PARTICULATE MATTER IN OUR AIR

(SNAP TEST)

Diesel emissions standards are based on opacity readings, which indicate the particulate matter (PM) in the exhaust of diesel HDV’s.

Opacity reading measures the amount of visible light that is blocked by exhaust smoke during a snap acceleration test. The darker the smoke, the more the vehicle is polluting.
The inspector revs up the engine to the maximum governed revolutions several times, first to remove loose soot from the exhaust pipe, then to measure the opacity.
The readings from the final 3 snaps are averaged, that average is compared to the emission standard.
Common causes of test failures, cars & trucks, malfunctioning components that regulate fuel/air, oxygen sensors, EGR, engine misfires, catalytic converters, evaporation controls, gas cap.

ULSD fuel is the fuel currently mandated for use in all diesel engines. This fuel burns cleaner and is less polluting than its predecessor, called Low Sulphur Diesel Fuel. Low sulphur fuel contained less than 500 ppm of sulphur. ULSD contains 15 ppm or less.
As diesel fuel is further refined to remove the polluting sulphur, it is inadvertently stripped of its lubricating properties. This vital lubrication is a necessary component of the diesel fuel as it prevents wear in the fuel delivery system. Specifically, it lubricates pumps, high pressure pumps and injectors. Traditional Low sulphur diesel fuel typically contained enough lubricating ability to suffice the needs of these vital components. ULSD fuel, on the other hand, is considered to be very “dry” and incapable of lubricating vital fuel delivery components. As a result, these components are at risk of premature and even catastrophic failure when ULSD fuel is introduced to the system. As a result, all oil companies producing ULSD fuel must replace the lost lubricity with additives. All ULSD fuel purchased at retail fuel stations SHOULD be adequately treated with additives to replace this lost lubricity. The potential result of using inadequately treated fuel, as indicated above, can be catastrophic. There have been many documented cases of randomly tested samples of diesel fuel. These tests prove that often times the fuel we purchase is not adequately treated and may therefore contribute to accelerated wear of our fuel delivery systems. For this reason it may be prudent to use an after market diesel fuel additive to ENSURE adequate lubrication of the fuel delivery system.

How Diesel Fuel Is Evaluated For Lubricating Ability:

Diesel fuel and other fluids are tested for lubricating ability using a device called a “High Frequency Reciprocating Rig” or HFRR. The HFRR is currently the internationally accepted, standardized method to evaluate fluids for lubricating ability. It uses a ball bearing that reciprocates or moves back and forth on a metal surface at a very high frequency for a duration of 90 minutes. The machine does this while the ball bearing and metal surface are immersed in the test fluid (in this case, treated diesel fuel). At the end of the test the ball bearing is examined under a microscope and the “wear scar” on the ball bearing is measured in microns. The larger the wear scar, the poorer the lubricating ability of the fluid. Southwest Research runs every sample twice and averages the size of the wear scar.
The U.S. standard for diesel fuel says a commercially available diesel fuel should produce a wear scar of no greater than 520 microns. The Engine Manufacturers Association had requested a standard of a wear scar no greater than 460 microns, typical of the pre-ULSD fuels. Most experts agree that a 520 micron standard is adequate, but also that the lower the wear scar the better.

Attached are two test reports that were done by an independent Laboratory. The first test was done to straight winter diesel. The second test was done with the same winter fuel treated with Pathfinder Lubricants, Trijet fuel treatment. As you can see there was a noticeable reduction.