Date: 1/24/2010
Name: Peter
email: petemcminn@gmail.com
subject:E-10 Fuels
The following will be published in our February club letter The "river" is the Willamette and/or Columbia here in Portland, OR:ANOTHER REASON TO SAIL: E-10 FUELS! Source: BoatUS.com By Ted Drayton
As you sail along the river near the boat ramps and launching sites, you may notice more and more powerboats with open engine hatches or a perplexed owner scratching his forehead. 'Why won't my powerboat start'?
A real serious dilemma facing powerboat owners has become the unleaded fuel know as E-10 or gasoline mixed with 10% Ethanol. The stuff that cleans gunk off the inside of gas tanks, clog fuel filters and stops engines. It has the potential to attract water through the tankā??s vent and separate itself from the gasoline. And it quickly destroys fiberglass tanks.
Water in E-10 fuel is another problem that power boaters must deal with. The introduction of water to E-10 fuel can be disastrous. E-10 can hold up to four teaspoons of water in suspension per gallon. Once this saturation point is exceeded, the solution separates and the gas floats on top while the ethanol and water mix on the bottom. This event is called "phase separation". Ethanol fuel can absorb enough water to reach its phase separation point in just over 3 months at 70% humidity.
Can I still get non-E10 gasoline? Maybe, but it could cost. Gasoline used for maritime purposes represents far, far less than 1% of the nation's consumption of gasoline in trucks and automobiles--.005%. That miniscule percentage includes commercial shipping as well as recreational boats.
The average automobile tends to be used much more frequently than the average boat, which means gasoline doesn't sit around long enough to form gunk on tank walls. Auto tanks have closed systems that aren't vented to the outside air. No air = no moisture = no chance of phase separation problems. And, of course, cars don't have fiberglass tanks so that isn't a problem.
All of this means that there has been no outcry from automobile owners over the introduction of ethanol. Question: If 99.995% of the country is relatively happy about something, what are the chances that the remaining .005% can make enough noise to change things? Answer: Not much.
The good news: Nearly all engine manufacturers say that up to 10% ethanol (the current federal limit) is OK to use. As long as water is kept out of fuel tanks and fuels are not mixed, aside from boats with fiberglass gas tanks, problems hopefully will be minimal.
The bad news:
The EPA has been looking into increasing to 15% ethanol. They should have a decision by summer 2010.
Happy Boating!
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