[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 19 (Thursday, January 29, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4445-4448]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-2211]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-5956-2]
Retrofit/Rebuild Requirements for 1993 and Earlier Model Year
Urban Buses; Approval of an Application for Certification of Equipment
and Amendment to a Previously-Approved Certification
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice of agency approval of an application for equipment
certification.
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SUMMARY: The Agency received a notification of intent to certify urban
[[Page 4446]]
bus retrofit/rebuild equipment for 4-stroke petroleum fueled diesel
engines pursuant to 40 CFR part 85, subpart O from Engine Control
Systems Ltd. (ECS). Pursuant to section 85.1407(a)(7), a June 16, 1997
Federal Register document summarized the notification and announced
that the notification would be available for public review and comment,
and initiated a 45-day period during which comments could be submitted.
In the notice the Agency stated it would review this notification of
intent to certify, as well as comments received, to determine whether
the equipment should be certified.
This action also notified the public that ECS proposed to amend
its' two-stroke engine certification. On January 6, 1997, EPA approved
certification of the ECS retrofit kit which demonstrated a 25%
reduction in PM for 1979 to 1993 Detroit Diesel Corporation (DDC) 2-
stroke engines. On February 11, 1997, ECS requested that this
certification be modified to also include 8V71N engines for model years
1973 to 1984.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Agency received an application dated
October 31, 1996, from Engine Control Systems Ltd. with principal place
of business at 165 Pony Drive, Newmarket, Ontario, Canada for
certification of urban bus retrofit/rebuild equipment pursuant to 40
CFR sections 85.1401-85.1415. On June 16, 1997, EPA published
notification that the application had been received and made the
application available for public review and comment for a period of 45
days (62 FR 32602). EPA has completed its review of this application
and the Director of the Engine Program & Compliance Division (EPCD) has
determined that it meets the requirements for certification. Testing
demonstrated that the equipment reduced particulate matter (PM) by 18%
for petroleum fueled diesel Cummins L-10 engines and all other 4-stroke
engines that were originally manufactured prior to and including 1993
engines and is certified for Program 2 only. It does not apply for
operators utilizing Program 1 as ECS did not demonstrate the minimum
25% reduction in PM necessary for Program 1 certification.
In addition, EPA has completed its review of ECS' February 11, 1997
request to modify the certification approved by EPA on January 6, 1997
(62 FR 46) which demonstrated a 25% reduction in PM for 1979 to 1993
DDC 2-stroke engines to also include 8V71N engines for model years 1973
to 1984. EPA published notice of this amendment request and requested
comments for a period on 45 days in the same notice cited above. EPA
has completed its review of this request and the Director of EPCD
approves the certification amendment to include the 8V71N model for
model years 1973 to 1984 for both programs 1 and 2.
DATES: The date of this document, January 29, 1998, is the official
certification date for both the application and the amendment approval.
ADDRESSES: The ECS applications, as well as other materials
specifically relevant to them, are contained in Public Docket A-93-42
(Category XIV-A or XVI-A), entitled ``Certification of Urban Bus
Retrofit/Rebuild Equipment.'' This docket is located in room M-1500,
Waterside Mall (Ground Floor), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,
401 M Street SW, Washington, DC 20460.
Docket items may be inspected from 8:00 a.m. until 5:30 p.m.,
Monday through Friday. As provided in 40 CFR part 2, a reasonable fee
may be charged by the Agency for copying docket materials.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anthony Erb, Engine Compliance
Programs Group, Engine Programs & Compliance Division (6403J), U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, 401 M St. SW, Washington, D.C. 20460.
Telephone: (202) 233-9259.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
On October 31, 1996 ECS applied for certification of a kit, for use
on 4-cycle petroleum fueled diesel Cummins L-10 and all other 4-stroke
petroleum fuel urban bus engines that were originally manufactured
prior to and including the 1993 model year. The kit includes a diesel
oxidation converter muffler (CM). The application was submitted under
EPA's Urban Bus/Retrofit program under Program 2 only.1
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\1\ EPA promulgated the Retrofit/Rebuild Requirements for 1993
and Earlier Model Year Urban Buses on April 23, 1993 (58 FR 21359).
This final rule established the provisions for an urban bus
retrofit/rebuild program as required by section 219(d) of the Clean
Air Act Amendments (CAAA) of 1990.
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The CM functions as a catalytic converter and a muffler. It takes
the place of the original muffler in the engine exhaust system. Through
testing in accordance with the Federal Test Procedure for heavy-duty
diesel engines, ECS documented that emissions of particulate matter
(PM) were reduced by 19% with the candidate equipment installed on the
test engine. The CM is certified for use with Program 2 to provide an
18% reduction relative to the original engine configuration.
