Detroit Diesel Corp. announced that its family of engines with BlueTec emissions control has been certified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as meeting 2010 emissions regulations. Detroit Diesel says that prior to certification, the BlueTec engine line — which uses selective catalytic reduction (SCR) to reduce emissions to near-zero levels — had completed more than 28 million equivalent miles of testing, including one and a half million miles of real-world freight hauling experience by customers.
“The 2010 certification is a great way to start the year,” says David Hames, general manager of marketing and strategy for Daimler Trucks North America. “But, more than that, we are pleased to further improving on our advanced family of engines that is already proven to meet our customers’ need for performance, fuel economy, durability and reliability.”
BlueTec was adapted by Detroit Diesel to meet the specific demands of the North American heavy-duty marketplace. “We took full advantage of our early choice of SCR as the best technology for our customers for 2010,” Hames says. “The technology offers a paradigm shift from fuel penalties to fuel economies with simultaneous reduction of emissions and CO2, compared to today’s EGR-only vehicles.”
Allowing more than a decade for development, the 2010 BlueTec technology is one of the most extensively tested emissions technology systems in the company’s history. Detroit Diesel and Daimler Trucks North America worked together to apply the best of Daimler’s experience with both SCR and EGR. Detroit Diesel says the extra time allowed for customer validation and performance refinement to meet the requirements of rigorous freight hauling as well as severe-duty vocational applications. In addition, Detroit Diesel participated in the development of the new supply infrastructure for diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) and onboard diagnostic sensor technologies.
The BlueTec aftertreatment system uses DEF in a catalyst to virtually eliminate nitrogen oxide emissions, thereby allowing the engine to be fully optimized for both low emissions and high fuel economy. Detroit Diesel says the system incorporates the enhanced performance of its DD15, DD13 and DD16 big bore engines, as well as the ACRS fuel system and an integrated engine-compression brake. Detroit Diesel will offer BlueTec technology in a variety of packaging configurations, including a 1-Box design that is optimized for low back-pressure and uses robust diesel particulate filter material.
