A new standard has been approved for detecting silicon in gasoline and other fuel products.
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Silicon in solid form |
The American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) International Committe D02 on Petroleum Products and Lubricants has given its seal of approval on ASTM D7757 and No. 1-B Grade.
The new standards cover testing to determine the total silicon content in gasoline, ethanol fuel blends and other fuel products and a voluntary standard for bio-diesel production.
ASTM D7757 will help remove silicon from fuels, the harmful element that can lead to the fouling of key engine components relating to the combustion process - such as spark plugs and oxygen sensors.
The standard relates to testing using monochromatic, wavelength-dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometry over a range of concentrations from three to 100mg/kg. The test method itself was developed by ASTM's sub-commitee, D02.03 on Elemental Analysis, and has already been successfully adopted by fuel blenders even before the standard became official.
Silicon can lead to expensive maintenance and replacement costs and sub-committee Chairman, Kishore Nadkarni, heralded the new standard as a major step forward for the industry, adding that: "Any level of silicon in fuel gasoline is unacceptable since combustion results in silica deposits on the oxygen sensor in the engine exhaust, which can lead to a breakdown in the closed loop electrical feedback to the engine electronic control unit".
Meanwhile the testing authority also announced a new voluntary standard, ASTM D6751 No. 1-B Grade for bio-diesel production. While the current standard will remain unchanged, but now entitled No. 2-B Grade, the new amendment is a voluntary addition which offers more stringent controls on some components used in the production of bio-diesel, such as vegetable oils and animal fats. The new standard is set to help the limited number of filter-clogging cases discovered in Ultra Low Sulphur bio-diesel fuels.