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Injector cleanliness is well characterised in the literature [1,2,3,4] as a key factor for maintained engine performance in modern diesel cars. Injector deposits have been shown to reduce injector flow capacity resulting in power loss under full load; however, deposit effects on fuel economy are less well characterised. A study was conducted with the aim of developing an understanding of the impact of diesel injector nozzle deposits on fuel economy. A series of tests were run using a previously published chassis dynamometer test method. The test method was designed to evaluate injector deposit effects on performance under driving conditions more representative of real world driving than the high intensity test cycle of the industry standard, CEC DW10B engine test, [1]. The efficacy of different additive levels in maintaining injector cleanliness and therefore power and fuel economy was compared in a light duty Euro 5 certified vehicle.

As passenger cars are progressively moving towards more electrification, Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs) may play a greater role. Several questions arise regarding their performance in real-world conditions, their optimal configuration - in terms of battery capacity, fuel and powertrain used - and their pollutant emissions. In this context, two PHEVs complying with Euro 6d standards were evaluated on a chassis-dyno and on-road using the same road profile, complying with RDE requirements. The two vehicles differ only by their powertrain, one being diesel-fueled, and the other being gasoline-fueled. The vehicles were tested under various conditions, including charge depleting and charge sustaining modes (i.e., tests respectively starting with a fully charged battery and a discharged battery), with various fuel compositions including traditional fossil-based fuels, 100% renewable Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) and 100% renewable gasoline, blended with 20% v/v ethanol (E20).