Quizzes & Puzzles0 min ago
Freezing diesel
In winters gone by many years ago, you always used to hear about diesel fuel freezing in fuel pipes during freezing weather, especially in trucks. You never hear about it nowadays. has the problem been solved and if so, how?
Answers
1 to 16 of 16
Best Answer
No best answer has yet been selected by dave50. Once a best answer has been selected, it will be shown here.
For more on marking an answer as the "Best Answer", please visit our FAQ.
Diesel fuel is now refined so that its low temperature properties are apt for the geography and time/temperature.
Unseasonable cold snaps can catch refinersout potentially, such as tonight/tomorrow - this is when the temperature drops below the cloud point of the fuel cause operating difficulties due to wax dropping out.
Therefore in refining terms, the cloud point can normally only be lowered by the addition of a product with a lower wax content e.g. Heating Oil and similar products - and that's what they do if the cold snap is prolonged.
However, they can manage shortterm issues by using additives at the loading rack, called cold flow improvers.
This way theylower the temperature at which the wax crystals block filters and the temperature at which the diesel freezes (that's known as "Pour Point).
These additives work by changing the size and shape of the wax crystals, making them much smaller by their chemistry action.
Hope this helps you.
Unseasonable cold snaps can catch refinersout potentially, such as tonight/tomorrow - this is when the temperature drops below the cloud point of the fuel cause operating difficulties due to wax dropping out.
Therefore in refining terms, the cloud point can normally only be lowered by the addition of a product with a lower wax content e.g. Heating Oil and similar products - and that's what they do if the cold snap is prolonged.
However, they can manage shortterm issues by using additives at the loading rack, called cold flow improvers.
This way theylower the temperature at which the wax crystals block filters and the temperature at which the diesel freezes (that's known as "Pour Point).
These additives work by changing the size and shape of the wax crystals, making them much smaller by their chemistry action.
Hope this helps you.
sddsddean my Dad who had one of the first Astra diesels as a company car in 1982 tended to put a drop of petrol in at each winter fill-up for the same reason, but that was when diesel wasn't as refined as it is now and there'd be things floating around in it.
Glowplugs that have seen better days are now much more of a problem than diesel going gloopy.
Glowplugs that have seen better days are now much more of a problem than diesel going gloopy.
Whilst we are on the subject of diesel I have a few questions about this very versatile fuel. I hope you will be able to answer them.
1 Is it true that you can drop lighted matches into a bucket of this fuel and it will put them out?
2 Can you use biodiesel in place of normal diesel in a normal car?
3 Can this fuel cause motorcyclists to skid on it if they run over it?
4 Is this sometimes called "fuel oil" instead?
1 Is it true that you can drop lighted matches into a bucket of this fuel and it will put them out?
2 Can you use biodiesel in place of normal diesel in a normal car?
3 Can this fuel cause motorcyclists to skid on it if they run over it?
4 Is this sometimes called "fuel oil" instead?
Johnny
1 - yes
2 - Define Biofuel.....if fat derived esters, up to 30% or you risk smelling like a fish and chip shop.
3 - any liquid hydrocarbon risks a spill, lub being the worse...with fueloil (though what would fuel oil be doing on a road)
4 - Fuel Oil is something else all together, full of very long complex hydrocarbon chains (and from which lubricants are sometimes extracted) - huge boilers such as in ships and power stations use it and to ignite it, they actually burn diesel to start with to heat the boilers. Also, diesel is less polluting in ports and near to shore, though there has been a lot done to reduce things like sulphur content (in the trade you will find LSFO and HSFO with corresponding price differentials.)
1 - yes
2 - Define Biofuel.....if fat derived esters, up to 30% or you risk smelling like a fish and chip shop.
3 - any liquid hydrocarbon risks a spill, lub being the worse...with fueloil (though what would fuel oil be doing on a road)
4 - Fuel Oil is something else all together, full of very long complex hydrocarbon chains (and from which lubricants are sometimes extracted) - huge boilers such as in ships and power stations use it and to ignite it, they actually burn diesel to start with to heat the boilers. Also, diesel is less polluting in ports and near to shore, though there has been a lot done to reduce things like sulphur content (in the trade you will find LSFO and HSFO with corresponding price differentials.)
Been googling 'Yes' there still is Winter and Summer diesel , the change over point is 15th October in the UK . Some discusion of the pros and cons of winter v summer diesel here
http://www.motorhomef...om/ftopic-9245-0.html
http://www.motorhomef...om/ftopic-9245-0.html
Also, technically speaking regarding Q1, you could drop a lit match into a bucket of petrol and the match would go out. Petrol is not flammable, but it is highly volatile. This means it evaporates very easily and it is the vapour that is highly flammable. If you could get the match through the vapour into the bucket of petrol, nothing would happen! This is why an empty tanker is in fact far more hazardous than a full one.
sddsddean I GARANTEE that if you tried dropping a lit match into a bucket of petrol you would have a 'fireball' the match would light the vapour before it hit the liquid . DO NOT mention such an idea even as a joke , there are people stupid enough to try it ! remember the man who poured petrol on to a bonfire on Nov 5th to relight it ! 85% burns
-- answer removed --
1 to 16 of 16
