Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions With Liquefied Biogas (lbg) Powered Timber Truck Vehicle In Long-Distance Transportation of Industrial Roundwood

The European Union is committed to decreasing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 55% by 2030 compared to 1990. Furthermore by 2030, the goal is to increase the share of renewable energy to 24% in the transportation sector. Methane can be used in road transportation to replace fossil oil-based fuels. Heavy-duty long-distance truck vehicles can use liquefied natural gas (LNG) or liquefied biogas (LBG). The second LBG-powered timber truck vehicle in Europe started hauling for Metsähallitus in northern Finland in summer 2022. The LBG timber truck configuration consists of a Volvo FH LNG 460 truck tractor and trailer. The maximum gross vehicle weight (GVW) allowed of this configuration is 69 tonnes.

University of Eastern Finland and Metsähallitus are investigating the energy efficiency and GHG emissions of the LBG timber truck configuration in a long-term follow-up study that began in January 2023 and ended in December 2023. In the study, the reference vehicle was a normal diesel-powered Scania R660 timber truck configuration with maximum GVW of 76 tonnes. The LBG vehicle transported 553 payloads and the reference vehicle 676 payloads during the study. CO2 emissions were calculated with well-to-wheels (WTW) method, i.e., emissions generated throughout the entire lifecycle of fuel were determined according to fuel consumed and using emission factors based on the ISO 14083 standard.

Based on preliminary results, the WTW emissions of a laden LBG vehicle averaged 49.3% lower than those of the reference vehicle applying a measure of kg CO2 100 km-1 and 46.1% lower with the measure of kg CO2 tkm-1. With empty vehicle, the WTW emissions of LBG vehicle averaged 48.7% lower than those of the reference vehicle. The preliminary results of the study revealed that biogas can significantly reduce particularly WTW emissions in the long-distance transportation of industrial roundwood.