Additionally, the equipment is certified to provide an 18% reduction on
engines equipped with certified rebuild kits that do not include a
converter muffler. This equipment is certified to the PM emission
levels as specified in Table A. below.
Table A.--ECS Retrofit/Rebuild Certification Levels for Cummins Engines \2\
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Retrofit PM
Control New engine level with
Engine family parts list Manufacture dates PM level Retrofit PM level with CM CM and
(CPL) Cummins kit
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343B................................. 780 11/20/85 to 12/31/87................ 0.58 0.48................................ 0.28
343B................................. 781 11/20/85 to 12/31/87................ .59 .48................................. .28
343C................................. 0774 11/20/85 to 12/31/89................ .46 .38................................. .28
343C................................. 0777 11/20/85 to 12/31/89................ .61 .50................................. .28
343C................................. 0996 12/04/87 to 08/19/88................ .61 .50................................. .28
343C................................. 1226 07/26/88 to 12/31/90................ .50 .41................................. .28
343F................................. 1226 07/12/90 to 08/26/92................ .45 .37................................. .28
343F................................. 1441 12/18/90 to 12/31/92................ .46 .38................................. .28
343F................................. 1622 04/24/92 to 12/31/92................ .46 .38................................. .28
343F................................. 1624 04/24/92 to 12/31/92................ .45 .37................................. .28
[[Page 4447]]
Other 4-stroke engines............... ........... 1985 to 1993........................ ........... 18% reduction from original PM N/A
levels.
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\2\ The New Engine PM certification levels are based on the certification level or the average test audit result for each engine family. It is noted
that for engine family 343F, although the PM standard for 1991 and 1992 was 0.25 g/bhp-hr and the NOX standard was 5.0 g/bhp-hr, Cummins certified the
1226, 1441, 1622, and 1624 CPLs to a Federal Emission Limit (FEL) of 0.49 g/bhp-hr PM and 5.6 g/bhp-hr NOX under the averaging, banking and trading
program.
Urban bus operators who choose to comply with Program 2 and use the
ECS equipment will use the PM emission value from Table A when
calculating their average fleet PM level.
In addition, EPA has completed its review of ECS' February 11, 1997
request to amend the kit approved by EPA on January 6, 1997 (62 FR 46)
which demonstrated a 25% reduction in PM for 1979 to 1993 DDC 2-stroke
engines to also include 8V71N engines for model years 1973 to 1984. The
certification covers those engines that are rebuilt to original
specifications or in-use engines that are not rebuilt at the time the
CM is installed provided the engine meets specified oil consumption
limits. This certification does not trigger any new rebuild
requirements for applicable engines because the requirement to use
equipment certified to achieve at least a 25% reduction has already
been triggered for the 8V71N engines. The PM certification levels are
provided in Table B. below.
Table B.--ECS Retrofit/Rebuild Certification Levels For DDC 8V71N Models
------------------------------------------------------------------------
PM level
Model with
DDC engine model year converter Code/family
muffler
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8V71N........................... 1973-84 0.38 All.
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II. Summary and Analysis of Comments
EPA received comments from one party on the ECS application during
the comment period. The Chicago Transit Authority commented on the
backpressure shown in the data for the 4-stroke kit noting the increase
by 4.7% (from 2.36'' Hg to 2.47'' Hg with a new catalytic converter.
The CTA expressed concerns about the increase in backpressure
restriction of the engine and the negative effects, as the catalytic
converter accumulates mileage in service. The CTA also commented that
the fuel consumption increased from 0.397 lb/bhp-hr in the baseline
engine test to 0.403 lb/bhp-hr in the test with the catalyst by 1.51%.
It was noted by CTA that if the increase in fuel consumption in a 4-
stroke Cummins engine also applies to the 2-stroke DDC engine, CTA will
incur an additional expense of approximately $122,766 based on it's
operation of 1,115 buses with DDC 6V92TA diesel engines. CTA also
commented that the catalytic converter should be tested for structural
durability to ensure it will hold up in service and that in the absence
of a durability test structural failure of the catalytic muffler should
be covered for 150,000 miles with no time limitation.
