This topic includes two subtopics: (1) Ethanol, Biodiesel and Other Biofuels and (2) Diesel Construction and Truck Retrofits.

ETHANOL, BIODEISEL AND OTHER BIOFUELS

New technologies are converting agricultural materials into biobased products. New ethanol production facilities are converting biomass into fuel, fuel substitutes and fuel additives. Meat rendering, greases and food wastes are used to produce biodiesel products. Technologies are being developed for non-ethanol and non-biodiesel biofuels. EPA is interested in developing environmentally friendly technologies that improve efficiency, enhance recovery of waste materials and reduce life-cycle environmental impacts. Needs include, but are not limited to:

• Technologies to improve efficiencies at ethanol production plants, produce new biobased products, convert wastes into new products and further reduce air, water and waste disposal impacts from these plants.
• Environmentally friendly denaturants or technologies that eliminate the need for denaturants used in the transport of ethanol from production plants.
• New coatings or fuel additives that eliminate corrosion and other problems between storage tanks, dispensers, etc. and ethanol and biodiesel biofuels.
• Innovative thermochemical or biochemical technologies or integated gasification systems that produce ethanol or energy from waste materials, including forest wood biomass, grassland biomass, organic non-recyclable components of municipal solid waste, biosolids from wastewater treatment plants or other cellulosic waste material.
• New, more efficient and cost effective methods for production of biodiesel fuels. Sound and economical technologies for utilizing meat rendering, greases and food wastes for biodiesel production are of particular interest.
• Technologies are sought to demonstrate the commercial and technical viability of the production and use of a non-ethanol based and non-biodiesel based liquid biofuel. Ideally, this fuel should be synthesized from plant materials using a bacteria digestion process which uses minimal petroleum-based energy in its production. The resulting fuel must be able to operate in internal combustion engines and have the ability/probability to meet federal emission requirements using readily available emissions control technologies, if needed. The fuel must not be more toxic than gasoline or diesel fuels currently sold in the USA; fuels that are less toxic will be favored. Finally, the price of the fuel must be competitive with conventional gasoline or diesel fuel.

DIESEL CONSTRUCTION AND TRUCK RETROFITS

In recent years, EPA’s Office of Transportation and Air Quality (OTAQ) has established new regulations that reduce nitrogen oxide (NO_x) emissions from new diesel engines and NO_x, total hydrocarbons (THC) and carbon monoxide (CO) from gasoline-fueled vehicles. While new individual engine and vehicle emissions levels have decreased, the emissions from the overall fleet of engines as vehicles are still significant contributors to high ozone levels in many urban areas. This topic has been developed in cooperation with the Texas Environmental Research Consortium (TERC), Texas New Technology Research and Development (NTRD) Program and the Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC). Collaboration between these Texas programs and SBIR awardees, including assistance with prototype development, demonstration and verification testing programs, is possible in Phase II and beyond. The Texas NTRD program also provides non-SBIR grants for technologies that show potential for commercialization and significant reduction of NO_x emissions. For more information about the Texas NTRD Program, visit their website at: www.tercairquality.org.

The construction industry uses more than two million pieces of diesel-powered off-road (nonroad) equipment across the country. Much of this equipment has a long operational life, often lasting more than 25 to 30 years. About 31 percent of this current equipment has engines manufactured before any emissions standards were in effect, and therefore have no emissions controls. Only an estimated 5 percent of construction equipment meets EPA’s current standard at the Tier 3 emission level. Mobile nonroad diesel powered equipment used by the construction industry, ports, material handling and other industries are significant sources of NO_x emissions. This equipment includes excavators, crawler tractors/dozers, rubber tire loaders, rollers, tractors/loaders/backhoes, surfacing equipment, graders, material handling equipment and bore/drilling equipment.

There are unique challenges to retrofitting construction equipment with NO_x-reducing emissions control technologies. The technologies need to address issues such as extended idle and/or low speed operation periods, vibration, high levels of fugitive dust, space limitations and visibility that are unique to equipment used by this sector. Retrofit devices that are installed in fuel lines, such as magnets and “molecular alignment” catalysts, will not be considered for funding under this subtopic because they are addressed by other programs.

The new technologies should have broad application in order to ensure a sufficiently large enough market to make commercialization successful. Preferably, the technologies developed primarily for the construction sector could also be implemented within the ports, locomotive, marine and on-highway (heavy duty diesel vehicles) sectors. The new technologies should reduce NO_x emissions by at least 25 percent and not focus on Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR). SCR emissions control technologies that use urea or ammonia to help reduce NO_x are being developed by some companies but added infrastructure and complexities associated with ammonia or urea frequently tend to make these technologies less accepted by the construction industry and other users of mobile diesel nonroad equipment. Specific research needs are:

• Technologies that can significantly reduce NO_x emissions from diesel engines with duty cycles resulting in exhaust gas temperatures below 225C for a majority of the time the engine is operating. (SCR technologies typically are most effective at temperatures above 225C.) Similar low exhaust temperatures can occur in cases where available space for installation of exhaust treatment devices is far enough removed from the engine so that a significant portion of the exhaust thermal energy is lost.
• New technologies for the construction industry and other sectors that reduce NO_x emissions without reliance on urea or ammonia. While it is preferable that these new technologies also improve engine or operational performance, they should, at a minimum, not affect equipment warranty, reliability or durability.

Diesel exhaust emissions are significant contributors of ozone and particulate matter that form nitrogen oxide emissions. Diesel powered vehicles contribute 300 million pounds of PM10 and 268 million pounds of PM_2.5 annually. The exhaust also contains 40 hazardous air pollutants listed by EPA. Diesel exhaust contains carcinogenic substances, and particulate matter which exacerbates asthma and other respiratory conditions. One way to reduce diesel emissions is with the use of a renewable fuel. Biodiesel is one of the top renewable fuels sold in the United States with 250 million gallons sold in 2006. Biodiesel achieves PM reductions of up to 47% and it is estimated to reduce the net carbon dioxide emissions by up to 78%. Another strategy used to reduce diesel emissions is the use of after-treatment technologies. Diesel Particulate Filters achieve PM emission reductions of up to 90%. Starting in 2007, heavy-duty highway diesel truck models are required to be equipped with Diesel Particulate Filters to meet with the EPA standard of 90% PM emission reductions. It will be a matter of time before these two widely used reduction efforts will start to be used conjunctively. EPA’s renewable fuel standard mandates the increase use of biofuel and State legislators are calling for biodiesel availability at truck stops. Fleet operators are concerned about the effects of biodiesel on the operability of existing filters. Specific research is needed for:

• After treatment devices for heavy-duty diesel engines that are Tier II compliant and be used with B20, B50 and B100 biodiesel fuels. EPA needs improved diesel particulate filters that can be used with these biodiesel fuels.