ePURE promotes E95 blend for heavy-duty transport
Type of post: NEWS IN BRIEF.
ED95 is a fuel grade containing up to 95%
ethanol that can be used in certain heavy-duty vehicles. According to ePURE (European Renewable
Ethanol Association), it
can deliver the energy efficiency of a diesel engine while reducing emissions
of CO, NOx and CO2 over the full fuel lifecycle
compared to fossil diesel.
Press release: “ED95: An ethanol blend to fuel
Europe's heavy-duty transport”.
Figure 1. ED95 (extracted from
the Infographic)
A study conducted in 2018 found that using ED95
to fuel heavy-duty transport would bring benefits for GHG emissions reduction,
air quality and energy efficiency (“Mesures
des émissions de polluants des autocars Euro 6 au gaz naturel, à l’éthanol et
au diesel”, ADEME and Scania). ED95 can be used in heavy-duty vehicles
equipped with a specially designed engine. These vehicles can only run on ED95.
Swedish manufacturer Scania
is the pioneer in the field, having developed an ED95 engine that the company
says achieves energy efficiency similar to that of a diesel engine but with reduced
CO2, NOx and particulate emissions.
Scaling up the use of renewable ethanol-based
ED95 in trucks and buses could:
- Significantly reduce greenhouse-gas emissions
from heavy-duty road transport, which is about a quarter of total EU transport
emissions, according to
the UNFCCC.
- Help EU countries meet their renewables
targets in transport.
- Contribute to long-term EU
emissions-reduction.
- Improve air quality in cities.