CryoPower & Clean Diesel. How is Dolphin N2 using ‘game changing’ technologies to reduce emissions in the haulage industry?
Net zero emissions, carbon capture technologies & global climate change are now reported daily in the media. Over the past month alone we have seen Amazon fires devastate vast swathes of the rain forest, Donald Trump put in a bid to ‘buy’ Greenland for it’s mineral rich land & heat waves & flooding cause havoc in the UK. Each one of these stories has a direct impact on the climate crisis which has got planet Earth’s citizens demanding something be done to stop anthropogenic climate change.
The emissions battle is very real, as our little blue planet continues to be very much be the centre of a global conversation, with not all parties able to agree on a way forward & a way to reduce the global temperature, before it is too late. It is with this in mind, that many technologies are being engineered to combat our global climate, Co2 emissions & pollution issues.
The ‘Tesla’ generation are of the firm belief that battery power is potentially the technology to resolve all problems of the automotive question for global climate change. However, until recently, the cells for the battery powered cars, have needed lithium, nickel & cobalt to ensure stability. Although the media machines are now advising that the next generation of batteries for the battery powered cars will not need cobalt in them, it still leaves some very open-ended questions about the carbon footprint created thus far in the manufacturing processes & the infringement of human rights in the mining of these elements.
Other technologies including natural gas, hydrogen & nitrogen are under continual development.
With the first hydrogen train being run in Germany, short haul trucks & buses being powered by natural gasses & cars of course having a plethora of different energy systems enabling them to be given the ‘Green Badge’ for emissions; times are changing rapidly & technology is literally driving the way forward. Whether you drive a hybrid or fully electric car, there are still several sectors whereby the use of fossil fuels cannot be phased out as quickly; namely long-haul, haulage trucks, marine & freight.
Diesel has become a dirty word, without it being given the chance to redeem itself. However, clean diesel & zero emissions diesel do exist & are constantly being developed.
“Clean diesel fuel – containing 97 percent less sulfur – is now the standard for both on-highway and off-highway diesel engines nationwide. Using this ultra-low sulfur diesel (ULSD) immediately cuts soot emissions from diesel vehicles and equipment by 10 percent. Reducing the sulfur content of diesel fuel is similar to removing lead from gasoline during the 1970s.” (1)
One of the industrial companies forging the way with their split cycle CryoPower diesel engine, is Dolphin N2. A new company born from the Ricardo family, Dolphin N2 have recognised the need for the continuation of the use of fossil fuels, particularly in long-haul & haulage trucks. The diesel engine lends itself to the extensive heavy duty usage & mileage the haulage industry expects of the vehicles & currently there is no other alternative fuel system which could give the haulage industry the longevity & stability they require.
“Diesel is the world’s most efficient internal combustion engine. It provides more power and more fuel efficiency than alternatives such as gasoline, compressed natural gas or liquefied natural gas.” (2)
Dolphin N2 have been developing their CryoPower diesel engine which promises up to 90% reduction in engine out emissions.
When coupled to after treatment the resulting tailpipe emission is near zero impact. The 30% reduction in fuel consumption and relatively low cost of installation, using predominantly current automotive components means that the payback periods for long haul freight are short and could be as low as one year depending on usage profile.
Dolphin N2 has created strong working relationships with their partners Step C02, The University of Brighton, The University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre, Innovate UK, Hiflux & Ricardo. Simon Brewster CEO of Dolphin N2 firmly believes that CryoPower is a “potentially game changing commercially and environmentally attractive technology”
With the acceptance that fossil fuels will continue to be needed for the foreseeable future, there has to be a re-education through the media for the variants involved in the emissions battle. Tarnishing all diesel vehicles with the same ‘dirty’ brush, dismisses the use of the continuation of the fossil fuel industries, with the extensive technologies being developed to eradicate emissions, whilst harnessing the clean diesel science.
One such innovation is the use of algae as a biofuel & in particular how algae can be produced for use in biodiesel.
Exxon Mobil & Synthetic Genomics have been producing algae on an industrial scale since 2009 with the intention of using this product as a low-emission transportation fuel. Algae based biofuel can in theory produce seven times more energy per acre than corn-based ethanol, making it an effective & sustainable product.
“The goal here is to get to a sustainable, renewable biofuel that can be cost-competitive with pumping oil out of the ground, but can scale to levels that go far beyond demonstration levels,” says Oliver Fetzer, chief executive officer at Synthetic Genomics. “We see this step as a very important step along the way to scalability.” (3)
The CONCAWE report which has already explored the notion of a combination fuels future for our transportation systems, with the final report showing that even with a combination of liquid fuels, biofuels & electrification: emissions can still be driven down to Paris Agreement levels. (5)
Professor Neville Jackson, Ricardo chief technology and innovation officer, wrote as part of a Ricardo introduction to the collaborative CONCAWE report:
‘Mass EV adoption and Low Carbon Fuel scenarios both achieve similar reductions in total parc GHG emissions, at similar cost’: (4)
The major players in oil manufacturing are continually developing new forms of fuels, with global climate expectations being agreed by governments around the world, but not necessarily embracing the need for developments in haulage, marine & long-haul vehicles, but with a focus finely tuned to the everyday cars & vehicles of the masses.
Written by Katy-Jane Mason on behalf of Dolphin N2
- https://www.dieselforum.org/ABOUT-CLEAN-DIESEL/WHAT-IS-CLEAN-DIESEL
- https://www.dieselforum.org/ABOUT-CLEAN-DIESEL/WHAT-IS-CLEAN-DIESEL
- https://www.fastcompany.com/40539606/exxon-thinks-it-can-create-biofuel-from-algae-at-massive-scale
- https://www.concawe.eu/publication/impact-analysis-of-mass-ev-adoption-and-low-carbon-intensity-fuels-scenarios/
