Another issue with diesel fuel is the sulphur content. As far as I know the sulphur content only impacts tailpipe emissions, not performance or fuel economy. The EPA will have a new federal standard to limit the sulphur content of diesel to 50 PPM by 2007. The current standard is 300 PPM. Some states are requiring the low sulpher diesel before the federal deadline, either 2005 or 2006, I don't know if California already requires it or not. The low sulphur diesel will require more refining, thus a higher cost. I have heard that the cost of the refinery upgrade is high, and that the refineries here in Alaska may not upgrade. This would mean that we will have to import our diesel fuel, adding even more costs. I heard estimates of $3 - $4 per gallon end user cost, and this was based on LAST year's fuel cost. The fuel mileage of my old V10 gasser might not look so bad then. I'll enjoy my new PowerStroke and deal with this when/if it comes along.
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2006 F-350 King Ranch CC, LB, SRW, 4x4, 6.0 PowerStroke, Auto, 3.73, Power Moonroof
Last edited by Twin Tritons : 04-21-2004 at 11:32 AM.
The low sulphur diesel will require more refining, thus a higher cost. I have heard that the cost of the refinery upgrade is high, and that the refineries here in Alaska may not upgrade.
Odd, Last I heard we, Alaska, were not going to have a problem compying???
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'04/'03 F350, CC, 4x4, 3.73, Lariat SB SRW Two tone Wedgewood Blue/Silver, Loaded - everything but rear-slider. Born September 03 - engine born 9/08/03.
That was what I read in some business journals. Heard it was going to affect the fishing and trucking idustries especially, but the outlook may have changed in the last couple of months. At work here on the North Slope, we are running low sulphur fuels in some certain areas to comply with EPA stipulations for leases. I know that they can only produce so much and we are only allotted a certain amount everyday. The Cat D399 generators and 2 100 HP boilers can burn about 4,500 gallons everyday during the winter. At least I get free fuel for my work truck. 7,200 miles on our '03 6.0L PSD and did not have to pay a cent for fuel
I'll look into Alaska compliance this evening.
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2006 F-350 King Ranch CC, LB, SRW, 4x4, 6.0 PowerStroke, Auto, 3.73, Power Moonroof
I couldn't find out what I was looking for on the web, so I called and spoke to the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation about the low sulphur fuels. They were a great source of information that will answer the question concerning Alaska and provided some information useful to all diesel engine users.
It is actually Ultra Low Sulphur diesel that is being mandated by 2007 and Alaska will introduce this new fuel in the summer of 2006. He stated that currently Alaska does not have the facitilites to produce this fuel and was most likely going to have to import it. The good news is that when Flint Hills bought the Williams refinery in North Pole, Alaska, part of the agreement to continue to use oil from the Trans-Alaska Pipeline was to produce the Ultra Low Sulphur diesels. We will have to see how long it will take to equip this refinery to produce the ultra low sulphur fuel and we may still have to import some stocks to meet the statewide demand. Home heating oil will not fall under this low sulphur requirement.
The new fuel will be required in heavy trucks and busses (greater than 8500# GVWR) this includes our F-250's and F-350's, but the refineries and stations will change all of the diesel rather than enforce separate pumps and introduce more tanks and shipping vessels. Vehicles produced after 2007 will have sensors which will not let the vehicle run on high sulphur fuels.
The good news about the new ultra low sulphur fuels is that there will be less particulate and NOx (nitrogen oxides) emissions to the air. While diesel burns, the sulphur is ehausted as hydro sulphuric acid. The EGR valve returns some of this into the engine, so with the reduced sulphur fuel, there SHOULD be less internal corrosion to the engine. I know these benefits don't make the average user feel better about using the new fuel, but I just wanted to inform you.
The bad news is that some gaskets have retained the sulphur from older fuels and expanded. When the new ultra low sulphur fuel is introduced to the engine the sulphur will eventually leech out and the gasket will shrink. This could lead to compression losses. Vehicles from the early 90's forward should be safe, but you may have problems with older vehicles. I will check the Engine Manufactures Association to find out more information about this. The next point is probably the worse aspect as a consumer of the new fuel. Since the ultra low sulphur fuel will have less sulphur particles it will also have less density, thus a lower heating value. You should only expect a 1% reduction of BTU's, this is not as bad as the reduction to winter grade fuel. The heating value reduction for #2 to #1 fuel is about 3.6%. That will also mean that winter grade fuel will lose even more heating value than we currently see using winter fuels. Also the lubricity of the fuel will be reduced, requiring an additive to maintain proper lubrication. The addition of the additive will ultimately mean more costs to the end user.
Currently there are a few places around the country, involving mostly fleet vehicles, that are testing the new Ultra Low Sulphur fuels. Hopefully they are able to identify any problems created by running this fuel and solve them before we reach the date mandated by the EPA.
Hope this was some more helpful information.
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2006 F-350 King Ranch CC, LB, SRW, 4x4, 6.0 PowerStroke, Auto, 3.73, Power Moonroof
Thanks for the information. The fuel in question is only 6 weeks old. Came from a survey site. My coworker had leased out a piece of heavy machinery, they did some damage and he in return was given the left over fuel oil for the damages occured. As for the price, cant be beat. After reading the information that was passed on I will most likely buy it, run it through double filters and more than likely use it for my boiler. If any is left over come winter, well have to wait and see.
Good info on the upcoming Ultra Low Sulfa Diesel. $3-4 a gallon, ouch. One of the main reason for trading in my V10 was the fuel price.
