Cummins Inc. (Columbus, Indiana, USA) and Westport Innovations Inc. (Vancouver, BC, Canada) are to receive funding for a joint natural gas heavy-duty engine project. The goal of the two-year project is to develop a concept that could enable a natural gas powered 400 horsepower heavy-duty truck engine to achieve emissions far below the 2002 US and California requirement for oxides of nitrogen (NOx). The funding, totalling USD 1 million, is to be provided by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, on behalf of the US Department of Energy, South Coast Air Quality Management District and the California Energy Commission. The award, subject to contract agreement, will be administered by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Cummins, the world’s largest producer of diesel engines above 50 horsepower, is the project manager. Westport, which develops alternative-fuelled systems for diesel engines, will perform most of the development work. Transient calibration and testing will be performed at an outside laboratory under Cummins sponsorship. The Cummins-Westport project will use Westport’s high pressure direct injection (HPDI) natural gas technology, combined with exhaust gas re-circulation (EGR) technology. The objective is to achieve the lowest possible NOx levels with technology expected to be available during the next five years.
