jwehrspann, Senior Editor

August 29, 2012

2 Min Read

And they say it couldn’t be done. Ever since the EPA came out with its latest emission guidelines, called Tier 4, most engine experts purported that it would take two engine technologies to meet the required reductions in soot and smog.

For more: Reinventing the Engine

That is, engine makers would need to a) burn them off, and b) squirt the exhaust with a urea solution, both designed to cut nitrogen oxides and particulate matter to their lowest levels yet.  

Well, this week, Case IH and New Holland proved the experts wrong. These rival sister companies, both owned by Fiat Industrial, announced that they’ve refined the squirt method, called Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR), to such lengths that they can bypass having to recirculate the pollutants through the engine to burn them off, a strategy called Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR).

By staying with this SCR engine after-treatment system, the companies say they can get an average of 10% better fuel economy than their Tier 3 predecessors with EGR technology, which they maintain interferes with engine operations. In addition, the companies claim the tractors can achieve higher horsepower levels.

“When the emissions components from the engine are removed, the engine can breathe and produce high levels of horsepower,” says David Stark, Case IH North America sales and product trainer. “There are no emissions components on the engines, which is one reason for the high horsepower levels.” 

Deere, on the other hand, announced in March that it will add SCR technology to its current EGR approach, maintaining it will get fuel economy that is as good as or better than its record-setting 8320R row-crop tractor powered by a Tier 3 engine.

For more: John Deere adopts a chemical after-treatment for Final Tier 4 engines

Either way, and regardless of the approach, all equipment companies will have to have their final Tier 4 engines in place by EPA’s deadline of 2013 for engines 74 hp and below and 2014-2015 for engines 75 hp and above.

For more information, visit our Tier 4 web page.

About the Author(s)

jwehrspann

Senior Editor, Farm Industry News

Jodie has been a journalist for 15 years, specializing in machinery, technology and precision farming. Prior to Farm Industry News, she worked as a research analyst/editor for Rockwood Research, the former research arm of Farm Journal Media.

Jodie has won numerous writing awards including the Master Writer Program Award, Level IV, from the American Agricultural Editor's Association (AAEA). She has also been recognized for her technical writing skills by the American Society of Business Publication Editors and the Minnesota Magazines and Publications Association. Jodie is an active member of AAEA and currently serves on the board.

A former native of Montevideo, MN, Jodie earned a B.A. degree from the University of Minnesota and a Masters degree in Business Communications from the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, MN.

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