Water in the gas tank is usually a problem, but a special combination of diesel fuel and water may be the solution for some of West Oakland's air quality problems. The blend of water and fuel, plus an additive, is being tested in eight Horizons Lines trucks which move containers to and from the Port of Oakland. If the trucks perform as expected, the new fuel will substantially reduce emissions of particulates and nitrous oxides (NOx).
The eight trucks are part of a dozen owned by Horizon Lines which will test air quality improvements for diesel trucks. Two of the trucks will operate without changes, serving as controls for the program. Two trucks will not use the experimental fuel blend, but will be outfitted with a new form of muffler, a diesel oxidation catalyst (DOC). Four trucks will operate with the new fuel, and four trucks will use the DOC as well as burning the new fuel. The year-long demonstration project will be the first to test the two technologies on heavy-duty trucks that haul shipping containers on the highways.
The fuel blend, known as PuriNOx™, was developed by the Lubrizol Corporation. It is made by blending standard California diesel fuel with water and a patented additive. Adding water lowers the combustion temperature, reducing NOx, and changes combustion timing, reducing particulate matter, which is the characteristic black soot in diesel exhaust. Lubrizol also manufactures the special DOC mufflers, which have been shown to reduce particulates 20% to 30%. Together, the fuel and mufflers could reduce NOx by 20% and particulate matter by 50%. Trucks can use the PuriNOx™ fuel with no engine alterations, and the DOC installation is similar to a muffler change, making the switch attractive to fleet operators who don't want expensive upgrades.
The test is part of an ongoing program of air quality improvements at the Port. In 1999, the Port began an expansion program known as the Vision 2000 program. To mitigate air quality impacts and respond to the concerns of West Oakland neighbors, the Port agreed to enter into a $9 million air quality program to reduce emissions from trucks, buses, tugboats and terminal equipment. (See April/May 2001 issue). The Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) is represented on the program's Technical Advisory Committee, has worked with the Port to reduce particulate matter emissions from diesel equipment, and has awarded the Port $1.5 million to reduce diesel emissions from trucks. At the request of the Port, the air district also installed two monitors for particulate matter and air toxics in West Oakland.
In addition to the new demonstration program with Horizon Lines, the Port has reduced the impacts of diesel exhaust and dust from trucks by relocating truck parking from neighborhoods onto Port property, funding police to enforce truck parking rules in the West Oakland area, and helping to develop a computer service to coordinate the transfer of empty containers without trucking them into the Port area and out again. In February 2004, the Port announced a new program to help truckers replace older trucks with newer cleaner vehicles, and to install exhaust controls to reduce emissions. This program, which has been a major goal of the West Oakland community, will be launched by summer 2004.
Other air quality programs include changing to electric dredges and terminal cranes and providing electrical connections to power refrigerated shipping containers while they are in the terminals. The Port has provided incentives for retrofitting equipment used at the Port with cleaner diesel engines. Three terminals now use ultra-low sulfur diesel fuel; this fuel is also used by Port-owned equipment, and the Port is testing another new diesel fuel additive in its vehicles as well.
Changes have been made to move cargo and trucks into and around the Port more efficiently. A law passed in 2002 limits truck idling by trucks waiting to enter the Port to 30 minutes, and BAAQMD staff monitor the Port area for violations. Almost all of the terminals at the Port now have appointment systems to avoid lines of idling trucks. The Joint Intermodal Terminal, completed in 2002, provides a rail connection to the Burlington Northern Santa Fe terminal in Richmond, eliminating many truck trips between the Port and that terminal. The Port is now studying a short-haul rail shuttle to move cargo between the Port and the Central Valley, especially the cities of Stockton, Modesto and Fresno, which could reduce freeway congestion (see article in this issue).
Port officials are quick to acknowledge that much of the air quality program has been a response to community concerns, particularly the group West Oakland Neighbors, but they also take pride in the innovative nature of their response. Many of the changes, such as the PuriNOx™ demonstration project, have been the first of their kind for a maritime port. Officials are also pleased that implementation of the program has allowed the Port to move forward with a major expansion that has kept it in a competitive position, benefiting the economy of the region as well as improving both social equity and the environment for community neighbors.
Leslie Stewart
For more information: Harold P. Jones, Director of Communications, Port of Oakland, hjones@portoakland.com: 510-627-1564