I know a few people at the local refinery. I will ask around and see if they are going to make an attempt to be compliant. Not sure were we get our fuel local. It is either from Kenai or Fairbanks.
I know it probably has been said before but we are pretty lucky with our prices. In countries with a lower standard of living the fuel is more expensive than what we pay. For instance when I was stationed in Korea in 99 1 gal of diesel ran around $6.45 (1800 won per liter and the exchange was 1100 won/$). Heck a fully loaded Ford Explorer only cost about $12k but AAFES complain they were losing money so Ford stopped converting the vehicles bought in Korea to US standards for shipment back home.
So I think I could swallow $3-4/gal for the ultra low sulfa diesel. What annoys me is that our current diesel is not going through any more processing than before (that I know of) but the prices have increased along with regular unleaded fuel.
I still do not have a warm and fuzzy about diesel gas being sold. We should not have to worry about diesel that has been sitting around collecting water. If a station sells me fuel then I expect it to come from them water free and meeting the minimum certane level (or whatever they post). Ford says we should not need fuel additives but I do not think they take into account some of the fuel being sold.
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04 F250 King Ranch FX4 SWB 6.0 PSD www.geocities.com/ktchinn/f250.html
avatar (Kekkomon family crest)
Most people can't or probably don't want to go through the hassle of maintaining their own supply of diesel and just buy at the pump. It is very important to buy your fuel from a supplier that sells a lot of fuel ( like a major truckstop ), has quality fuel, and utilizes & MAINTAINS a good filter system. About mid-winter I saw a large number of Ford trucks (F-250 & F-250's) being towed into the dealership that I drive-by every day. Immediately I thought of more problems with the 6.0 PSD. Found out it was a rash of problems resulting from the wrong fuel. A supermarket gas station down the street (1st winter in operation) was selling fuel for the lowest price and many people were getting fuel there. The problem was is that they never switched (don't know if they knew the difference) to #1 diesel when it got colder, so everyones fuel tanks and filters were gelling up. Ford was bringing the trucks into the shop warming them up and then draining the tanks of the #2 fuel. I don't know how much this was costing the owners, hopefully they charged it back to the gas station. Perfect example of not buying fuel strictly for the price, but to buy for quality.
I plan on buying a 50 gallon transfer crossbed fuel tank system, so that I can carry enough fuel on trips so I don't have to buy fuel from questionable stations along the highway.
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2006 F-350 King Ranch CC, LB, SRW, 4x4, 6.0 PowerStroke, Auto, 3.73, Power Moonroof
If you are filtering small amounts of fuel, ie.: 5 gallon cans or small drums, I have used a inexpensive filter that will work well to filter out larger particles and water. I have seen this filter for sale at Home Depot which has a wire mesh screen screen for large particles (don't know the mesh size for sure). The funnel is also designed to capture water (heavier than diesel) at the bottom of the large neck of the funnel. The smaller section of the funnel (spout?) is raised slightly to only allow the lighter fuel to flow over and down the spout. This design will not work to fill the fuel tank of a truck since it needs to be near vertical to work correctly, but can be used to filter one 5 gallon can to another. I was suprised how well it worked to separate water from fuel (also I was suprised to see water in the fuel). I have seen it available in 2 sizes with the larger model costing about $12. Not bad for small quantities and definately better than not using a filter at all.
I searched the web for fuel filter funnel and found these links which describe the function better than I have. I don't sell these funnel nor know anyone who does, but just wanted to tell everyone about this inexpensive filter. I didn't even know that someone in Alaska made this style filter until I did the search. http://www.parker.com/racor/pdf/7568-Funnels.pdf http://www.mrfunnel.com/downloads/marketingenglish.pdf
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2006 F-350 King Ranch CC, LB, SRW, 4x4, 6.0 PowerStroke, Auto, 3.73, Power Moonroof
If you are filtering small amounts of fuel, ie.: 5 gallon cans or small drums, I have used a inexpensive filter that will work well to filter out larger particles and water. I have seen this filter for sale at Home Depot which has a wire mesh screen screen for large particles (don't know the mesh size for sure). The funnel is also designed to capture water (heavier than diesel) at the bottom of the large neck of the funnel. The smaller section of the funnel (spout?) is raised slightly to only allow the lighter fuel to flow over and down the spout. This design will not work to fill the fuel tank of a truck since it needs to be near vertical to work correctly, but can be used to filter one 5 gallon can to another. I was suprised how well it worked to separate water from fuel (also I was suprised to see water in the fuel). I have seen it available in 2 sizes with the larger model costing about $12. Not bad for small quantities and definately better than not using a filter at all.
I searched the web for fuel filter funnel and found these links which describe the function better than I have. I don't sell these funnel nor know anyone who does, but just wanted to tell everyone about this inexpensive filter. I didn't even know that someone in Alaska made this style filter until I did the search. http://www.parker.com/racor/pdf/7568-Funnels.pdf http://www.mrfunnel.com/downloads/marketingenglish.pdf
Looks like a "handy" little item. AND,, it's built Alaska Tough!!! Will it work in my state If you want to "tough test" it, give it to our guys!!! All kidding aside, we have had alot of problems and injector failures as the result of gasoline/water and diesel contaminated fuel cans being used on the job site.. When will they learn!! Now if they could make one that for every five gallons that you dump through it ,,ten come out, they would really have something!!!
The fuel mileage of my old V10 gasser might not look so bad then. I'll enjoy my new PowerStroke and deal with this when/if it comes along.
