DEPOT & WORKSHOP EQUIPMENT
Oliver Rumford-Warr, technical director at Fuel Technologies, discusses the trends in rail fuel and the company’s partnership with Southern Railway.
Fuel legislation & the effects on op- erators
F
rom 1 January 2012, all UK rail gas oil will be supplied as uLSD (Ultra Low
Sulphur Diesel) as well as an ongoing trend towards higher biodiesel content in fuel. A biodiesel blend target of B10 (10%) has been set by the UK Government for 2020 as part of a raft of European fuel legislation updates.
These changes, designed to reduce harmful carbon and NOx emissions, have signifi- cant side-effects on rail engines; lower fuel efficiency, ‘frozen fuel’ in winter, lubric- ity issues, blocked filters and corroded fuel tanks. In future, the management of these issues will not just be outlying factors in the running of rail operations, but will become central to efficient fleet management and cost effective servicing.
Additives & why they are becoming increasingly important
The origin of biodiesel content is often un- known by end users and despite daily fuel checking and extensive house-keeping pro- cedures, there is no guarantee of receiving clean fuel. Fuel additives are the only recog- nised method of proactively managing fuel quality, and increased use of biodiesel there- fore makes diesel additives a necessity in protecting engines, lowering maintenance costs and the number of breakdowns.
Fuel additives also offer significant addi- tional benefits, such as:
• Increased fuel efficiency by cleaning the engine components and thus improving combustion
• Increased reliability due to improved en- gine performance and fuel quality
• Improved lubricity and engine perfor- mance during the winter by eradicating cold flow problems
• Reduced maintenance costs by increas- ing the filter replacement interval
• Reduced emissions offer carbon trading benefits
Southern Railway
Southern Railway had existing issues with fuel degradation and concerns over the im- pact of biodiesel on their diesel fleet. Fol- lowing analysis of the fuel, the problems
60 | rail technology magazine Dec/Jan 12
were quickly identified and the appropriate additive prescribed – Kathon FP1.5 Fuel Biocide.
Fuel Technologies has developed a fully automated and optimised dosing system, which ensures the additives are injected at the point of delivery into the fuel storage tank. The additive then protects the fuel throughout the distribution chain, includ- ing aboard the trains themselves. The dos- ing system does not require any interaction from operational staff, thereby eliminating health and safety risk, whilst also ensuring the fuel is accurately dosed without any wastage of the additive. The system also features an online web interface, providing the latest fuel test results and remote con- dition monitoring on additive levels and system status.
The system is fully tested in the Fuel Tech- nologies workshops, before being delivered to site and installed within a day and with- out affecting fuel deliveries. It is designed to be expandable, to enable additional ad- ditives to be dosed – with up to four injec- tion ports being used simultaneously.
Following the successful completion of the installation at the Selhurst and St Leonards railway depots, the class 171 fleet engineers at Southern Rail confirmed: “The Fuel Technologies automated dosing system and additive supply has been key to the re- cent Golden & Silver Spanner awards.
“The system helped Southern become the first operator to win both Gold and Silver spanners, and has helped significantly in reducing fleet reliability incidents. The sys- tem has also improved filter life, and saved servicing costs.”
Southern Railway are also working in partnership with Fuel Technologies to use Dieselclean, a specialist additive produced by Fuel Technologies to improve fuel effi- ciency, clean injectors, filters and therefore reduce maintenance costs.
The additive is expected to provide signifi- cant savings to fuel and maintenance costs, further enhancing the reputation of South- ern Rail’s Fleet Engineers.
Fuel Technologies are working with a number of train operating companies to improve fuel quality, and have developed systems which can be applied across the fuel network, dosing at the supply point or onboard trains.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
T: 0845 601 5045 E:
info@fueltechnologies.co.uk
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