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The diesel engine does not start: the “killer” hides in biofuels. The LDS, which spread the word, threw a stone into the politicians’ garden; politicians who allegedly ignored the laws of physics passed laws that could “kill” diesel cars.
“The arrival of the normally cold winter has shown that this is the case for diesel cars and other machinery. This winter is the first time that it is mandatory to sell diesel in Lithuania, which must contain up to 7 percent. biofuels. Unfortunately, in cold climates, properties change and clog the power systems of diesel engines, ”says Artūras Mankevičius, director of the marketing and communication agency Rinkom, who signed the LDS report.
And it provides illustrations: condensed biodiesel clogs filters.
The Lithuanian Gas Station Union (LDS) links 16 gas station networks with Lithuanian capital throughout the country. The LDS has interpreted these cases of layers of diesel in tanks or fuel tanks during the cold, deviating from political decisions.
Accuse Lithuanian politicians
“The fuel we supply is of very high quality, but it must comply with article 39 (1) of the Law on Renewable Energy Sources: this winter it is mandatory to market diesel for the first time that meets the requirements of Lithuanian or European standards “. which contains 7%. biofuels.
Unfortunately, warnings from scientists and transportation specialists that biofuels blended with mineral diesel at low temperatures change properties, stratify and clog fuel supply systems when they thicken or even harden. Therefore, the fuel meets the requirements of the new laws, but for the laws of nature, the desire of politicians to use a fuel “more environmentally friendly” than motorcycles, diesel cars are coming to a halt, ”Vidas commented. Šukys, CEO of LDS.
“We can only regret that thousands of users of cars, trucks, tractors and farm machinery are now suffering due to the legislation adopted by legislators. They curse the fuel sellers even though we have no choice: we must swap diesel with a specific ratio of biofuels, says the LDS CEO. – Although we have warned the authorities more than once about the possible problems that diesel with a biofuel additive will “kill” equipment in the cold winter, the advice and fears of the experts have not been taken into account. By the way, apparently realizing that there will still be problems with biodiesel, an exception has been made for the military, who can continue to use pure mineral diesel. “
15 minutes requested information from the largest gas station networks in Lithuania. We asked if, this year, diesel car owners are really complaining about flaky or condensed fuel after the cold. And can that 7 percent be blamed for that? bioadditives?
The large chains did not receive an influx of complaints
Vytautas Bacevičius, retail director for the Viada network, admits that this winter is especially cold, there hasn’t been such weather in a good decade. And that freezing cold sometimes makes starting and normal operation of the car difficult.
“However, even in particularly cold climates, we have not received any complaints from customers about fuel quality. During the winter, we sell Arctic grade diesel supplied by Orlen Lietuva and Neste Oyj. As every year, to control quality of fuel during winter, VIADA orders laboratory tests of diesel, which are carried out by an independent research laboratory, ”said Vytautas Bacevičius.
Rokas Laurinavičius, head of the fuel category at Circle K Lietuva, realizes that after the Arctic frost, diesel car drivers were quick to take an interest and choose fuel more carefully.
“We have not received any complaints, but we have been asked several times about the reliability of diesel when mixing different classes of diesel, if there is another non-winter class diesel left in the fuel tank.
The weaker frost resistance scenario in Lithuania this year is possible for two main reasons. Drivers are likely to fill non-winter diesel at gas stations during winter. The legal framework allows situations in which a service station can sell Class F diesel, provided that it necessarily has winter equipment on the market. Class F diesel should not freeze to -20 degrees, but turbidity begins when the thermometer column drops to -10 degrees. So I would advise making sure the diesel pump is marked with an asterisk, as it means that the diesel is really wintery.
Since December 1 of last year, the launch of Arctic grade diesel with a mandatory 7% bioadditive, the question was raised whether this additive would not impair the properties of diesel. Therefore, we chose a synthetic HVO additive, which has been shown to have an extremely low cloud point (even -32 degrees), good ignition parameters and energy efficiency. Considering that this combination withstood the arctic temperature and customers had no complaints, we think the choice was really worth it, ”commented Rokas Laurinavičius.
What determines if a diesel car starts in winter?
Mindaugas Palijanskas, president of the Biofuels Association, scored with the “i”. According to him, the kind of diesel, and not the blended biofuel additive, is the determining factor that can prevent a vehicle from starting. In particularly cold climates, drivers should only use arctic-grade diesel with a pour point of -26 degrees.
“We know of isolated cases in which this kind of transition grade diesel (for spring and fall) was used with HVO bioadditive, which is produced from palm oil. Intermediate grade diesel solidifies at -20ºC, so use at extremely low air temperatures is not recommended. Several farmers faced this problem, who bought large quantities of fuel (usually intermediate grade diesel) in advance throughout the cold period, not thinking that major fluctuations are possible temperature in winter, ”said Mindaugas Palijanskas.
Is there a fight between LDS and the biofuels association?
The Biofuels Association notes that recently the Lithuanian Service Station Union (LDS) and its leader Vidas Šukys have been manipulating public opinion that drivers face problems with car operation due to the use of biofuels. The real reason is unknown: the wrong kind of diesel is used during the cold period. Such reports aim to downplay the image of biofuels and form a negative opinion about the use of biofuels in winter, says Mindaugas Palijanskas.
The Biofuels Association approached the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania, the Government, the Ministry of the Environment, the Ministry of Energy and the Ministry of Agriculture with a request to assess the situation in the fuel market when foreign capital feeds producers, importers and traders, whose quality is recognized throughout Europe.
15min remember that in winter the car may not start for other reasons: insufficiently charged battery, premature replacement of the fuel filter, glow plugs (for diesel cars), starting or fuel pump failures.
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