- Joined
- May 11, 2019
- Messages
- 3,630
- Location
- United States
- Vessel Name
- Muirgen
- Vessel Make
- 50' Beebe Passagemaker
Regarding "new" vs "old" diesel engine fuel burns.
I find it difficult to understand why some new, modern, state of the art engines burn twice as much (or more) fuel than my Gardner 8LXB, designed, I believe, in the 1950's, and built in 1978 burns.
Granted, my engine produces (from one source) 20% to 40% more pollution than the newer engines per gallon consumed, but if mine is consuming less than HALF the fuel for the same work (miles made good through the water), and the new design is 20% to 40% less polluting, but burns over twice the fuel per mile made good through water . . . . . isn't the new, modern, sophisticated, common rail, secret spy ring engine actually polluting MORE than my old engine?!?
Mechanical: 1978 Gardner 8LXB with 36" Hundestat CPP
Boat: 1982 Robert Beebe designed 50' Passagemaker
Normal cruising weight: 75,000 to 90,000 lbs, depending on fuel/water on board.
Normal cruise: 7.5kts, 1300 rpm, pyrometer (EGT) 430(ish) deg F. Typical 120v load.
Fuel burn: 2.4 gph measured, which gives me 3.125 nm/gal.
And I'm not even taking into account the pollution and expense of drilling, refining, and transporting that extra fuel in order to run the boat with a modern engine the same number of miles over the ground . . .
And I didn't factor in that my engine is also running a hydraulic pump that is running the hydraulic motor that turns my 12kw 120v generator . . . . so if I have a need for LOTS of 120 power, there is no need to start another diesel engine to provide the hyd pressure/flow.
Just thinking out loud . . . .
I find it difficult to understand why some new, modern, state of the art engines burn twice as much (or more) fuel than my Gardner 8LXB, designed, I believe, in the 1950's, and built in 1978 burns.
Granted, my engine produces (from one source) 20% to 40% more pollution than the newer engines per gallon consumed, but if mine is consuming less than HALF the fuel for the same work (miles made good through the water), and the new design is 20% to 40% less polluting, but burns over twice the fuel per mile made good through water . . . . . isn't the new, modern, sophisticated, common rail, secret spy ring engine actually polluting MORE than my old engine?!?
Mechanical: 1978 Gardner 8LXB with 36" Hundestat CPP
Boat: 1982 Robert Beebe designed 50' Passagemaker
Normal cruising weight: 75,000 to 90,000 lbs, depending on fuel/water on board.
Normal cruise: 7.5kts, 1300 rpm, pyrometer (EGT) 430(ish) deg F. Typical 120v load.
Fuel burn: 2.4 gph measured, which gives me 3.125 nm/gal.
And I'm not even taking into account the pollution and expense of drilling, refining, and transporting that extra fuel in order to run the boat with a modern engine the same number of miles over the ground . . .
And I didn't factor in that my engine is also running a hydraulic pump that is running the hydraulic motor that turns my 12kw 120v generator . . . . so if I have a need for LOTS of 120 power, there is no need to start another diesel engine to provide the hyd pressure/flow.
Just thinking out loud . . . .
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