Diesel Fuel
With mounting evidence that diesel exhaust poses major health hazards, reducing diesel pollution has become a public priority - Union of Concerned Scientists

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Why People Think Diesel Is Worse or the Environment and How They’re Wrong
For many, diesel engines are synonymous with black clouds of smog and heavy air pollution. These images are from a time, not long ago, that solidified diesel’s reputation as dirty burning fuel. A lot has changed since then, but diesel struggles to clean up its reputation. When compared to gas-powered engines, diesel has some surprising benefits.
Resources
Diesel Or Petrol Engines: Which Pollutes More? A Complex Question
The issue surrounding diesel and petrol engine pollution is very common. For many years we were told diesel engines pollute less; but today, we blame diesel engines for polluting more. So who is right and who is wrong in this discussion? Between the diesel and petrol engines, which one pollutes the most? The answer to this question is a little complex but we’ll try our best to help you understand.
Fact Check: are diesel cars really more polluting than petrol cars?
This article rightly sums up the outlook that new, well maintained diesel vehicles have quite similar levels of particulate emissions to petrol cars, although they are still higher. However, most vehicle fleets are dominated by the older and considerably more polluting, earlier emission standard vehicles. It will take many years for these vehicles to make their way out of operation. During this time, human health will continue to be damaged by diesel emissions.
The Future Of Diesel In An Eco-Friendly Driven World
Diesel fuel and diesel engines are the most energy-efficient internal combustion engines, capable of producing near-zero emissions while increasing fuel efficiency and using low-carbon renewable bio fuels. Some new technologies, such as Adblue, can be added to diesel engine exhaust to convert nitrogen oxide gas into harmless nitrogen and water vapour. As a result, the number of harmful emissions released into the atmosphere is reduced. Diesel fuel will continue to evolve to meet the demands of today and tomorrow for efficient, clean, and reliable power across various economic sectors. Further advances in diesel technology are expected to make a significant contribution to achieving climate goals; in fact, some of the most recent generations of advanced diesel technology are even helping to cool our warming planet.
What Is the Carbon Footprint of Diesel Fuel? A Life-Cycle Assessment
Diesel fuel is a dirty fuel source with no environmental benefits. It has a high carbon footprint across its building, extraction/refinement, transportation, and building back stages, and it emits 3 times its weight in CO2 when burned. Oil spills and air pollution contribute directly to global climate change by adding to atmospheric CO2 levels and expediting global warming. The best way to mitigate these environmental drawbacks is to reduce diesel consumption. Our health and our planet’s health would benefit if we used less diesel.
Are Diesel Generators Bad For The Environment?
Because of its particular combustion process, the diesel engine’s emission issues have always been primarily with nitrogen oxide (NOx) and particulate matter (PM). Although diesels do produce carbon emissions, they’re a much less significant problem. For comparison, diesel engines produce one-twenty-eighth the carbon monoxide of gasoline engines, even at full load.
Diesel Engines and Public Health
Diesel-powered vehicles, vessels, locomotives, and equipment account for over 60 percent of all nitrogen oxides (NOx) and more than 70 percent of all fine particulate matter (PM2.5) emissions from US transportation sources.
Diesel vs Gas: Which Fuel Best for the Environment and Which is best for the Wallet
Diesel vs gas and which is better for the environment is a debate that has taken center stage in many scientific communities and political circles around the world. The reason being, there is a massive discrepancy between the number of diesel passenger vehicles in the U.S. versus the rest of the world. In Central and South America, Europe, and Asia, around half of the passenger vehicles on the road have diesel engines. In the United States, the overwhelming majority of passenger vehicles have gasoline engines.
Diesel: Emissions, Health, and Climate Impacts
The one simple and clear message from the triangulation of current scientific evidence is that reducing diesel emissions provides health and climate benefits.
Do Diesel Engines Produce Less CO2 Than Regular Engines?
In some respects, the newer diesel engines are actually cleaner than gasoline engines, and their visible emissions are less dangerous than the invisible ones sneaking out of gas engines, according to a new study published in Scientific Reports that was carried out by Canadian, European, and U.S. scientists. Unlike older diesel engines, the newer ones are equipped with diesel particle filters that trap most of that obnoxious particulate matter. However, the amount of nitrogen oxide emitted from diesels remains a problem.
Gasoline vs Diesel: Which is More Polluting?
While the debate about gasoline and diesel cars is still ongoing, modern emissions standards and regulations have resulted in new gasoline and diesel cars being broadly similar in terms of emissions. However, to achieve this, diesel car manufacturers need to include particulate filters which require maintenance or require owners to add a urea mixture such as AdBlue to the engine regularly. Gasoline emissions systems are self-regulating, by contrast.
Health and Environmental Effects
As diesel combustion can produce much higher quantities of particulate matter than gasoline or alternatively fueled engines, diesel emissions have become a focus in both public and occupational health research. High levels of diesel particulates can be produced by older generation diesel engines, without diesel particulate filters (DPF), as well as by newer technology engines with damaged or removed DPFs.
Is diesel actually better for the environment?
So while diesel engines aren’t as environmentally-friendly as their electric counterparts, they can be seen as preferable to petrol motors from a CO2 point of view and still have an important role to play in helping meet carbon reduction requirements.
Learn About Impacts of Diesel Exhaust and the Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA)
As a result of EPA regulations, diesel engines manufactured today are cleaner than ever before. But because diesel engines can operate for 30 years or more, millions of older, dirtier engines are still in use. Reducing exposure to diesel exhaust from these engines is especially important for human health and the environment.
Pros and Cons of Diesel Cars on Our Environment
Diesel-powered vehicles have been in existence since the 1930s, first being used for commercial applications. They primarily utilize diesel extracted from crude oil. The engines powered by diesel have gained popularity for passenger travel due to their great torque and fuel efficiency. Even though, they are slowly being phased out due to the invention and introduction of hybrid, solar-powered, and electric vehicles. But then again, they continue to be pivotal in the world of engines and mechanics. Here are some pros, cons and environmental impacts of diesel vehicles.
Renewable Diesel and Biodiesel: The Fast Track to Cutting Transportation Emissions?
Renewable diesel and biodiesel are made from renewable resources turning waste into fuel that burns cleaner than petroleum diesel. Moreover, renewable diesel is a “drop-in” fuel, meaning it can be used in existing diesel engines and requires no new infrastructure upgrades.
Why People Think Diesel Is Worse or the Environment and How They’re Wrong
There have been leaps in diesel emission improvement that don’t seem to impact public opinion. A single diesel truck from 1980 produces the same emissions as 60 trucks built by today’s strict emissions standards. Diesel has come a long way and should be thought of as a cleaner, non-renewable option.

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