Arizona Petroleum Products is building a new warehouse and packaging line at its Tucson site to make and market a new environmental product.
The company, a supplier of oils and other fluids for commercial and industrial uses, also will update the site at 1051 S. Cherry Ave., which is little changed since it was acquired by Standard Oil of California in 1949.
The new facilities will enable Arizona Petroleum to store and package diesel exhaust fluid, which is used to reduce emissions in heavy trucks and other diesel vehicles, manager Jerry Kachenko said.
As part of a process known as selective catalytic reduction, the non-toxic, urea-based fluid is sprayed into the exhaust system, where it works with the catalytic converter to convert harmful nitrous oxide emissions into nitrogen and water.
Truck and diesel automakers have been adding selective catalytic reduction systems to meet ever-tightening federal clean-air standards. The systems add to operating costs, but they allow improved fuel economy and performance over common engine-based systems that reburn exhaust gases, experts say.
The company already has installed tanks for blending and storing the exhaust fluid and has the ability to fill 250- to 300-gallon plastic totes and 55-gallon drums for fleet use, Kachenko said.
Once its packaging facility is operating sometime around mid-2017, Arizona Petroleum will be bottling diesel exhaust fluid in 5-gallon jugs for consumer use, Kachenko said. He noted that some diesel cars made by Mercedes, Volkswagen and others require the fluid.
โItโs already a product thatโs on the market, but the nice thing about this is, itโs packaged outside the community everywhere else,โ Kachenko said. โWeโre hoping to make it more economically priced, and weโre proud that weโre making it in Tucson,โ
Diesel exhaust fluid sells in bulk at truck stops for about $2.50 to $3.00 per gallon, while some truck centers, auto dealers and auto parts stores sell the fluid in 1, 2.5 or 5-gallon jugs for around $5 to $6 per gallon.
Kachenko said Arizona Petroleum, which was launched by parent Colorado Petroleum Products Co. in 1989, employs about 15 workers.
The company expects to add about five positions when the fluid packaging line is up and running, he said.
To make room for the new operations, the company has removed its fueling stations for E85 ethanol-blended gasoline and biofuels, Kachenko said.
โBecause of the road construction in the area, it was getting tough for people to get to us anyway,โ he said, noting that several gas stations around town sell E85 gas.
