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Anti-Idling/Idle Reduction

Background and Problem

Idling comes from idle which means absence of motion. In the present case IDLING relates to a running engine that is powering a vehicle when it is not moving. An idling engine consumes only enough power to keep itself and its accessories running, therefore, producing no usable power to the drive train. The practice is, actually, beneficial to the engine during pre-route. It warms the engine and circulates the fluids, preventing the interaction of cold parts, reducing friction and maintaining maximum driving efficiency during route.

Though, warming an engine before route is best practice, engine idling is a major problem for smog, urban air pollution and greenhouse gases, especially in large diesel engines, and can be avoided by several means. It is most commonly associated with heavy duty diesel engines because they are the biggest contributors to the effects from idling. As an example of the need for idling an engine, school bus drivers on a cold morning may go out to their bus and turn it on to warm up the engine in order to provide instantaneous heat to the cabin when they come back, which brings up two of the main reasons for idling, driver mentality and the want for passenger comfort. This idling period can be excessive, though, excessive Idling is defined differently in various parts of the country. For example, in Virginia, the excessive idling threshold is ten minutes, though, in many west coast states such as Hawaii and California, where there is a larger presence of greener policies in relation to fuel consumption, the thresholds are drastically smaller and even have no idling tolerance, at all. According to Hawaii Administrative Rules §11-60.1-34, no idling at all is permitted “while the motor vehicle is stationary at a loading zone, parking or servicing area, route terminal, or other off street areas” with a couple of exceptions. “Each year, long-duration idling of truck and locomotive engines consumes over 1 billion gallons of diesel fuel and emits 11 million tons of carbon dioxide, 200,000 tons of oxides of nitrogen, and 5,000 tons of particulate matter into the air.” [1]

Existing Policies

Federal Level

Policies at the federal level are more focused towards research and development of technologies, economic incentives, and education. The Department of Energy (DOE) is sponsoring several corporate companies in the R&D of new anti-idling technologies with the hope that this technology will be installed and incorporated in the assembly line or possibly at the dealer as an option. [2] The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) also has many ways to promote idle reduction. The EPA established the SmartWay Transport Partnership that provides information about available anti-idling technologies, possible strategies for idle reduction, and resources for obtaining financing on anti-idling projects. The program also serves as an EnergyStar-like program with a label available to companies that commit “to improve the environmental performance of their freight delivery operations.” [3] The EPA has a national campaign called the Clean School Bus Campaign which works to reduce diesel fuel consumption in school buses across the nation. Several regions were awarded millions of dollars through grant projects including idle-reduction pilot projects.

State Level

Various states and localities have passed laws pertaining to idling. Some of the laws are more strict and stringent than others. Thirty-one states currently have some sort of existing regulations pertaining to anti-idling. Of these states, California has the most codes and regulations.

Virginia

Virginia, in the Virginia Administrative Code, ARTICLE 41. EMISSION STANDARDS FOR MOBILE SOURCES (RULE 4-41), 9 VAC 5-40-5670, prohibits "motor vehicles licensed for commercial or public service use" from idling their engines in excess of three minutes when the vehicle is parked "unless the propulsion engine is providing auxiliary power for other than heating or air conditioning." There are a few expressed exceptions to this, the first being that "tour buses may idle for up to ten minutes while parked in order to maintain power to the air-conditioning system" and the second being that "diesel powered vehicles may idle for up to ten minutes to minimize restart problems." [4]

Local Level

At the local level, there are many municipalities that have enacted anti-idling regulations.

Virginia

Fairfax County, Virginia, in the Fairfax County Code, for example, Section 103-3-10, states that "No person shall cause or permit the emission of visible air contaminants from a mobile source of a density equal to or greater than twenty (20) percent opacity for longer than five (5) consecutive seconds after the operating engine of the mobile source has been brought up to operating temperature." [5]

California

The city of Auburn, California implemented extensive idling regulations in August of 2004. The Auburn Municipal Code, after thoroughly summarizing why air pollution is a problem, what causes air pollution, how and by whom air pollution can be mitigated, and various studies that outline the specific contributions that idling makes towards air pollution, in § 71.78 IDLING, states that a vehicle must be turned off upon its arrival at its destination and the vehicle cannot be idling for more than five consecutive minutes at any location.

Technologies

Coolant Heaters

There are a variety of reasons that bus drivers idle their engines. The majority of engine idling occurs in the morning, when drivers are warming up the engines and the passenger compartments. Part of the problem with excessive idling, other than the immense amount of fuel it uses, is driver mentality coming from lack of knowledge about the fuel consumption of an idling engine. Typically, a bus driver will turn on the bus when they wake up, then proceed to get ready for the day, creating a period of excessive idling of up to half an hour. The objective of fuel-operated heaters is to eliminate this specific need for idling, which in turn reduces fuel consumption and costs. This technology works by using the coolant system to warm the engine, and the “thermal energy gained is then distributed through the vehicle's own heat exchanger as forced hot air. This [process] heats the interior of the vehicle via existing air vents. The engine is [also] warmed up with the residual heat in the cooling water” [6]. In general, coolant heaters burns eight times less fuel that an idling engine would, simultaneously emitting 1/20th of the emissions and producing heat significantly faster. Coolant heaters are also much more efficient than an engine. For example, according to the manufacturer, the Webasto TSL-17 is upwards of 80% efficient, whereas a diesel engine is no more than half that efficient. [7]

===Auxiliary Power Units=== [8] Auxiliary power units (APUs) are commonly used on semi-trucks to provide electric power to the cabin at times when the cabin or cargo need to be heated or cooled while the vehicle is not in motion for an extended period of time. This period of time is usually overnight, when the truck driver has parked at a truck stop for some rest. Instead of having to keep the engine idling all night just to maintain the temperature in the cabin, the APU can turn on and provide power. Most commonly, the APU will have its own cooling system, heating system, generator, and air conditioning compressor. Sometimes the APU will be integrated into those components of the semi itself.

Future

A brief look at what some localities and what state and federal governments are doing in terms of new policy, if any. Any upcoming technologies being released or significant projects being planned.