Acetone as a gasoline additive?

[Bill Bayard]

I have read on a few different occasions, that acetone, when added to gasoline in specific ratios, can give as much as a 35% boost in fuel mileage. According to the articles,
acetone simply reduces the surface tension of gasoline molecules, making them burn more efficiently. In addition, hydrocarbon emissions are supposedly reduced as well, due to the more complete burn. The suggested ratio is 1-3 ounces of acetone to 10 gallons of gasoline. If this works, hooray! It could be beneficial to members preparing to undergo emissions testing as well. At $3 a gallon, adding acetone could make it as low as $1.95 per gallon, plus the cost of the acetone, which isn't much. I could live with $2 a gallon, instead of $3!

Any chemists out there with comments, positive or negative?
Is this just another urban myth???

No amateur chemists, please! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif


Bill

 

[Paul Thompson 'Hooligan']

[ QUOTE ]
I could live with $2 a gallon, instead of $3!

[/ QUOTE ]

Try £4.50(UK) a gallon...... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif

 

[Ron Earp]

I really would like to see the articles but, let me guess, not published in refereed scientific journals?

I can think of no reason why this would make any difference - surface tension has nothing to do with how molecules in a liquid will burn (at least not with the gains cited, certainly surface tension has a lot to do with how droplets form, but if you burn X amount of gas for Y energy you get what you get, nothing is free). The internal forces that loosely bind molecules together in a liquid - hydrogen-hydrogen bonding, van de Waals forces (dipole dipole interactions), etc. control how the molecules will interact on a molecular level and surface tension can be a direct result of such forces. Urban myth. I am a chemist, and although my doctorate wasn't in inorganic chemistry or combustion engineering, I learned enough I think along the way that I would be highly skeptical of this. We've got some more chemists on the board too, Mike Starling is a Ph.D. chemist and Doc Watson is too if I recall correctly and those fellows probably know more than I about burning up liquids for energy. I could definitely look into it more though if needed.

I don't know, I always am skeptical of anything like this. If it were that easy to get something for free, well, we'd already be doing it. Smells a lot like the fuel magnet crap that floats around from time to time too - doesn't work. As well as the 100 mpg carb on a V8 and lots of others! And I think I offered to try the fuel magnet mess out with my generator a couple of years ago but the fellow or company never came through with sending them over.

R

 

[Andy Besic]

I seem to remember a somewhat technical article a few years ago regarding fuel additives for raising octane and I believe that acetone was mentioned in those regards. So if you are only running about 20 degrees of advance before the test and then add acetone to raise octane and advance you timing to 35 degrees maybe there would be an efficiency increase. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

 

[Bill Bayard]

I knew that sounded too good to be true! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif

I'd be concerned about any additive (other than water or alcohol)
degrading rubber/plastic fuel system parts.

Bill

 

[Bill Musarra]

Some of you guys are tooooooo young to remember the Fish carburator 1940 or the Pogue 1936. It was basicly a two barrel setup that used a coil of filter type paper as a wick. Got phenomenal mileage. I still have in my files somewhere designs for high mileage carburator devices. From simple passover devices to three of my own design that were inspired by my oldest child when she had a cold. I have a few other designs in my head, inspired from my days when I was a Respiratory therapist. I think when I finish my 40 and have some fun with it, I will tinker with those ideas. Let's see...... I can see the headlines now. GT 40 Goes 175MPH and gets 100MPG.. Hhmmmmm.

 

[Paul]

From a quick search on the web Acetone seems to help with the vaporization of fuel enabling all fuel to be burnt. I did a search with "acetone as a fuel additive" and a good number of sites offering information.

Regards
Paul

 

[Ron Earp]

I didn't do a search on the web, I just thought about the issue. I can do more scientific searching, but don't use the web for information of this type.

I did briefly do what you suggested and found the exact same paragraphs with the same graph on no less than nine sites - same exact info just simply copied around. Popular hype is what I think.

