HVO Fuel: A Diesel Alternative That is Mobile and Filterable to Temperatures of -32°C

Farmers around the country are reporting problems with diesel filters clogging too quickly.

T he National Farmers Union Scotland (NFU Scotland) has suggested this is due to FAME biodiesel content in the fuel, while another report is that it may be the quality of the base diesel that has been imported to the UK.

Meanwhile, regardless of cause, it is apparent that the catalyst of these problems is the cold weather.

On 28th November, Simon Lawford, Technical Sales Manager, Crown Oil gave a presentation at the Association of Manufacturers and Suppliers of Power generating Systems (AMPS) Conference 2019 at the Midlands Hotel in Manchester on their new product Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (Crown HVO Fuel) revealing that the sustainable fuel is strongly suited to replace diesel year-round, thanks to remaining filterable and mobile at temperatures of -32oC and below.

He further revealed that the fuel has approvals of 23 manufactures, including Scania, DAF, Volvo, among others, thereby not voiding their warranty.

Crown Oil has also carried out an independent test between red diesel and Crown HVO fuel, which has demonstrated that HVO’s emissions and measured variables are considerably less (see tables right).

Advising farmers, Lawford says: “The farming industry is currently experiencing difficulties with red diesel; although a root cause has not been identified, it seems that the issue is the FAME biodiesel added to red and white diesel, the presence of which is mandated by the RTFO or potentially lowquality diesel entering the UK’s supply chain coupled with the cold weather.

Lawford added: “Not all FAME is the same, meaning that it can be produced from a number of different feedstocks, which will affect the overall performance of the material, although this should be governed by the EN 141214. With the increase in bio requirements mandated by the RTFO, more and more double-counted material is required, whilst maintaining overall levels of FAME in EN590 fuels below the 7% maximum. This increase, therefore, brings into focus the potential for unforeseen quality issues in the overall fuel blend.

“It is difficult for fuel suppliers like Crown Oil to remedy this, as we do not import the fuel, we simply distribute it, but we are monitoring our Diesel for issues and we don’t believe we have had a problem. However, we are thrilled to be able to offer an environmentally-friendlier premium alternative that will keep farmers going in the meantime. For those experiencing problems with a larger quantity of gas oil, fuel testing and swap services can be a solution.”

He concluded by noting: “Crown HVO fuel offers the best overall coverage between environmental, operational and performance parameters. What’s more, the fuel provides the best platform on which to build a legislatively compliant fleet of farm machinery.”