Gerald Annandale, Cummins technical sales manager for Africa, says contaminated fuel can cause components to wear prematurely.
The quality and cleanliness of fuel is a major factor that contributes to the performance of diesel engines and components. Contaminated fuel leads to higher maintenance costs and engine downtime, therefore good fuel filtration is vital for the performance of the engine. Fuel contaminants such as dirt, sediment and water can be introduced into the fuel through channels such as the processing stages, transportation and when the fuel is delivered to the point of use.
On the back of this understanding, Cummins Filtration has designed a Bulk Fuel Filtration system together with an engineering company for a customer in Egypt. Gerald Annandale, Cummins technical sales manager for Africa, notes that the system will be installed on site for a main storage tank to achieve cleaner fuel. “This Bulk Fuel Filtration system has a filter with a micron (µ) rating of 3, which means it will filter the contaminants of 3µ or larger. The filter’s efficiency to remove contaminants, does however, depend on the quality of the fuel initially received,” he explains.
Annandale reveals that fuel injection system suppliers require that fuel should meet the ISO 12/9/6 cleanliness standard at the injection system, as contaminated fuel can cause components to wear prematurely. “The Bulk Fuel Filtration system will help reduce contamination levels whereby cleaner fuel can be obtained at the point of entry into the machine’s tank (ISO 18/16/13), resulting in less maintenance and labour costs which will lead to greater productivity,” he adds.
Cummins’ Fleetguard range of products provides a solution to achieve cleaner fuel in conjunction with the Bulk Fuel Filtration system.
How it works
Fuel is pumped from the bulk fuel tank on the tank farm downstream into the Bulk Fuel Filtration system. The fuel can either be recycled to the main tank, on a kidney loop basis, or delivered to the tank of the mobile machine directly. At this point, the cleanliness level of ISO 18/16/13 or better is achievable. The cleanliness level can be improved upon at this point by running the unit as a kidney loop system, whereby ISO 16/14/12 can be achieved. Downstream of the vehicle’s tank, there is a first and second stage on-board system that is designed to achieve the desired ISO 12/9/6 cleanliness level with Fleetguard on-board NanoNet technology.
According to Nomfundo Maseko, Cummins marketing communications coordinator, the Fleetguard range of products provide a solution of achieving cleaner fuel in conjunction with the Bulk Fuel Filtration system. “The Bulk Fuel Filtration system features a visual glass window that displays a rotating impellor that starts turning as soon as the filters restrict and this indicates that it is time to change the filters.”
Maseko adds that the pump on the unit is sized to give a flow rate of 300 litres per minute (l/min), and the elements fitted are at 3µ absolute. “The unit is designed to handle up to 1 500l/min and the elements range from 3, 5, 6, 12 and 14µ (Beta 200).”
