Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/252139
56 COMMERCIAL CARRIER JOURNAL | FEBRUARY 2014 What's this new diesel engine oil I'm hearing about? You are probably hearing or reading about a new API category in development for heavy duty diesel engine oils. This new category, currently referred to as Proposed Category 11 (or PC-11), is under development as you read this. So what is it and why are things changing? In simple terms, when engine technologies change we often see a new oil category introduced. This was true in October 2006 when the current API CJ-4 category was launched. At that time, we needed to work with new technologies like diesel particulate filters and the anticipated higher operating temperatures of some engines. In the past, changes were typically driven by reducing particulate matter and NOx emissions. However the driver for this round of changes is a little different. Truck manufacturers are adapting their technology to develop next-generation diesel engines to meet emissions, renewable fuel and fuel economy standards, as well as to meet CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions mandates due to be introduced in the next few years. PC-11 will be a significant undertaking for the industry not just in North America but also globally. The engine manufacturers have to respond to new regulation such as renewable fuels mandates, on and off-road exhaust emission and greenhouse gas emission standards. There are also changes to the hardware and operating strategies of engines which can introduce factors such as: increased power density, increased combustion and injection pressure, increased in-cylinder NOx reduction, higher oil temperatures and wear resistance coatings. As an industry we must keep pace with such developments and of course, give the market the products that it needs. This is why the American Petroleum Institute, Shell Lubricants and others in the industry are looking to provide changes in the new oils that include improvements in oxidation stability, aeration benefits, shear stability, biodiesel compatibility and scuffing/adhesive wear protection. This will mean developing new engine tests and modifying existing engine tests for deposits and oil. The development of this specification is well underway and the planned launch is early 2016. We'll keep you updated on developments for the new specification and the next generation of Shell Rotella ® engine oil products. By Dan Arcy Shell Lubricants The term "Shell Lubricants" refers to the various Shell Group companies engaged in the lubricants business. This monthly column is brought to you by Shell Lubricants. Got a question? Visit ROTELLA.com, call 1 - 800 - 231 - 6950 or write to The ANSWER COLUMN, 1001 Fannin, Ste. 500, Houston, TX 77002. PREVENTABLE or NOT? Doe's trailer dinged by dock door S ick of spinning his duals on snow and ice-covered roads in the Northeast, trucker John Doe happily accepted the task of deliver- ing a load of colorful belly boards and swimwear to the Supreme Surfer Supermarket in Cocoa Beach, Fla. Now, days later, he was almost to his destination, sitting proudly behind the wheel of a beautiful, powerful new conventional with bright red paint, highly-polished aluminum wheels, chrome stacks, an ample supply of fresh celery sticks and a soul-stimulating stereo that "probably could blow out the windshield," he mused. Life was good. Before long, it'd be warm enough at home to crank up his ol' Harley Sportster, plant tomatoes, do some bass fi shing, sight-in the new scope on his Winchester and start restoring the rusty 1968 GTX 440 Magnum convertible he'd purchased from Joe Bob at Asa Sharp's garage in Tupelo. Let's see, turn right on this road, go three blocks and … hey, there it is, dead ahead, the Supreme Surfer Su- permarket! After waiting for another trucker to exit the dock by passing under a motor-driven rollup door, Doe began backing his trailer, cautiously eyeballing his mirrors. What the … ??? Oh no!!! The rollup door began to roll down … fast … and … WHUMP! … hit the top rear of his trailer! An agitated store manager suddenly materialized and yelled at Doe to pull forward, but that maneuver ripped the dock door into itty-bitty pieces, earning Doe a preventable-accident warning letter, which he contested. Asked to render a fi nal decision, the National Safety Council's Accident Review Committee immediately ruled in Doe's favor. There was no way that Doe could have anticipated or escaped the door's dastardly descent, NSC said. John Doe began backing his trailer under a motor- driven rollup dock door, which unexpectedly began to roll down and hit the top rear of his trailer. Was this a preventable accident? Dock