Changes at the fuel dock in June 2007
You may have heard that the Environmental Protection Agency is fiddling with the diesel fuel in your boat's tank, just like the gas in your outboard and automobile may now contain ethanol alcohol. It's true, and the new ultra-low sulfur diesel is mostly a very good thing. Your local fuel dock will begin selling a product called S-15 on June 1st (except in California, which made the changeover last September).
S-15 contains a much lower sulfur content (15 parts per million) than the old stuff, which contains 500ppm. The EPA figures that ultra-low sulfur fuel will reduce U.S. emissions of nitrous oxide by 2.6 million tons and soot and particulates by 110,000 tons each year. This means relief from asthma and other lung diseases caused by airborne particulates, less acid-rain and lower levels of climate-changing greenhouse gasses. For more information see: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/toxics.htm#emissions
S-15 also means you'll be seeing new diesel cars from Honda, Nissan, Subaru, Toyota, and others on the market, with a new generation of catalytic converters for clean operation. But what does the new ultra-low sulfur fuel mean for the Cummins diesel in your trawler or the Yanmar in your sailboat? Here is what the Chevron oil company has to say: "Some vehicle owners, who recently began using the new EPA regulated ultra low sulfur (S-15) diesel fuel, report that their vehicles have developed fuel leaks. Similar occurrences were reported in the early 1990’s when low sulfur fuel (S-500) was introduced. The leaks in the 1990’s occurred at points where elastomers (O-rings) are used to seal joints in the fuel system. During the 1993-94 period, the most common occurrences were injector fuel pump leaks."
"This problem is not exclusive to one engine type, one fuel type, or one geographic region. It can affect some engines that are older than ten years, but some newer ones have experienced the problem as well."
"The reoccurrence of these fuel leaks could become widespread geographically when the majority of fuel supplies are switched to S-15. However, it is anticipated that only a very small fraction of the vehicles may be affected. Of course it can be serious for owners whose vehicles are affected." Yup. The process of removing sulfur reduces the lubricity of the diesel fuel, and decreases the quantity of aromatic compounds, potentially leading to more rapid wear on rotary fuel injection pumps, shrinkage of fuel injector pump seals, instability in engine RPM, hard starting, reduced power and engine smoke. We understand this to be less serious than the problems caused by ethanol in gasoline engines, but diesel owners should be on the lookout for problems, especially if your boat is more than ten years old. We've heard of difficulties with Bosch-type Zexel and Denso fuel injector pumps with buna-rubber seals, especially in pre-1995 models where the seals are more than six years old. We also have some evidence that Cummins diesels may be more at risk.
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