http://www.autonews.com/article/20180417/BLOG06/180419780/the-octane-game-auto-industry-lobbies-for-95-as-new-regular?cciid=email-autonews-daily
Of course, We use RON + MON/2 = octane but still, lets get rid of that 87 crap.
And alcohol while were at it!
I just hope that "if" we get to 95 octane it isn't with 15% ethanol??? ::) ???
95 would be great!
Waht does RON and MON mean ???
New words I haven't seen, even on the article.
RON = Research Octane Number. What the chemist says.
MON = Motor Octane Number. What a test engine says.
Pump number is the average of the two.
And you have to take the refinery's word for it as there is no government or independent verification for octane ratings. Only testing by government agents is for measurement that the pump is dispensing the gallons shown and charged. Octane is about the level of knock in the compression of the fuel.
If that is the case it should be (RON+MON)/2=octane. Sorry that is just the engineer in me :D
Lots of good info on the Sunoco Race Fuels website: https://www.sunocoracefuels.com/ (https://www.sunocoracefuels.com/) Comparisons of their fuels, locations where you can purchase and tech articles.
As for the Congressional testimony to the House Energy and Commerce Committee's environment subcommittee, I'm not going to hold my breath and hope that Congress or the bureaucrats get it right. My question would be; what is the (R+M)/2 rating of the 95 RON fuel they are lobbying for? 88? Maybe 89? And if they "pollute" that with a higher ethanol percentage, then I have vehicles that won't run well, if at all.
My Shelby has 11.5:1 CR and requires 100+ octane. I've been mixing 1/3 90 octane non-ethanol with 2/3 Sunoco purple 110 to get to about 103 which the engine seems to like. Right now the non-ethanol is about $3.33/gal and the race fuel just jumped from $8.37 to $8.62/gal. At about 10-12 MPG (the way I drive it) it's not the most economical car I own, but the smile it puts on my face is priceless! I'm thankful that I can still purchase this stuff. I just hope the government doesn't screw that up. I don't think that the auto industry lobbyists are watching out for someone like me (us).
Hard to find 110 fuel for under those prices.
I run 100 unleaded exclusively at the track.
The 110 leaded is the same cost.
I've been told that mixing various fuels will give you the octane number one is looking for but changes the oxygenated properties of the fuel dramatically.
Which probably isn't important for a street car but worth mentioning anytime we are paying up for race fuel.
Quote from: 67_1183 on April 18, 2018, 09:14:34 PM
RON = Research Octane Number. What the chemist says.
MON = Motor Octane Number. What a test engine says.
Pump number is the average of the two.
Thanks 67_1183 8)
Mixing fuels will give you a blend of octane and/or oxygenation levels: https://www.sunocoracefuels.com/tech-article/mixing-fuels-calculating-octane (https://www.sunocoracefuels.com/tech-article/mixing-fuels-calculating-octane)
Purple gas and the 90 octane non-ethanol I use have no oxygen, but other blends do and the resulting mixture will affect how the fuel delivery system is calibrated.
Would someone please explain if the oxygen (weight%) matters. I see that in the chart of the various Sunoco fuels. Is a high number or a low number better? What about zero? Or should I just ignore that column?
Also, as long as you have a good octane number, does leaded matter?
I assume the fuels with "E" in the name have the dreaded ethanol. Correct?
Thanks,
Steve
Quote from: kjspeed on April 19, 2018, 09:30:50 AM
My Shelby has 11.5:1 CR and requires 100+ octane. I've been mixing 1/3 90 octane non-ethanol with 2/3 Sunoco purple 110 to get to about 103 which the engine seems to like. Right now the non-ethanol is about $3.33/gal and the race fuel just jumped from $8.37 to $8.62/gal. At about 10-12 MPG (the way I drive it) it's not the most economical car I own, but the smile it puts on my face is priceless! I'm thankful that I can still purchase this stuff. I just hope the government doesn't screw that up. I don't think that the auto industry lobbyists are watching out for someone like me (us).
I do pretty much the same thing, with the same MPH result. I mix 2/3 93 octane with ethanol, with 1/3 112 leaded race fuel. Except I am paying about $11 a gallon for the race fuel.... The car really likes it though.
Note that the article presented states that the U.S. needs to conform to a fuel of 95 octane, as in Europe. Based of observations of engine requirements and performance on units we ship to Europe, one realizes that the 95 octane as labeled is apparently perhaps two numbers lower in a U.S. rating process. So, don't get to excited yet! :-\
Scott.
Quote from: SFM6S087 on April 20, 2018, 04:34:14 AM
Would someone please explain if the oxygen (weight%) matters. I see that in the chart of the various Sunoco fuels. Is a high number or a low number better? What about zero? Or should I just ignore that column?
I don't profess to be a fuel expert by any stretch, but I do a lot of reading. According to the description for Sunoco's EX02 extreme oxygenated blend it is useful in high altitudes and where race rules restrict flow such as; restrictive heads, 2bbl carbs, crate motors, etc. Since the amount of power you can get out of any particular engine is directly proportional to the amount of air (oxygen) and fuel that you can cram into the cylinders, fuel with added oxygen lets you bump up the jets to deliver more fuel which equals more power. See https://www.sunocoracefuels.com/fuel/ex02 (https://www.sunocoracefuels.com/fuel/ex02)
Also, as long as you have a good octane number, does leaded matter?
Lead increases octane as well as lubricating the valvetrain. See https://www.sunocoracefuels.com/tech-article/race-fuel-101-lead-leaded-racing-fuels (https://www.sunocoracefuels.com/tech-article/race-fuel-101-lead-leaded-racing-fuels)
I assume the fuels with "E" in the name have the dreaded ethanol. Correct?
Not positive, but I don't believe the EX02 is ethanol based. See more about alcohol & octane: https://www.sunocoracefuels.com/tech-article/alcohol-and-octane (https://www.sunocoracefuels.com/tech-article/alcohol-and-octane)
Thanks,
Steve
The fuel needs of a vintage muscle car like a Shelby and the needs of a full-on race engine are quite different, so take that into consideration. There is no sense buying race gas when pump gas will do for a particular application. ~Kevin
Europe uses ROM, which tends to be higher than MON. I have seen the archaic test equipment that some refineries use based how octane ratings started over a century ago . It is a large one cylinder engine that is run at idle until it knocks under compression and then the fuel is calibrated. Some labs now use a spectrometer test method rating the iso-ocatane and heptane in fuel. Then there is the higher octane rating of blending ethanol due to its cooler burn and all the chemistry gets insanely boring. Bottom line, use what makes your car run well as per its tuning without detonation and/or damaging the plugs.
The octane rating for aviation fuel is different. The pilots here can tell you about it. And so is diesel.
I used to buy 100 low lead for my car at the airport - and took regular car gas to run in the airplane. It was certified for anything over 80 octane.