powerboat racing additive
Posted by ams on Monday, February 27, 2012
Ethanol in fuel : A Costly Nightmare
What is Ethanol Blended Fuel
Manufacturers generate ethanol, which is short for ethyl alcohol, by fermenting and distilling crops like corn, wheat and barley. It’s the same stuff that is in alcoholic beverages. Alcohol is an amazing cleaner and solvent and its natural tendency is to bond with water. There is where the problems lie. What happens is a process called phase separation where the alcohol separates from the fuel and alcohol bonds to any water that is inherent in the system, corrupting all of the fuel in the process.
The other issue besides the water is that because alcohol is such a good solvent and cleaner it can dry out, damage and corrode plastics, rubbers and cause pieces to flake, break off and travel into the fuel system.
As seen in the photos here. You can see fuel lines that were cut open and inspected to find the inner walls were deteriorating and flaking off into the fuel. The fuel lines themselves became very hard and brittle. The fuel filters got gummed up with debris which also lead to fouling of spark plugs. The fuel filters swelled and broke into two pieces.
Lucas Safeguard Ethanol Fuel Conditioner with Stabilizers will combat this problem
Don’t wait until it has already done the damage !!!