SECTOR FOCUS: HEAVY DUTY DIESEL OIL
Global heavy-duty engine oil specifications and their impact on current and next generation lubricants
Ruud ter Rele, Peter Kleijwegt, Marta Sabater Ferret, Richard van den Bulk from Chevron Oronite Company LLC
Emissions Legislation a Key Driver of Engine and Lubricant Technology
Exhaust gas emission legislation will continue to remain a key driver for engine and lubricant technology. With decades of experience, the lubricant industry has always been able to develop and to deliver products matching the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) and industry engine oil specifications. Good examples of this are on-time availability of low-ash lubricants meeting one or a combination of multiple industry (e.g. ACEA E9, E6, API CJ-4, CK-4, JASO DH-2) and OEM engine oil specifications. Currently, Euro VI and similar emission standards are in force in the US, Europe, Japan, and other countries. Developing countries like India and China, will adopt Euro VI type emission standards within a couple of years, which will result in a substantial increase of the demand for low-ash lubricants.
Along with exhaust gas emission reduction, heavy-duty engines have been improved in many other areas as well, including: specific power, fuel consumption, durability, oil drain interval, and noise. Lubricants are an enabler for many of these improvements.
Fuel Economy Legislation Will Push Lubricant Technology to a Higher Level The introduction of fuel economy standards presents the next series of challenges for the truck and lubricant industry. Japan, US, Canada, India, and recently, the EU have adopted CO2
limits, which directly relates to fuel economy. Across these regions, CO2
reduction limits vary from 10%
to almost 50%, although they are based on different reference levels.
10 LUBE MAGAZINE NO.153 OCTOBER 2019
About a quarter of the mandatory fuel economy improvements for trucks are likely to come from within the engine. Low friction engine oil can deliver a direct fuel economy improvement of up to 1.5% compared to an SAE 15W-40 viscosity grade reference. The larger portion of the mandatory fuel economy improvements will come from structural improvements to the vehicle itself. Optimised truck aerodynamics, lower vehicle speed, reduced vehicle weight and low-rolling resistance tyres offer the largest contribution to fuel economy, and each individually more than engine oils.
One example, according to OEM studies, is that replacing the side mirrors with cameras can offer a direct fuel economy benefit comparable to low friction engine oils. It won’t be surprising to see that improvements to aerodynamics are likely to be much more cost-effective, faster and less cumbersome than the development of engines capable of operating on low friction engine oils. Still, the lubricant industry is committed to delivering on their part of the fuel economy equation.
emission reduction
API launched the FA-4 oil category in December 2016 and JASO the DH-2F oil category in April 2017. In 2020, ACEA will follow with the introduction of the new F8 and F11 oil categories, specifying HTHS levels in the range of 2.9 to 3.2 mPa.s aligned with the API and JASO fuel economy oil categories. It should be noted here that exhaust gas emissions test procedures specify steady-state, transient tests, or a combination of both. The truck and lubricant industry usually use those cycles for measuring fuel economy. Clearly, the test procedure should be modified to assure accurate fuel consumption measurements.
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