ETHANOL ISSUES

There are many issues surrounding Ethanol. They range from the cost of food to the waste of government money. Google - Ethanol Problems and you can spend days reading the results. We are going to look at 3 issues with Ethanol blended fuels.
Efficiency, Stability and Water.

Efficiency

Ethanol produces less heat when it is burned than gasoline. Lab test state it is only about 1% and that this loss is offset by the cost of the fuel. A majority of users state a loss of over 5%, some stating up to a 10% loss, this is not offset by the cost and leads to higher overall fuel cost and more fuel to travel the same distance. EthanolRx and Sentry will help.

Stability

Ethanol blends can turn "SOUR" in as little as 2 weeks. Evaporation and oxidation are the two biggest problems effecting Ethanol blends. Ethanol is lighter than gasoline. When it sits in a tank that is less than full for a period of time the Ethanol rises to the top and evaporates into the air. This is especially true in a vented fuel system. When a tank is less than full the Oxygen in the air in the tank reacts with the fuel and causes the build up of gums and varnishes. Evaporation leads to a poorer quality fuel and the gums and varnishes can plug filters, injectors and carburetors. EhtanolRx and Sentry will help.

Water

Ethanol is a hygroscopic liquid, meaning that is readily attaches to water. It it also fully miscible (mixable) with water. In very small amounts this is not a problem. But when the saturation exceeds a specific amount is becomes a major problem called Phase Separation. The amount of water Ethanol can safely absorb is dependent on the temperature of the fuel. At 70°F it is .5% (.005) of the volume. If it exceeds this amount the Ethanol and water will fall from suspension and sink to the bottom of the tank forming an Ethanol /Water layer that can produce acids and cause major engine failures. At cooler temperatures it is less and at higher temperatures it is more. This is especially a problem during transportation and storage of fuel. A hot tank may have 1% water, when is cools off it can exceed the amount and cause phase separation. In the case of storage tanks this may go undetected and delivered directly to your tank. This can also be a problem when Ethanol is added to a tank that has water in it already.

Phase Separation

100 ml of E-10 Fuel from a pump labeled ( may contain up to 10 % Ethanol ) and .7 ml water at 85°F Water is dyed red for viewing.	Added together, shaken and allowed to settle.	After being transferred to a second container with a better scale it is noted that it contains just less than 9 ml of junk. In conclusion the .7 ml added to the 100 ml.of fuel has produced just less than 9 ml of junk that is 8% Ethanol.

A little note on tanks and their construction. All tanks have what is referred to as an unusable percentage. With the exception of the aviation industry this amount is usually not published. Planes can't pull over when they run out of fuel. This percentage is usually between 1% and 2 % of the tank size. In a 100 gallon tank this could be 2 gallons. Not a lot of water in something 6 times bigger than your barbeque grill. If you were to add 99 gallons of E-10 Ethanol to a 100 gallon tank that only had 2 quarts of water and was below 70°F the entire fuel load could be ruined by Phase Separation. ( 100 gallons x .5% = .5 gallons.) This can happen anywhere along the distribution chain. In 1 gallon of gas this is less than a teaspoon.

This is an accumulative effect that can go undetected until the Ethanol / Water layer gets to the fuel pickup that is located just above the unusable volume.At this time your engine is trying to run on junk. EthanolRx and Sentry will help.