Renewable diesel has a similar chemical composition to fossil diesel. It is made entirely from renewable raw materials and can be used as a drop-in fuel. In the United States, Neste sells renewable fuel  branded as Neste MY Renewable Diesel™.

You can use renewable diesel in all diesel-powered vehicles without modifying the engine, investing in new vehicles, or investing in new fueling equipment. The use of Neste MY Renewable Diesel can also reduce emissions of nitrogen oxide (NOx) and particulate matter (PM), especially in older vehicles with less advanced engine technology. Neste MY Renewable diesel works just like fossil diesel: it will perform optimally at temperatures as low as  -4°F (-20°C) for winter grade, and under proper conditions, can be stored for many years. Renewable diesel is fully interchangeable with fossil diesel, so it is possible to blend renewable diesel with fossil diesel in any proportion or use it in its neat form. 

Neste MY Renewable Diesel is sold through Neste's distributors at over 24 stations in the US. Read more about Neste MY Renewable Diesel.

Data represents medium and heavy duty trucking. ¹ Depends on the fossil fuel used for blending. ² EV range can be reduced. ³ Depends on local grid carbon intensity. ⁴ Depends on hydrogen production method.

Biodiesel is a common name for fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) fuel most often made from different types of vegetable oils. For example, when produced from soy, the fuel is called soy methyl ester (SME).

Biodiesel in its pure form is known as B100, a formulation not approved by most OEMs for use in their engines. Biodiesel fuel contains oxygen, meaning it is not a hydrocarbon. Its different chemistry has the potential to cause problems with fuel stability, deposit formation, oil contamination, and cold weather operation. Due to those factors nearly every OEM has a blend limit of 20% for biodiesel - B20. Some even limit it to B5.

While pure biodiesel can achieve GHG reductions on par with renewable diesel, the necessary blending with fossil diesel reduces those GHG reductions by a similar percentage, so B5 and B20 fuels tend to have GHG reductions of only 5-15 percent.

Data represents medium and heavy duty trucking. ¹ Depends on the fossil fuel used for blending. ² EV range can be reduced. ³ Depends on local grid carbon intensity. ⁴ Depends on hydrogen production method.

Electric vehicles are on the rise and will play a crucial role in achieving a lower emission future, along with other alternatives. However, fully electrifying heavy duty transportation vehicles  is expected to take decades in the United States. Currently, EV trucks are in limited use on a trial basis. With electric vehicles there are many factors to consider such as limited range, availability of charging stations, charge time, cost of the vehicle purchase, as well as the environmental impact of battery production. With a "Well-to-Wheels" approach, considering the emissions from electricity production and the production costs of vehicles and batteries, it is often more advantageous to keep an existing diesel vehicle and drive on renewable diesel.

Data represents medium and heavy duty trucking. ¹ Depends on the fossil fuel used for blending. ² EV range can be reduced. ³ Depends on local grid carbon intensity. ⁴ Depends on hydrogen production method.

Most natural gas is not a biofuel because of its fossil origin. Natural gas is available in both compressed and liquid forms, but engines must be specially configured to run on this fuel which introduces new costs to fleets. Natural gas also has less energy content than diesel fuel, resulting in less power relative to engine size so load and range concerns should be considered. In the United States, natural gas refueling stations are limited in availability – less than 0.2% of the US natural gas supply is used for transportation, and in the US there are currently 889 natural gas fueling stations.

Renewable natural gas (RNG) is available in both compressed and liquid forms as well, and is made from captured methane from landfills, feedlots, and other bio sources, but makes up an even smaller portion of the natural gas available for vehicles.

Data represents medium and heavy duty trucking. ¹ Depends on the fossil fuel used for blending. ² EV range can be reduced. ³ Depends on local grid carbon intensity. ⁴ Depends on hydrogen production method.

Hydrogen can be used in two ways for transportation – in a spark-ignited internal combustion engine (ICE), or in a hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV)– and both have very emissions profiles. The ICE version emits trace amounts of CO₂ but can produce NOx, while the FCEV’s only emission is water. 

However, both of these options have to overcome the fact that hydrogen vehicles for the heavy duty market are still in development, hydrogen can be hard to store, and hydrogen fueling stations are mostly limited to the LA area, and the San Francisco area with prices being much higher than those of other renewable fuels.

Data represents medium and heavy duty trucking. ¹ Depends on the fossil fuel used for blending. ² EV range can be reduced. ³ Depends on local grid carbon intensity. ⁴ Depends on hydrogen production method.