A range of high-horsepower diesel generator sets from Cummins Power Generation has been awarded Tier 4 Final certification by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
The win by the 680-2750kW generator sets represents the first such award from the EPA.
Tier 4 emissions requirements are designed to reduce emissions of particulate matter (PM), nitrogen oxides (NOx) and air toxics from new, non-road diesel engines. As part of the initiative, the EPA proposed New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) to define acceptable levels of emissions in large stationary generator sets. NSPS standards are designed to regulate US emissions, and to be progressively tightened over time to achieve a steady rate of air quality improvement without significant economic disruption.
The certification will become mandatory in January 2015, although the EPA began issuing certificates a year earlier. Achieving certification ahead of the regulation date is a success for Cummins’ diesel emissions reduction technology, the company said.
Tier 4F emissions standards require emissions reduction to near-zero levels. For generator sets greater than 751HP, emissions must be at or less than 0.67 NOx, 0.19 HC, 3.50 CO and 0.03 particulate matter (PM).
There is no EPA limit on the number of hours that a generator can operate in emergency situations, but the EPA does limit operators to running their emergency gensets for 100 hours per year for maintenance and exercise purposes.
