I subscribe to a monthly news letter called, "Nutz & Boltz". Volume 2,
Issue 8 of the newsletter has a short article on alcohol in gas.
It goes like this...
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Does your car have a hard time starting after it's warmed up? Let's say
you're driving in hot weather, you shut off your car and run into a store
for a minute. When you try to restart your car it just cranks and cranks.
By the time the tow truck arrives your mechanical marvel starts right up!
The problem could be caused by alcohol in the fuel. A recent study of a
major brand of gasoline, purchased in Baltimore, showed an alcohol content
of 15%. Legally, refiners are limited to 10% alcohol in the gas. Alcohol
is a more volatile fuel. It vaporizes faster and easier than gasoline.
This is fine for winter drivability, but the alcohol can cause vapor lock
in hot weather.
The primary reason that refiners use an alcohol-blend isn't for environmental
reasons. It is to help produce higher octane numbers. While this may help
get rid of engine ping or detonation, it can lead to some other problems:
* Alcohol and water attract. If there's water in the bottom of your fuel
tank, you're in big trouble. Any alcohol in your fuel will gather with
water at the bottom of the tank. When the fuel pump tries to feed this
alcohol cocktail to the engine the car will stall and refuse to restart
until it is pumped clear and fed fresh gasoline.
* Alcohol attacks fuel hoses and rubber parts, especially methanol or
methyl alcohol. This causes the rubber to deteriorate and clog the
fuel filter and injectors. If you suspect that you are having this
problem examine the contents of your fuel filter. Blow out the
contents of the filter into a clear jar. Blow in the opposite
direction of normal fuel flow to see what is caught in the filter.
If black colored fuel comes out of the filter your car has been
contaminated by alcohol and your fuel lines are suffering. That
black color is the rubber hoses deteriorating into the fuel system.
* If the contents of the fuel filter looks like tan, beige or pink
granules, you may have even bigger problems! This is the sure sign
of methyl alcohol contamination. This type of alcohol not only attacks
the fuel hoses but the lining of the fuel tank as well. What you are
looking at is the lead "terne" lining of the fuel tank.
* Alcohol contains only 1/2 as much BTU's, or power as gasoline. Use
of gas with alcohol can lead to a drop in fuel mileage.
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I don't know if everything in this article is true, but, it's worth
looking into.
This newsletter also sells an alcohol test kit to see if the gas that
you're buying has alcohol or not. It sells for $3.00. I've ordered
one to see if it's any good.
Later...
Larry Schwarcz
HP Cupertino, CA
lrs@hpda.hp.com
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