Volvo Trucks Expands Its Model Range for Biodiesel

Volvo Trucks expands its model range suitable for biodiesel B100. This is another strategic step to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from its truck fleet. Volvo Trucks offers one of the industry’s most comprehensive ranges of renewable fuels for its trucks, including biodiesel, HVO (Hydrotreated Vegetable Oils), and biogas. B100 is now available for a wide selection of engines for the Volvo models FL, FE, FM, FMX, FH, and FH16.

(Ismaning) “Our customers are looking for solutions to reduce their CO2 emissions. Renewable fuels present an attractive option – they provide an efficient way to quickly reduce CO2 emissions in transportation,” says Jan Hjelmgren, Head of Product Management and Quality, Volvo Trucks, adding: “As a global truck manufacturer, we must meet a variety of transport requirements and market conditions. Therefore, we are investing not only in future technologies but also in solutions that will decarbonize transport in the short term.”

Savings of up to 70 percent CO2

The CO2 savings from using biodiesel (well to wheel) range from 30% to 70% compared to conventional diesel fuel, depending on the type of raw material used to produce the fuel. The current offering of medium and heavy trucks from Volvo is available today with drivetrains that can be powered by diesel, biodiesel, HVO, CNG (Compressed Natural Gas), LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas), bio-CNG, bio-LNG, and electricity.

The combustion engine powered by renewable fuels is one of the three pillars of Volvo Trucks’ decarbonization strategy. The other two pillars are battery-electric and fuel cell-electric drives. This strategy supports the company’s goal that all sold Volvo trucks should have net-zero emissions by 2040.

Biodiesel – Facts

The available Volvo trucks certified for biodiesel B100 are the Volvo models FL, FE, FM, FMX, FH, and FH16 with specific variants of the 5-, 8-, 13-, and 17-liter diesel engines – the availability of the variants varies from market to market – see the link to the Volvo Trucks truck configurator below*.

• A model with biodiesel certification also means that the Euro 6 requirements are met.
• Biodiesel is a non-fossil fuel derived from vegetable oils (e.g., rapeseed oil) and is relatively easy to produce.
• Biodiesel is also known as fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) according to the EN14214 standard.
• All diesel engines from Volvo Trucks are also certified for operation with HVO100 fuel. HVO (Hydrotreated Vegetable Oils) is essentially a biofuel that can be produced from a range of materials such as vegetable oils, but also from waste products.

Photo: © Volvo Trucks