Volvo Trucks has become the first manufacturer in the world to use Bio-DME vehicle fuel, while DuPont is looking to Camelina plants for bio fuel development.
With the news that Swedish fuel distributor, Preem, has opened its first DME (Di-Methyl-Ether) filling station, in Stockholm, Volvo has brought its three-year plans to use the fuel to fruition.
With the unveiling of the new facility, five new Volvo trucks using the fuel have taken to the roads of Sweden, closing the production, distribution and vehicle modification loop and bringing to market a biofuel that is claimed to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by around 95% against standard diesel fuel.
The field trial will be conducted over the next two years, using a number of Swedish hauliers and will require Preem to build facilities across the country to ensure the trial demonstrates the full benefits of the fuel. The aim is to show the potential for large-scale investment in bio-DME which is produced from biomass and is currently manufactured by chemical company Chemrec, which is part-owned by a Volvo subsidiary.
Meanwhile in Canada, chemical giant DuPont has teamed up with Saskatoon-based Linnaeus Plant Sciences Inc. to help the development of Camelina oil for bio-fuels. DuPont will licence its gene and biotechnology expertise to Linnaeus, which has been developing uses for the drought tolerant non-food crop for the past 12 years to include bio-fuels, hydraulic fuels, greases and polymers.
The alliance is aimed a speeding up development and commercialisation of the crop and its by-products.