Clean diesel fuel reduces generator maintenance and downtime

6th December 2013

By: David Oliveira

Creamer Media Staff Writer

  

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Owing to companies’ increased use of diesel-fuelled generators, the need for clean diesel fuel to keep generators operational is becoming more important, South Africa-based fuel management technologies, products and services company Clear Fuel Technology (CFT) MD Ron Mattig tells Engineering News.

“You can buy the best generator and have the best maintenance personnel looking after it, but the one aspect that is excluded in most maintenance and service packages is fuel maintenance,” he says, adding that diesel has a shelf life of between 6 to 12 months, owing to the catalytic cracking refining process to which it is subjected.

“Diesel is a blend of hydrocarbon molecules CH9 to CH23, which all have different benefits, such as improved flashpoints or lubrication. The catalytic cracking process separates the molecules and places them in an individual state. When diesel starts to deteriorate, the mol-ecules start to agglomerate and cluster, resulting in the fuel losing combustibility and also increasing emissions. The technology that CFT offers helps to separate the molecular agglomerations, therefore, improving fuel efficiency and reducing emissions,” explains Mattig.

He notes that a generator, which has not been operating at load for a long period, will have contaminated diesel fuel in its tank and when it fires up and starts operating at load, it will pump the contaminated fuel through the generator, which will either clog the generator or damage the injectors in the pump.

“Companies do not realise the costs of using contaminated fuel. The replacement of a filter on a generator cost a South Africa-based telecommunications company more than R16-million, owing to the time taken to replace the filter and the downtime caused by the lack of electricity during a power failure.

“This was the ultimate worst-case scenario, as the engine could have been damaged, which, in turn, would have resulted in longer downtime to replace the engine and, therefore, greater costs to the company,” adds Mattig.

Water is another source of diesel contamination, as it causes algae to form, necessitating the need to regularly clean the tanks. Conventional tank-cleaning methods result in diesel being completely drained and large quantities disposed.

Mattig notes that disposing of the diesel costs about R5/ℓ. Further, the tank has to be decommissioned, cut open and cleaned of all contaminants such as algae. Thereafter, it has to be reassembled and fuelled, resulting in further costs.

“Water does not combust or burn properly and also acts as a catalyst for the growth of algae and bacteria. Once algae starts to grow in a diesel tank, it starts to feed off the diesel fuel, affecting the integrity, flash point and lubrication of the fuel.

“If the flash point of diesel is lowered, it will also reduce the combustibility of the fuel, resulting in higher emissions. There are cases of emissions being reduced by 60% simply by cleaning the fuel, which is why companies consider CFT mobile services as an emissions reduction tool,” says Mattig.

He notes that it is not adequate to remove only the water from diesel, as deterioration will have already occurred and, therefore, the fuel has been compromised. He adds that the maintenance systems CFT offers can reverse the deterioration through a process of induction.

CFT supplies specialised technology that can also decontaminate diesel fuel without having to dispose of large quantities and decommission and cut open the tank, resulting in reduced mainten-ance costs and downtime, says Mattig.

CFT offers a range of auto-mated maintenance and mon- itoring systems, which are designed to remove, test and, when necessary, clean diesel in the tank. These systems help maintain fuel quality and limit generator failures caused by contaminated fuel.

Further, CFT’s maintenance system can regulate normal contamination, but the system will detect bulk contamination and sound an alarm to enable companies to proactively deal with the problem.

Edited by Megan van Wyngaardt
Creamer Media Contributing Editor Online

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