Diesel Fuel Quality

The designs of diesel engines striving to increase performance have made a lot of advancements in engine fuel delivery to the combustion chamber.  The diesel engines of today are much quieter, smoother, and also more powerful.  The quality of diesel fuel on the other hand has not advanced at the same rate as the improvements of engines.

As soon as it is produced, diesel fuel begins to deteriorate.  Less than 30 days of refining, all diesel fuel, regardless of the brand, goes through a natural process called oxidation.  This process forms varnishes and gums in the fuel by causing the molecules of the fuel to lengthen and start bonding together.

Now, these components will drop to the bottom of the fuel tank and form diesel sludge.  The fuel will begin to turn very dark in color, smell bad, and cause the engine to smoke.  The engine starts to smoke as some of these clusters are small enough to pass through the engine filtration and on to the combustion chamber.

As the clusters begin to increase in size, only a small amount of the molecules will get burned, as the rest will go out the exhaust as unburned fuel and smoke. Its estimated that eight out of every ten diesel engine failures are directly related to poor quality and contaminated fuel.  The build up of contamination in the fuel systems and storage tanks can clog filters, thereby causing the engine to shut down, and damage to the engine to occur.

The number one reason for bad fuel is due to the increasing popularity of diesel power and the accompanying increased demand for more diesel fuel. Long ago, diesel fuel remained in the refinery storage tanks long enough to naturally seperate and begin to settle, allowing the clean fuel to be drawn apart.  Now, with the demand getting higher than ever, the fuel is never stationary long enough to settle, and the suspended water and solids are passed on to the person buying the fuel - you.

The changes in refinery techniques is also a problem.  In order to get more products, diesel fuel is being refined for more marginal portions of the crude barrel.  This results in a lower grade product that is thicker and also contains a lot more contamination.

As time continues to pass and technology gets better and better, one can only hope that the quality of diesel fuel improves.  As it stands now, the quality isn't good at all.  If you run diesel fuel, all you can basically hope for is that the fuel youare getting isn't contaminated.

Diesel Fuel Quality

The designs of diesel engines striving to increase performance have made a lot of advancements in engine fuel delivery to the combustion chamber.  The diesel engines of today are much quieter, smoother, and also more powerful.  The quality of diesel fuel on the other hand has not advanced at the same rate as the improvements of engines.

As soon as it is produced, diesel fuel begins to deteriorate.  Less than 30 days of refining, all diesel fuel, regardless of the brand, goes through a natural process called oxidation.  This process forms varnishes and gums in the fuel by causing the molecules of the fuel to lengthen and start bonding together.

Now, these components will drop to the bottom of the fuel tank and form diesel sludge.  The fuel will begin to turn very dark in color, smell bad, and cause the engine to smoke.  The engine starts to smoke as some of these clusters are small enough to pass through the engine filtration and on to the combustion chamber.

As the clusters begin to increase in size, only a small amount of the molecules will get burned, as the rest will go out the exhaust as unburned fuel and smoke. 

Its estimated that eight out of every ten diesel engine failures are directly related to poor quality and contaminated fuel.  The build up of contamination in the fuel systems and storage tanks can clog filters, thereby causing the engine to shut down, and damage to the engine to occur.

The number one reason for bad fuel is due to the increasing popularity of diesel power and the accompanying increased demand for more diesel fuel. Long ago, diesel fuel remained in the refinery storage tanks long enough to naturally seperate and begin to settle, allowing the clean fuel to be drawn apart.  Now, with the demand getting higher than ever, the fuel is never stationary long enough to settle, and the suspended water and solids are passed on to the person buying the fuel - you.

The changes in refinery techniques is also a problem.  In order to get more products, diesel fuel is being refined for more marginal portions of the crude barrel.  This results in a lower grade product that is thicker and also contains a lot more contamination.

As time continues to pass and technology gets better and better, one can only hope that the quality of diesel fuel improves.  As it stands now, the quality isn't good at all.  If you run diesel fuel, all you can basically hope for is that the fuel you are getting isn't contaminated.

