Diesel Fuel or Diesel Oil or just Diesel is a fuel used for Diesel Engines. Diesel Engine was invented by Rudolf Diesel in the year 1890. In these Diesel Engines the Diesel is ignited without a spark as compared to gasoline or petrol but by heat of compression. Therefore, compression causes combustion. Hence Diesel Fuel is ignited by the heat of compression in the cylinder where Diesel Fuel is injected. Diesel Fuel produces higher amount of energy on combustion than equal volume of gasoline / petrol therefore it gives better mileage and better fuel economy than gasoline / petrol. It is also safer than gasoline / petrol as its vapors do not explode or ignite as easily as gasoline / petrol. Also, Diesel Fuel is produced with less refining needed than that of gasoline / petrol therefore Diesel Fuel is cheaper and more economical. Diesel Fuel is produced from crude oil that are less volatile than that of gasoline / petrol hence is more cost effective. However, the disadvantage is that it causes more air pollution due to emissions of sulfur, carbon, carbon dioxide and higher particulate matter than that of gasoline / petrol.

The different grades of Diesel Oil

Diesel fuel is rated by its cetane number or cetane index, which is a number or index which denominates how fast and effective its burning capacity is and how easily it will ignite. Hence higher the cetane number or cetane index, the more volatile the Diesel Fuel is.

There are mainly two grades of Diesel Fuel :

Diesel #1 or 1-D and Diesel#2 or 2-D, which is again subdivided into seven grades as under :

Grade	Properties and Uses	Maximum sulfur content (ppm)
*Based on the American Society of Testing and Materials (ASTM) D975 "Standard Specification for Diesel Fuel Oils."
1-D S15	a special-purpose light-middle distillate for use in applications requiring a fuel with 15 ppm sulfur (maximum) and higher volatility than that provided by Grade No. 2-D S15 fuel	15
1-D S500	a special-purpose light-middle distillate for use in applications requiring a fuel with 500 ppm sulfur (maximum) and higher volatility than that provided by Grade No. 2-D S500 fuel	500
1-D S5000	a special-purpose light-middle distillate for use in applications requiring a fuel with 5,000 ppm sulfur (maximum) and higher volatility than that provided by Grade No. 2-D S5000 fuels	5,000
2-D S15	a general-purpose middle distillate for use in applications requiring a fuel with 15 ppm sulfur (maximum); especially suitable for use in applications with conditions of varying speed and load	15
2-D S500	a general-purpose middle distillate for use in applications requiring a fuel with 500 ppm sulfur (maximum); especially suitable for use in applications with conditions of varying speed and load	500
2-D S5000	a general-purpose middle distillate for use in applications requiring a fuel with 5,000 ppm sulfur (maximum); especially suitable for conditions of varying speed and load	5,000
4-D	a heavy distillate fuel, or a blend of distillate and residual oil, for use in lowand medium-speed diesel engines in applications involving predominantly constant speed and load

AUTOMOTIVE DIESEL: BS III / EURO 3 where the maximum permissible Sulphur is 350 ppm.

AUTOMOTIVE DIESEL: BS IV / EURO 4 where the maximum permissible Sulphur is 50 ppm.

AUTOMOTIVE DIESEL: BS VI / EURO 6 where the maximum permissible Sulphur is 10 ppm.

What is the exhaust pollution caused by a Diesel Engine ?

The consumption of Diesel in India for the year 2020 is 88.2 billion liters whereas the consumption of petrol or gasoline is 37.2 billion liters. The huge consumption and resultant cost of Diesel and also storage cost is humongous. There is a surging demand for Diesel consumption in India, the world’s third largest consumption of fuel oil. Diesel powers cars, large trucks, busses, tractors, generators, construction equipment, farm equipment, trains, barges, marine vessels, mining equipment, military and naval equipment, pumps, trenchers, cranes, fork lifts, etc.

Therefore, with such a high dependency due to high consumption of Diesel fuel, testing and analysis of Diesel is required and essential. The better the fuel quality the better the output and efficiency of the machinery. Diesel testing and analysis ensures the quality. ATLAS LAB provides a comprehensive Diesel Testing Service which gives you an accurate and reliable analysis of your Diesel fuel.

WHY TEST YOUR DIESEL FUEL ?

As on date, Third-generation common rail diesels now feature piezoelectric injectors for increased precision, with fuel pressures up to 2,500 bar (250 MPa; 36,000 psi). At that fuel pressure a small contamination in the fuel can cause the pump line nozzle and fuel injector to malfunction or become clogged effecting disastrous results

Contamination like silicates, dirt, dust, abrasive particles, water, sludge, biomass, microbiological contamination can cause machinery and equipment to fail or malfunction or cause reduction in power resulting in equipment downtime and costly maintenance.

Just water contamination can cause misfiring in the engine, oxidation of Diesel which promotes formation of gums and acids in the Diesel fuel.

Many new Diesel fuels have been given an allowance of mixing up to 7 percent of Biodiesel. Some of the common issues using Biodiesel is (a) excess water that is used during production which is used to “wash” the fuel may be left in the biodiesel. Free water promotes microbial growth (also known as the Diesel Bug) (b) traces of chemicals like glycerin, fats, soaps, methanol, lye, vegetable oil, waxes may remain in the Biodiesel (c) incomplete processing of the Biodiesel to complete fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) will case waxy layer in the fuel.

Atlas Lab provides a comprehensive state-of-the-art Diesel Testing Program. The objective is two-fold, to test the samples to ensure that the quality is as per National & International specifications and spot any potential problems by reporting the condition of the Diesel fuel which will cause harm to the health and operation of the machinery and keep your machinery running smoothly over a longer horizon.