Dual-Fuel Usage for Agricultural and Construction Equipment Vehicles

Why in News?

  • The Ministry of Road Transport & Highways has notified dual-fuel usage for agricultural and construction equipment vehicles.

Usage of Dual-fuel:

  • Usage include tractors, power tillers, construction equipment vehicles and combine harvesters which have originally been manufactured as dual- fuel with diesel as primary fuel and CNG, Bio CNG as secondary, or have been converted as such from in -use diesel vehicles.
  •  Rules 115A and 115 B of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989 have been amended to incorporate new rules 115 AA and 115 BB for the purpose.
  • This move will give a boost to vehicles run on bio-fuel, and help in reducing both cost and pollution.
  • The emission norms for smoke and vapour from these dual fuel vehicles will be same as the prevailing mass emission norms for the diesel mode.
  •   The mass emission standards for these CNG/ Bio CNG/ LNG dual fuel engines of the agriculture tractors, power tillers, construction equipment vehicles and combine harvesters will be the same as the emission standards for the diesel engines of these vehicles with the exception that the HC (Hydrocarbon) shall be replaced by NMHC (Non-Methane Hydrocarbon) on measurement basis as detailed in rule 115 A.

Significance of Dual-fuel:

  •  Most of the construction and agricultural equipment which were running on diesel fuels now runs with these cleaner alternate bio-fuels.
  • With dual fuel usage of vehicles the advantage is that they will use 60% diesel and 40% bio-CNG or LNG and hence cause less pollution and also turn out to be cost effective.
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