Caterpillar has revised its On-highway Diesel Engine Fluids Recommendations Bulletin, SEBU6385-08, for use with on-highway diesel engines. This 84 page bulletin contains the most current information available for lubricants, fuels and coolants used in these on-highway Cat engines.

Shell has advised its marketers that prices for select SOPUS products will generally increase by up to 8% with an effective date of February 22, 2010. In certain instances, prices for specific products may change in amounts that fall outside of this general increase. Shell stated that this adjustment is due to increasing costs of raw materials used in the production and delivery of its products.

Chevron last week also announced a price increase to be effective March 1, 2010 on all lubricating oils, gear lubes and greases by an average of 6 - 10 percent. Just at press time, we learned that BP/Castrol has also announced a price increase on their Passenger Car, Commercial, Industrial and ancillary products, including synthetics, in all package types up to 8%, effective March 8, 2010.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has just announced a new national air quality standard for nitrogen dioxide (NO2). The agency set the new one- hour standard for NO2 at a level of 100 parts per billion (ppb). EPA also is retaining the existing annual average standard of 53 ppb.

The Synthetic Heavy-Duty Diesel Engine Oils Chart is the second of a 21-chart series of the Fifth Edition of our Synthetic Lubricant Cross Reference Chart Series. This 21-set series consists of over 7,750 (fully) synthetic lubricants marketed by over 500 worldwide lube manufacturing & marketing companies and equipment OEMs. The chart in the next issue of the I&C Lube News will be Synthetic API GL-4 & GL-5 Gear Lubricants.