A prototype Volvo truck with a 13-litre engine that runs on the alternative fuel dimethyl ether (DME) will be tested on public roads in Sweden next year. Volvo wants to put 14 of the new truck engines through their paces under normal operating conditions. The tests will take place in Gothenburg, Stockholm, Pita and Vaxjo and will continue until 2012.

The tests are part of a wider European project to assess the practicality

DME is an LPG-like synthetic fuel, which can be made from a byproduct of the process of making paper pulp. Volvo believes that DME has the greatest potential among the alternative fuels it has examined, although there are challenges. One is that DME has a lower lubricity than diesel, which means extra wear for moving parts. DME is relatively cheap, has high energy efficiency and low emissions.