Diesel Engines Forgotten Treasures

There are very few engine configurations that promise increased fuel economy and power.  There are few engines that offer this in addition to reliability. Today, those across the ocean are enjoying the fruits of diesel technology revolution. 

Diesels have experienced a great history here in the United States.  In 1980, General Motors modified their 350ci gas V8 to run on diesel fuel.  The result however, wasn't that god.  These engines offered better fuel economy but little else.  They were very slow, and not very reliable.

Mercedes Benz on the other hand, had better luck in the 1980s with an array of vehicles available with diesel engines.  These great vehicles offered amazing durability although they were rough, noisy, and smoked quite a bit.  Volkswagon offered diesel as well, although they had a habit for spewing blue smoke from the tail pipe.

Throughout the 90s, Benz and Volkwagon offered diesel vehicles in the United States, with each generation becoming cleaner, smoother, and more powerful than the last.  Overall, they were a tough sell as they still lacked the horsepower that many were seeking.

Today, Mercedes, BMW, Jaguar, Volkswagon, Ford, and many other manufacturers are offering diesels to many markets throughout the world.  To put it simple, forget everything you know or think you know about diesel engines in the United States.

These newer engines benefit from hundreds of technical innovations.  There are several diesels in Europe that offer better acceleration than their gasoline counter parts.  BMW's 120d has 163bhp, goes 0 - 60 in under 8 seconds, and achieves 49.6 miles per gallon.

Benz offers the C320 CDI SE that has 224bhp, and over 360 lb foot of torque.  This car gets just under 48 mpg on the highway, with an acceleration of 0 - 60 in under 7 seconds.  Throughout North America, you won't find a gasoline engine that offers this unique blend of fuel economy and excellent performance.

The reason why diesels haven't caught on in North America comes down to one word - sulfur.  We have too much sulfur in the diesel here in the United States.  This cheap grade of diesel fuel will run havoc on the more sophisticated diesels offered overseas and cause an increase in emissions. 

There is hope however, as refiners will soon be producing what is known as ultra low sulfur diesel fuel.  This will help to reduce the sulfur content from 500ppm to 15ppm.

Heavy Equipment: Case CX330

As you may know, the CX330 is the upgrade to the 9050B model from Case.  The CX330 is quite an upgrade, being much bigger than the 9050B. 

In standard form, the CX330 is almost 5,000 pounds heavier than the 9050B.  This added weight comes from a larger counterweight and from a redesigned carbody that will now completely enclose the swing system. 

These added pounds will also contribute to the boost in the CX330s over-front capacity, and in combination with higher hydraulic pressures the travel circuit, give the excavator a very impressive 16% boost in draw bar pull, which means more power for negotiating poor underfoot conditions and very steep grades.

In addition to the new features, the CX330s digging linkage has been enhanced in many ways.  The boom and arm, deeper in cross section to accommodate higher digging forces, now incorporate V-groove type welds that are placed by robots and 100 percent ultra sound inspected.

The boom foot and boom to arm pivots use improved bushings, new plated pins, and new dust seals that combine to make a more durable and easier to take care of assembly.  The newly hardened chrome pins will also contribute to the overall digging linkage durability.

Even though the basic 6 cylinder, 8.3 liter engine in the CX330 has been used in Case products since 1985, continual refinement over the years has changed nearly 85% of the original engine's part numbers.  The CX330 features 259 net HP with an air to air intercooler and a free breathing 24 valve cylinder head. 

The electronic logic that controls the new engine's fuel system tracks the machine's operating parameters and keeps the system continually armed to respond instantly and precisely to the fuel requirements of each individual cylinder.  The total electronic design of the engine will also eliminate cable and step motor controls from the fuel system, with a large gain in reliability.

Even though modest changes in the CX330s digging linkage geometry will contribute to the higher forces of digging, the big guns here are the refinement of the trench with it's open center hydraulic system.  The main pressure in the implement circuit is up almost 8%, with the hydraulic cylinder diameter up 7% as well.