One thing I did see on my quick run through that is complete BS "acetone has a natural frequency that stirs things up". Maybe they are referring to the bending and stretching vibrational modes of the carbon oxygen double bond? These vibrations do not "stir things up" to any extent in a liquid that it would help with fuel atomization, that much is for sure.

 

[Ron Earp]

[ QUOTE ]

I'd be concerned about any additive (other than water or alcohol)
degrading rubber/plastic fuel system parts. Bill

[/ QUOTE ]

I would not worry about acetone, particularly the amounts they are talking about 2-3oz in 20 gallons - doesn't amount to much at all. In fact, I think I'll do some calculations before long to point out how many molecules of acetone there are to gasoline molecules (mixture, I'll assume a average MW) in the tank.

R

 

[ChrisL]

35% is not believable but move the decimal point one place to the left and the concept is not ridiculous. The idea of getting improved performance by varying the pattern of fuel delivery does indeed have a scientific basis and companies such as THIS have been running a profitable business selling just such technologies to companies like Ford for some time. An additive can conceivably change the atomization properties of a liquid so having a varying effect on the burn pattern and burn speed, thereby affecting the way the forces are applied to the top of the piston and the way thermal losses play their part.

However, I am definitely not saying that this concept applies here, since my only background is a fundamental introduction in first year engineering to the basic chemistry and thermodynamics involved, but I can say that the equation is not one of simply calculating the amount of energy available in a fuel. Losses come into the internal combustion engine equations in a big way.

But even if some improvements were true, then I would still expect that there would be other practical issues to consider. Engine management systems for example may complain loudly and car manufacturers might resist any quick changes given the effect on their long term warranties.

 

[Mark Clapp]

I kicked this around with some of the other chemists I work with and we mostly thought that the acetone is so volatile, it would probably evaporate out of the mixture and not do much. Anytime you add hydrocarbons, you increase the heat upon combustion but 3oz/10gal is not much to add and most any non-chlorinated solvent would do the same.

 

[David Tickle]

Hi All
Just a slight warning along the lines of "Don't try this at home folks".

Ignoring doubtful claims for fuel economy, if any does try this, be careful. Acetone is a powerful anaesthetic.
I remember many years ago in the school chemistry lab, I was drying a conical flask with acetone. (It absorbs water and quickly evaporates off leaving a dry flask). To check if the acetone had all evaporated, (there was no liquid left), I sniffed the flask and very nearly immediately collapsed. This with just a small amount of fumes left in the flask.

Don't leave the container with the top off either. It evaporates very quickly and the vapour will go with a big bang!

Regards

Dave Tickle

 

[Doc Watson]

From what I know...... (my Phd is in artificial intelligence used to design aircraft so no chemist, and I cant talk about the stealth stuff!!!) ...is that methanol and acetone are used in producing fuel BUT its for a diesel engine where you make bio-diesel from seed oil. I had a quike look in google and found many articles on bio-diesel and how to make it and it works well. In fact I remember that this government was investigating all people who buy large amounts of organic oil because lots of people were using it in their diesel motors and the government here were missing out on their large tax for diesel. There are articles about using acetone in very small quantities in 'normal' petrol and one of two things will happen...

1) It actually works in increasing the MPG of your vehicle although there seems to be no scientific evidence to back this up or....
2) You put the acetone in your car and subconciously drive a little less aggresivly because you are measuring (or trying to) the mpg of the engine to see if there are any improvements. So it looks like the 'additive' increases the efficiency of the engine .

Oh yea.... and if you put the minute amounts suggested into your tank, chances are it will evaporate as Mark said above, before it can 'mix' with the petrol. As a final thought.....

Would you risk running a 1966 289 block with all the trimmings on this and possibly have to rebuild the engine if it all goes Pete Tong (wrong)..... my moneys on Esso, Shell and BP.... although if you have a chip shop and a diesel car... well thats another story.... just dont tell the tax man.

Doc Watson