Capital Equipment News March 2024

All factors must be considered on construction sites to enable considerations based on kilometres of road constructed or rehabilitated. Such considerations indicate which construction method, materials, and machines are the climate-friendliest for each project. Smart assistance systems Today, machines from Wirtgen, Vögele, Hamm, and Kleemann, equipped with engines that fulfil the requirements of US EPA Tier 4f, respectively EU Stage V exhaust emission standards, can also be operated with alternative fuels. They are approved for use with alternative paraffinic fuels such as HVO (Hydrotreated Vegetable Oils – fuels based on vegetable oils or animal fats) or XtL fuels (X-to-Liquid – synthetic fuels based on solid, liquid, or gaseous energy resources). There are already corresponding solutions for asphalt mixing plants from Benninghoven. These can be fuelled with wood dust or BtL (Biomass– to–liquid–liquid fuels derived from biomass). The first battery-powered solutions are now available, including the new mini pavers from Vögele and compact rollers from Hamm. These machines have sufficient battery capacity for a typical working day and deliver identical performance to their diesel powered counterparts. Kleemann has been offering crushers with direct electric drive systems for processing primary resources and recycling materials for quite some time. These enable local zero emissions by connecting to an external electric power supply. Digitalisation Regardless of the measures employed, having a transparent and verifiable system for determining and assessing emissions is essential. This is where the tremendous opportunities offered by digitalisation can play a decisive role. These days, for example, telematics systems can already register machines’ fuel consumption. For Wirtgen Group product brands alone, the number of machines fitted with such systems is aimed to rise to 42,000 by 2030. This will allow the documentation of such parameters under real-world operating conditions and offer a much more realistic picture than predefined test cycles. First, systems for documenting the actual work performed are now also available. These include the Wirtgen Performance Tracker (WPT) for cold milling machines and wheeled recyclers/soil stabilisers (see Information Box). With such digital solutions, it will be possible to document consumption

The WPT for cold milling machines calculates and records how many cubic meters of asphalt have been milled. It can also, for instance, provide information on fuel consumption during a specific construction project.

A schematic of the cold recycling process: In this method for road rehabilitation, the construction materials are recycled on the spot. As the asphalt does not need to be heated, substantially less energy is required. (Source: Wirtgen Group).

Benninghoven plant with a hot gas generator for asphalt production from up to 100% milled material.

minimal or zero climate-harmful emissions?” To answer this question, the emissions from not individual machines or plants but rather the emissions of projects as a whole should be considered. In the same way, a vehicle’s fuel consumption is measured in kilometres per litre, machine performance should be measured in units of work done – for example, per cubic meter of pavement material removed or per ton of asphalt paved.

figures “per work done” – i.e., on a construction site or project basis. b

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