Hydraulic power
The increase in hydraulic power combines with the more efficient linkage geometry to yield almost 20% more bucket digging force and 15% more arm force.  With 19 more HP, the CX330 can drive it's main hydraulic pumps with much better force.  In addition, the new pumps will produce about 6% more flow for increased hydraulic speed at much lower system pressures.

The new PCS (Pro Control System) will manage the hydraulic system and interface with the 6TAA-830 engine, and does it with more electronic genious than the 9050B did.  Similar to the 9050B, the CX330 does have manually selected working modes, although it departs from previous designs by adding a new automatic work mode.  By working in the new automatic mode, the CX330 can analyze load demands and operator input at the joystick, then adjust the engine and hydraulic pumps to balance power and speed with efficiency and even with the economy.

Other PCS features include a high speed assistance system, which will speed up boom and arm functions, and an automatic power boost system as well.  The power boost system will increase main pressure by 10% for 8 seconds if the implement system reaches the standard relief pressure for more than 1 second in tough digging conditions.

With everything the CX330 from Case offers, it's truly the best excavtor in years.  Case has outdone themselves this time, doing their part to make excavating both fun and exciting.  If you've been looking for the perfect upgrade from the 9050B, the CX330 is all that and a bag of chips.

Heavy Equipment: Bulldozer

The bulldozer is a very powerful crawler that is equipped with a blade.  The term bulldozer is often used to mean any type of heavy machinery, although the term actually refers to a tractor that is fitted with a dozer blade.

Often times, bulldozers are large and extremely powerful tracked vehicles.  The tracks give them amazing ground mobility and hold through very rough terrain.  Wide tracks on the other hand, help to distribute the weight of the dozer over large areas, therefore preventing it from sinking into sandy or muddy ground. 

Bulldozers have great ground hold and a torque divider that's designed to convert the power of the engine into dragging ability, which allows it to use its own weight to push heavy objects and even remove things from the ground.  Take the Caterpillar D9 for example, it can easily tow tanks that weight more than 70 tons.  Due to these attributes, bulldozers are used to clear obstacles, shrubbery, and remains of structures and buildings.

The blade
The blade on a bulldozer is the heavy piece of metal plate that is installed on the front.  The blade pushes things around.  Normally, the blade comes in 3 varieties:
    1.  A straight blade that is short and has no lateral curve, no side wings, and can be used only for fine grading.
    2.  A universal blade, or U blade, which istall and very curved, and features large side wings to carry more material around.
    3.  A combination blade that is shorter, offers less curvature, and smaller side wings.

Modifications
Over time, bulldozers have been modified to evolve into new machines that are capable of things the original bulldozers weren't.  A good example is that loader tractors were created by removing the blade and substituting a large volume bucket and hydraulic arms which will raise and lower the bucket, therefore making it useful for scooping up the earth and loading it into trucks.

Other modifications to the original bulldozer include making it smaller to where it can operate in small working areas where movement is very limited, such as mining caves and tunnels.  Very small bulldozers are known as calfdozers.

History
The first types of bulldozers were adapted from farm tractors that were used to plough fields. In order to dig canals, raise earth dams, and partake in earthmoving jobs, the tractors were equipped with a thick metal plate in the front.  Later on, this thick metal plate earned the name blade.

The blade of the bulldozer peels layers of soil and pushes it forward as the tractor advances. The blade is the heart and soul of the bulldozer, as it was the first accessory to make full use for excavation type jobs.

As the years went by, when engineers needed equipment to complete larger jobs, companies such as CAT, Komatsu, John Deere, Case, and JCB started to manufacture large tracked earthmoving equipment. They were very loud, very large, and very powerful and therefore earned the nickname "bulldozer".

Over the years, the bulldozers got bigger, more powerful, and even more sophisticated.  The important improvements include better engines, more reliable drive trains, better tracks, and even hydraulic arms that will enable more precise manipulation of the blade and automated controls. As an added option, bulldozers can come equipped with a rear ripping claw to break up pavement or loosen rocky soil.

