The Environmental Protection Agency stepped up efforts to make existing diesel engines run cleaner by reducing particulate matter, which goes hand-in-hand with its plans to reduce sulfur content in diesel fuel by 2006.
Because of the durability of diesel engines — a life span of at least 1 million miles in heavy-duty trucks and a useful life of at least 15 years in city buses — there was a need to address existing problems sooner rather than later, according to the EPA in announcing a voluntary
etrofit program on March 23 ("EPA to Offer Incentives to Spur Diesel Retrofits," 3-27, p. 1).
Particulate traps, to combat soot, could be high on the retrofit list.
Diesel soot consists of small carbon particles that are coated with several compounds as the engine fires and the particles travel through the exhaust system. Because of their size and what they might transport, particulates can get into the lungs, noted the EPA and the Manufacturers of Emission Controls Association.
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