Has your attitude about using a quality diesel fuel additive on a Year Round basis
changed? Using a quality rack injected diesel additive on a Year Round basis is
more important now than ever. Let me explain.
In the seventies, oil refineries were owned primarily by major oil companies, who
took great pride in their brand and product quality. Today, most of the refineries
are owned by merchant refiners. Product quality takes a backseat to profitability.
Their goal is to produce a pipeline specification product, not one that is optimized
for use in today's modern diesel engines. There is definitely a quality gap
in ULSD coming out of refineries now versus 30 years ago. PPC's year round fuel
quality additive program fills that quality gap.
Today's ULSD passes all of the current laboratory tests for thermal and oxidative
stability, however the tests are not equivalent to the extreme conditions of the
high pressure common rail HPCR) injection systems. With new emission standards forcing
OEMs to build more efficient engines with much tighter tolerances, the typical HPCR
injection system has constant pressures and temperatures that exceed 40,000psi and
400 degrees F respectively. This environment stresses the fuel and causes it to
break down or coke in the upper cylinder of the injector, thus creating a black
soot like material often referred to as asphaltine. This material not only fouls
injectors, but gets returned back to the saddle tank via the return fuel line. This
circulates darkened fuel throughout the fuel system causing premature fuel filter
plugging, loss of horse power and significant loss of fuel economy.
Traditional detergents may have historically been effective in combating injector
deposits in older diesel engines. They are however not robust enough to combat the
stubborn deposits that build up around the injector valve seat and nozzle, inhibiting
fuel flow and adversely affecting engine performance.
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