The best known manufacturer of bulldozer is CAT, which has earned a vast reputation for making tough and durable, yet reliable machines.  Even though the bulldozer started off a modified farm tractor, it rapidly became one of the most useful pieces of equipment with excavating and construction.

Diesel Engines And Well Known Gas

In passenger cars, the diesel engine has never really caught on.  During the middle to late 70s, diesel engines in passenger cars did notice a surge in sales due to the OPEC oil embargo, although that is the only real significant penetration that diesel engines have made in the market. 

Although diesel engines are more efficient, there are eight historical problems that may have held them back.
    1.  Due to the higher compression ratios, diesel engines tend be heavier than the equivalent gasoline engine.
    2.  Diesel vehicles and diesel engines tend to be more expensive than gas.
    3.  Because of their weight and compression ratio, diesel engines tend to have lower RPM ranges than gas engines.  This gives diesel engines more torque rather than higher horsepower, and this tends to make diesel vehicles slower in terms of acceleration.
    4.  Diesel engines have to be fuel injected, and in the past fuel injection was very expensive and less reliable.
    5.  Diesel engines tend to produce more smoke and smell very funny when compared to gasoline engines.
    6.  They are harder to start in cold weather and if they contain glow plugs, the diesel engines may require you to wait before you start the engine so that the glow plugs can heat up.
    7.  Diesel engines are much noisier than gas engines and tend to vibrate quite a bit.
    8.  Diesel fuel is less available than gas.

Although one or two of these disadvantages would be acceptable, a group of them is a big turn away for many people.

Even though the list above are reasons in the past as to why diesel never really took off, you can expect these reasons to get corrected and improved in the future, meaning that you will see more and more diesel vehicles on the road.

Backhoe Loader

Also referred to as a loader backhoe, the backhoe loader is an engineering and excavation vehicle that consists of a tractor, front shovel and bucket and a small backhoe in the rear end.  Due to the small size and versatility, backhoe loaders are common with small construction projects and excavation type work.

Originally invented in Burlington Iowa back in 1857, the backhoe loader is the most common variation of the classic farm tractor.  As the name implies, it has a loader assembly on the front and a backhoe attachment on the back.

Anytime the loader and backhoe are attached it is never referred to as a tractor, as it is not normally used for towing and doesn't normally have a PTO. When the backhoe is permanently attached, the machine will normally have a seat that can swivel to the rear to face the backhoe controls.  Any type of removable backhoe attachments will normally have a seperate seat on the attachment itself.

Backhoe loaders are common and can be used for many tasks, which include construction, light transportation of materials, powering building equipment, digging holes and excavating, breaking asphalt, and even paving roads.

You can often replace the backhoe bucket with other tools such as a breaker for breaking and smashing concrete and rock.  There are some loader buckets that offer a retractable bottom, which enable it to empty the load more quickly and efficiently.

The retractable bottom loader buckets are often times used for grading and scratching off sand. The front assembly on a backhoe may be either removable or permanently attached.  Often times, the bucket can be replaced with other tools or devices.  In order to mount different attachments to the loader, it must be equipped with a tool coupler.  The coupler consists of two hydraulic cylinders on the end of the arm assembly, which can expand and retract to allow different tools to be attached to the unit.

There are several types of backhoe loader brands, including New Holland, John Deere, and Case.  Some will offer you cabs, while others won't.  The newer types of backhoe loaders even offer you air conditioning, radios, and other accessories that make you feel like you are working with luxury.

Common with excavating jobs, the backhoe can serve many purposes.  It can haul equipment and supplies in the loader bucket.  Another great use is to cover up dirt when filling in trench lines or covering up pipe that was just put in the ground.  The backhoe attachment at the rear is ideal for digging water pipes and sewer pipes.

The best thing about the backhoe loader is the fact that they are easy to operate.  You don't need to be a rocket scientist to fully operate this nifty piece of equipment.