As the trucking industry nears the Oct. 1 deadline for low-emissions engines on new trucks, many manufacturers of heavy-duty lubricants have assured customers that their oils will be ready to handle the soot and other challenges brought by cooled exhaust gas recirculation technology. Several oil makers – Shell, Chevron, ExxonMobil and Pennzoil-Quaker State – previously announced that certain products comply with the American Petroleum Institute’s new CI-4 standard for lubricants used in EGR-equipped engines. Add to that list Valvoline, Castrol, Petro-Canada and 76 Lubricants.
The Valvoline Company has developed a synthetic engine oil, Premium Blue Extreme, with the company’s Dispersive Polymer Technology. It’s claimed to offer extended drain capability and fuel economy benefits, while meeting CI-4 requirements.
Castrol Heavy-Duty Lubricants recently announced that its new line of diesel-engine oils exceed CI-4 requirements. These include: Enduron S, with synthetic-blend base stock; Tection Extra, with blended, hydrocracked Group II base stocks; and Tection S, with improved dispersancy to manage higher soot levels generated by EGR engines.
Petro-Canada says its Duron heavy-duty engine oil has achieved the CI-4 performance standard. Duron is formulated through Petro-Canada’s patented HT Purity process, which produces base oils that are 99.9 percent pure, the company says. The result is superior soot dispersal and oxidative stability at higher operating temperatures, Petro-Canada says.
Phillips 66 Company says that its 76 Lubricants’ line of QLT heavy-duty engine oil meets CI-4 requirements. Formulated with 76 Lubricants’ Quantum Leap Technology, 76 Guardol QLT and Royal Triton QLT deliver exceptional bearing corrosion protection, soot control, deposit control and stay-in-grade protection, the company says.
In some cases, lubricant makers’ existing formulations, which meet the CH-4 standard currently in place, meet the new CI-4 standard. Last summer, for example, Shell Lubricants announced that testing at its Westhollow Technology Center determined that Shell Rotella T Multigrade 15W-40, with Advanced Soot Control would meet or exceed the anticipated CI-4 standard, which wasn’t finalized until later that year. Stringent testing shows that the lubricant is ideal for EGR engines, said Greg Raley, commercial products manager for Equilon Lubricants, which markets Shell lubricants, last July. “What’s really exciting is that customers using Rotella T today already enjoy this added level of protection in non-EGR engines,” Raley said.
Other products already announced as meeting or exceeding the CI-4 standard are ChevronTexaco’s Delo 400; ExxonMobil’s Mobil Delvac 1300 Super and Exxon XD-3 Extra oils; and Pennzoil-Quaker State’s Long-Life Heavy Duty Engine Oil.
