DME - 21st Century Energy

DME: Multi-Use, Multi-Source Low Carbon Fuel

Transport

Cooking and Heating

Power Generation

Significant market, commercial, and regulatory developments worldwide are driving interest in DME's remarkable potential as an ultra clean, renewable, low-carbon fuel. The IDA serves as the global voice for the DME industry, and works to promote the use of DME as a clean alternative fuel worldwide, to gather and communicate authoritative information about DME, and to coordinate relevant international activities and initiatives. The IDA has a global membership of companies, institutions, and individuals at the vanguard of industry developments, representing a wide range of interests within both the upstream and downstream value chains.

Meet the Experts

Get up to speed on DME's introduction as a fuel directly from those most involved with its commercialization in North America and elsewhere.

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News

DME for Fleets

Growing interest by fleet owners and OEMs in the use of DME as a transport fuel reflects DME's promise as a low carbon, ultra-low emissions alternative to diesel. Produced from abundant and low cost feedstocks such as natural gas, coal, and biomass, few modifications are required to a diesel engine in order to use DME.

Watch video below to learn more about how DME can be produced from abundant feedstocks and used as an ultra-low emissions alternative to diesel

ASTM Issues Specification for DME Fuel

ASTM International has issued a standard specification for DME for fuel purposes, providing DME producers, engine manufacturers, infrastructure developers and others involved in the introduction of DME as a fuel with an important benchmark on which to base their work.

Commitment Reaffirmed for US$850 million methanol-to-DME project in Trinidad and Tobago

The government of Trinidad and Tobago, Japan's Mitsubishi Corporation and Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Company, and local group Neal and Massy reaffirmed their commitment at a meeting this month to develop an US$850 million methanol-to-DME plant there. The first phase of the project involves the production of 1 million TPY of methanol and 100,000 TPY of DME.

Japan's first DME production plant (pictured above) is located in Mitsubishi Gas Chemical's industrial facility in Niigata. The Fuel DME Production Company plant is a joint venture of a number of Japanese companies including Mitsubishi Gas Chemical, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, and Mitsubishi Chemical Company, and has a capacity of 80,000 TPY of DME.

DME North American Infrastructure Workshop

Industry representatives and DME experts representing a broad spectrum of the alternative automotive fuel value chain met at Volvo Trucks' corporate headquarters to discuss important aspects of DME's production, infrastructure, distribution, deployment, and use in heavy-duty diesel engines.

Senior executives from the Volvo Group shared information about their strategy for the production and commercialization of Volvo and Mack heavy-duty vehicles running on DME in 2015, and the group heard from experts on DME fuel combustion, feedstock, production, infrastructure, distribution, and economics as they relate to the introduction of DME in North America.

Workshop materials are available to IDA members in the Member Area of the online portal.

Photo: IDA Chairman Ben Iosefa at Volvo's North American headquarters with a Volvo VNL D13 truck running on DME

Mack Trucks Announces DME-Powered Truck Model

Mack Trucks will begin production of DME-powered Mack Pinnacle Axle Back models in 2015. The model powered by DME will be equipped with a Mack MP8 engine, offering a 13-liter engine to easily handle heavy workloads.

“The benefits of DME are numerous,” said Kevin Flaherty, president of Mack Trucks North American Sales & Marketing. “It’s better for the environment because it burns clean, and it can be made from sources that are domestically available. Mack trucks are built in the U.S.A., and with DME, we’ll be powering our vehicles with a fuel made in America as well.”

“DME is unique in that it is clean, easy to handle, safe to store and will be made domestically, benefitting everyone.” DME can be produced by small-scale production units that convert biogas and natural gas into the fuel. Oberon Fuels recently announced their first innovative production unit will go online this month in California’s Imperial Valley region.

Alternative Fuel Focus at 5th International DME Conference

Earlier this year industry representatives from Asia, Europe, and North America participated in the IDA's 5th International DME Conference just outside Detroit, the heart of North America's automotive industry, with a program featuring a particular focus on DME's use as a transportation fuel. The event included a conference, panel discussions, poster session, workshops, and site visits.

The first day included workshops covering initiatives and projects of vital importance to the industry and its stakeholders, along with an optional DME Fundamentals Tutorial. The event concluded with site visits related to the research, development, and deployment of alternative automotive fuels in North America, including guided tours of the University of Michigan's Auto Lab and ROUSH CleanTech's new manufacturing facility, where the company works with major OEMs and the military to develop vehicles powered by alternative fuel technologies.

Conference materials, including presentations, program, registrant list, and photographs are available to IDA members in the Member Area of the online portal.

Photo: DME 5 gala dinner at the Henry Ford Museum, Dearborn, Michigan

Volvo to Begin Production of DME Heavy-Duty Trucks in North America

Following on the success of extensive DME fleet vehicle tests carried out in Europe, Volvo Trucks has become the first manufacturer to announce plans to commercialize DME-powered trucks in North America. The company's DME technology will be available on the D13 engine - the top-selling heavy-duty engine in the world. Oberon Fuels will supply DME produced by their small-scale modular units, offering an ultra-low emission alternative to diesel fuel for fleet operators.

A Volvo VNL D13 running on DME was on display in June at the Alternative Clean Transportation Expo (ACT Expo 2013) in Washington, D.C.

Watch video below to hear more about the announcement from the project stakeholders