In regard to concerns expressed relative to the backpressure
concern, ECS indicates in a letter to EPA dated September 17, 1997,
that it designs its catalyst units to provide backpressure comparable
to the original muffler. The test catalyst utilized the minimum
catalyst volume in what ECS termed the poorest flowpath that could be
used for Cummins L10 engines according to ECS. ECS reported that all
tests to date have shown that the converter muffler designs maintain
exhaust system backpressure under the maximum level recommended by
Cummins (3 inches of Mercury). The catalyst used by ECS for exhaust
testing had been degreened, that is, put in place on an exhaust system
for 100 hours under steady state conditions to more closely represent
the performance of an in-use catalyst.
With regard to comments on fuel consumption, the CTA noted that if
the 1.51% increase in fuel consumption seen in the 4-stroke testing
were applicable to the 2-stroke engines, CTA would incur additional
fuel expenses for a large number of engines in its fleet. Since the
certification being discussed herein relative the 4-stroke application
and the testing performed on the 4-stroke engine is relevant only to
the 4-stroke application, the discussion of the application of the 4-
stroke catalyst and its application and effects on fuel economy on a 2-
stroke engine would not be pertinent. Therefore, this comment does not
address the 4-stroke application. Further, since the 4-stroke
application being reviewed herein is for certification under Program 2
only, operators are not required to purchase this equipment as it is
not trigger technology. Any decision by an operator to purchase this
equipment can be made by an operator based on individual fleet
composition and evaluation of the costs associated with available
compliance options.
With regard to CTA's concern that the catalytic converter should be
tested for structural durability to ensure it will hold up in service
and that in the absence of the durability test structural failure of
the catalytic muffler should be covered for 150,000 miles with no time
limitation, the regulations at section 85.1409(a) require that the
certifier shall warrant the retrofit/rebuild equipment will not cause
an urban bus engine to exceed emission requirements for a period of
150,000 miles from when the equipment is installed. Section 85.1409(b)
requires that the certifier shall replace all defective parts, free of
charge for a period of 100,000 miles from when the equipment is
installed. There is no time limitation on the time the warranties are
in effect. In addition, there is no requirement in the regulations that
the certifier shall provide durability data on the equipment. As
discussed in the preamble to the final rule (58 FR page 21379, April
21, 1993) EPA decided not to require durability testing for this
program. Any change to the warranty requirements can be made only
through a regulatory amendment process which is beyond the scope of the
certification decision being made in this document.
With regard to the ECS request to amend the previously certified
kit to include the DDC 8V71N, CTA commented on engine exhaust
backpressure restriction and structural durability of the catalytic
converter. Again, in the absence of a durability test, CTA recommended
that the structural failure of the catalytic converter muffler should
be covered for 150,000 miles with no time limitation.
ECS has stated that it designs the systems to include a larger
catalyst
[[Page 4448]]
volume which results in lower particulate mass flow through each
individual substrate cell and a greater catalyst volume to ensure the
substrate remains free from excessive carbon build up. According to
ECS, this ensures that the converter muffler exhaust backpressure will
remain within acceptable levels throughout the normal life. With regard
to the request to perform durability testing and to require that the
converter muffler should be warranted for 150,000 miles, please refer
to the discussion of these concerns in the section above.
III. Certification Approval
The Agency has reviewed this application, along with comments
received from interested parties, and finds that this equipment reduces
particulate matter emissions without causing urban bus engines to fail
to meet other applicable Federal emission requirements. Additionally,
EPA finds that installation of this equipment will not cause or
contribute to an unreasonable risk to the public health, welfare or
safety, or result in any additional range of parameter adjustability or
accessibility to adjustment than that of the engine manufacturer's
emission related part. The application meets the requirements for
certification under the Retrofit/Rebuild Requirements for 1993 and
Earlier Model Year Urban Buses (40 CFR sections 85.1401 and 85.1415).
Thus, the Agency hereby approves the certification of this equipment.
IV. Operator Requirements and Responsibilities
With regard to the 4-stroke kit, for operators who have chosen to
comply with Program 2, this equipment is immediately available for use
and those who use this certified kit may claim the PM emissions
reduction as stated in Table A when calculating their Fleet Level
Attained. With regard to the 2-stroke amendment for the previously
certified kit, the kit may be used to meet the requirements of both
Programs 1 and 2 for the 8V71N engine family for model years 1973-84.
As stated in the regulations, operators should maintain records for
each engine in their fleet to demonstrate that they are in compliance
with the requirements, beginning January 1, 1995. These records include
purchase records, receipts, and part numbers for the parts and
components used in the rebuilding of urban bus engines.
Dated: January 20, 1998.
Richard D. Wilson,
Acting Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation.
[FR Doc. 98-2211 Filed 1-28-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
