1THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY ALTERNATIVE FUEL HEAVY-DUTY VEHICLE PROGRAM

The Alternative Fuel Truck Application Program was initiated under the authority of the Alternative Motor Fuels Act of 1988. The goal of this program is to advance the use of alternative fuels in heavy-duty trucks. The DOE Office of Alternative Fuels is co-funding a national program encompassing over 400 heavy-duty alternative fuel vehicles. A key element of this program is data collection. The program is also collecting data from 48 heavy-duty alternative fuel demonstration vehicles that are operating on private or local government funding. Performance and emissions data on these types of vehicles indicates that certain advantages exist for alternative fuel operation over operation on conventional petroleum-based fuels when impending emissions regulations are taken into account. This paper will present a summary of this program as well as provide insight into planned future activities. 2ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuel Heavy-Duty Vehicle Program wishes to express sincere appreciation to the engine and vehicle manufacturers, fleet operators and vehicle owner liaison organizations who contributed information to this report. Their continuing support of DOE’s alternative fuel vehicle demonstration program has helped make it a success and it is their work, in large part, that has been responsible for the rapid advance of alternative fuels technology. Thanks are also due to the staff at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, particularly to Paul Norton, for providing fleet performance data from the Alternative Fuels Data Center (AFDC). Readers seeking more information on alternative fuel vehicle fleet operations are encouraged to use the resources of the AFDC. Contact Paul Norton (303) 275-4424. Photographs of the natural gas engines are used by permission of the Cummins Engine Company and the Detroit Diesel Corporation. Other photos are by Warren Gretz of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, except that of the ADM ethanol-fueled tractor which was provided by Archer-Daniels-Midland