Cummins Inc, Columbus IN, has approved the use of biodiesel B20 blends for use in its 2002 and later emissions-compliant ISX, ISM, ISL, ISC and ISB engines, according to Cummins information. This includes the recently released 2007 products.
Cummins said it is able to upgrade its previous position on the use of biodiesel fuel, which limited the use to B5 blends only, up to B20 for three key reasons: the American Society of Testing Materials specification ASTM D6751 now includes an important stability specification for B100 biodiesel; the availability of quality fuels from BQ-9000 certified marketers and accredited producers is growing rapidly; and Cummins has completed the necessary testing and evaluations to ensure that customers can reliably operate equipment with confidence using B20 fuel.
Cummins added that recent studies predict that, by 2008, 1.2 billion gallons of B100 biodiesel will be produced in the United States.