel spec need only be 40. Higher\nCetane equals shorter ignition time and overall better performance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Biofuels generally don\u2019t emit as many pollutants as a\nbranded diesel. A B20 blend of fuel will reduce particulate matter by an\nappreciable percent and increase the lubricity of the fuel, whereas modern\ndiesel engines rely on oil to stay lubricated. Carbon monoxide emissions are\nreduced by over 10 percent compared to standard fuels. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Easy to Adopt<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When it comes to including biodiesel into your fleet fuel\nparadigm, consider the blend, if you will. It is easier to begin including\nbiodiesel as an option in your fleet. Fleet operators looking to make the\nswitch can start pumping B20 blends directly into their current vehicles and\nthen head on out. Trucking companies do not need to make any expensive upgrades\nto their powertrains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For fleets that operate their own fuel operations, from an infrastructure standpoint, the switch is easy. In many cases, vendors and suppliers will already have partners they can turn to when switching to a B20 fuel blend. It is not hard to find a consistent supply for those who are switching to it. Some trucking companies even blend their own. Of course, you will need a dedicated biodiesel storage tank and a proprietary blending system. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Biodiesel is not going anywhere. Consumption in the U.S.\nrose over 110% between 2012 and 2018. In many public and private fleets,\nespecially, biodiesel has been growing by double-digits. It is better to work\nwith the fuel in such environments. To learn more about biodiesel, click or tap on this link<\/a> to the U.S. Renewable\nEnergy Group. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

FA-4 Oils Face Slow\nAdoption<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, as we discuss fuels and lubricants, it might be a\ngood time for the Technician\u2019s Log to get into the move away from FA-4 oils\nthat fleet seem to be undertaking, despite the fuel economy gain of around 2%.\nWe spoke a long time ago about why it would be worthwhile for a fleet to switch\nto the new standard, but an ATA study group found that there are a few reasons\nmore trucking companies aren\u2019t making the switch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most of the fleets report backward compatibility problems.\nThe trucking industry stands at the convergence of two different eras in the\nindustry. An older and newer era of equipment. Fleets find it difficult to keep\ntwo separate inventories of oil for trucks that need a different formulation,\nsuch as CJ-4 or CK-4. There have been improvements in traditional lubricants\nthat have led to low-viscosity, semi-synthetic blends that yield similar\nbenefits. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

FA-4 oils represented a sea-change in engine lubrication\nover the past ten years. With CJ-4 being the last upgrade it had been a long\ntime since the heavy-duty lubrication industry had seen a major change. Yet,\nalthough FA-4 oils became available nearly four years ago, 14W-40s still\nrepresent most of what is in use today. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet, suppliers of the new oil do not seem to be worried. New\nlubricant product rollouts tend to have a slow uptake as fleets pay attention\nto others who have tried the product and liked it. Then, the curve rises, and\nas more positive results are seen, full adoption occurs. Market penetration of\nF4-A oils will rise over time. It is only inevitable. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We have even seen some OEMs factory filling with FA-4 oils,\nbut it is generally drained as soon as the vehicle hits the shop and the\ntechnician dumps it for whatever is currently in their inventory. Take an\nexample of a large trucking company on why switching is such an onerous\nproposition. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s say you run 3,000 tractors and 5,000 tractors with\nreefer units on them. As a high-volume truck buyer, fleets need to use what is\nin bulk, what is currently located in their shop. When they have the bulk oil\nto use, they need to use what they have. Big fleets also prefer that their\nthird-party suppliers can operate in bulk. They don\u2019t want to wait for a\nsupplier to make a big change just to accommodate their biodiesel needs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s All on the OEM<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is some measure of convincing that needs to be done to\nensure fleets begin a greater adoption of FA-4 oils. It is important to\nremember that with greater adoption and market acceptance comes greater\navailability and pricing. Motor carriers do not want to get stuck with\nthousands of gallons of oil they neither want nor will use. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fleets must also consider how oils are packaged and labeled.\nMisuse of oil could lead to equipment failure and more problems down the road.\nIf a motor carrier wants to use a specialty product or a new product that may\nnot be compatible with every rig they are running, mechanics can get confused.\nLabeling is a must, and correct labeling at that. If truck drivers are on the\nroad and they need to top up, they also need to know they are using the right\nproduct. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before FA-4 oils even became a thing, they were touted as\nproviding a one percent gain in fuel efficiency. That promise has held up in\nfleet testing. Fleets who have made the switch from a 15W-40 CK-4 to a lower viscosity\n5W-30 CK-4 saw a gain of up to 1.5 percent efficiency. Another half-percent\ngain can be added by moving from CK-4 to FA-4. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fleets must do the math to determine whether the switch is right for them. If a fleet of 5,000 tractors all switches to an oil that can save up to 4% on fuel per year, the company could be looking at hundreds of thousands of dollars in savings annually. Even more, motor carriers can burnish their sustainability chops by advertising that they use less fuel. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Even though not all OEMs are moving lightning-fast to the\nFA-4 standard, the direction is moving that way. OEM acceptance will be a big\nfactor in how many fleets are running the oil out on the roads. It is a\nchallenge because market price may be high right now, but over time, expect to\nsee increased adoption and less gallons used as more fleets make the switch.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In today\u2019s edition of our Technician\u2019s Log Series, we are going to shift gears, pun intended! In the first part of our series, we talked about brake linings, certainly an important topic. Yet, there are more than just brakes to consider. Today we will talk about the latest shop trends in fuel. We\u2019ll start with … Read moreThe Fleet Technician\u2019s Log: Getting Fueled Up<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe Fleet Technician\u2019s Log: Getting Fueled Up - Quick Transport Solutions Trucking Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/quicktransportsolutions.com\/blog\/the-fleet-technicians-log-getting-fueled-up\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Fleet Technician\u2019s Log: Getting Fueled Up - Quick Transport Solutions Trucking Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In today\u2019s edition of our Technician\u2019s Log Series, we are going to shift gears, pun intended! In the first part of our series, we talked about brake linings, certainly an important topic. Yet, there are more than just brakes to consider. Today we will talk about the latest shop trends in fuel. We\u2019ll start with ... 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