Acetone in gas tank

[jackinnj]

Originally Posted by SY

The other potential effect of acetone is to dry out any residual water in the lines.

I thought you used methyl alcohol for that.

Wait until we to to E-15 and your lawn mower doesn't work!

[john65b]

Finally a topic I can actually constructively add to...

The only way we could start our 1951 Chevy on some (-30F) Wisconsin days was to add a little ether to the carb.

Yup, adding ether raises RVP (vapor pressure)

As far as gas mileage, I suggest you try. On both of my cars (crap 2002 Land Rover and even crappier 2001 Volvo Cross Country) I consistently get a bit better mileage (up to 10% in winter) on premium over Un Leaded Regular.

Also, in oil refineries, there are special labs that run gasoline engines non stop to check for knock (appropriately called knock labs). At the end of an "equivalent 100,000 miles" engine run, they rebuild the engines. If you ever saw the condition of the ULR vs Premium knock engine during a rebuild, it would surely convince premium has at least the advantage of being much cleaner burning. It was quite a difference.

At 10% more expensive, and possibility of getting 10% better gas mileage, and overall better for you engine, it seems a slam dunk for me. Kinda like taking one dollar out of one pocket and putting it into the other.

But be warned, I am just one of those "Evil Oil" guys trying to keep you all driving your gas Guzzling SUV's.

[Wavebourn]

Originally Posted by star882

It's much more effective to hypermile.

Acetone can clean out the engine and therefore improve mileage, but the effect would continue for a long time after using the acetone.

Right; clean an engine from gaskets and hoses!

Did you ever try to mix gasoline and acetone? I did, they don't mix. When 2 paints containing them are mixed the result is like turned sour milk.
I suppose, acetone will always stay on top until the tank is empty, and the remains of it dissolve rubber parts.

[john65b]

Gasoline should mix very well with acetone. Now mix Acetone, gasoline and water, you get some crappy emulsion...water will be absorbed into the acetone, and the acetone into the gasoline...also, I don't know if temperature in your case was the issue...

BTW, acetone will lower octane.

"What Acetone does it do to octane?

Unverified claims on the Internet say that acetone has a 150 octane rating. Acetone does burn slower than gasoline, so it probably has a net effect of increasing the octane of gasoline. High octane means resistance to detonation under compression. If fuel detonates too soon, it will not do work on the piston at the right time. Low octane gas has a higher percentage of n-heptane, which detonates under compression before the spark triggers it, thus doing less work on the piston. In the past, tetraethyl lead was added to the gasoline to slow combustion"


So adding 150-ish Octane Acetone to 90 Octane Gasoline should raise the octane of the Gasoline, and lower octane of the Acetone...

[SY]

Acetone does burn slower than gasoline

You're right, gasoline has a lower flash point. Shoulda looked it up before opening my mouth.

[Geek]

Originally Posted by jackinnj

Wait until we to to E-15 and your lawn mower doesn't work!

Mohawk has E-10 and the mower runs fine on it

Runs really, really hot though - Tecumseh engine owners beware!

Cheers!

[DigitalJunkie]

I think the theory behind the acetone thing is that it makes the gas atomize better,for better (more efficient) combustion.
I'm not sure it makes a big difference on Fuel Injected cars,In a few tests my friends and I did,there was only a slight increase in mileage,and in one case a slight decrease.It may work better on carburated cars. (most of our data collection was on EFI cars.)
Either way,the engines did seem to run just a bit smoother,with a very slight (perceived) increase in acceleration. It seems the mixture of acetone/gas is pretty important,and seems to vary from car to car,it takes some experimentation to get it right -just don't go crazy with it,because it can eat away at the rubber/plastic parts in the fuel system in higher concentrations.
Usually you only add a few ounces per tank of gas,so it shouldn't really do any harm at such a low concentration.

IMO,It's an OK fuel system cleaner,but the mileage thing is..meh.
Put a bit in the tank every few months to clean out the injectors and stuff,dirty injectors can hurt mileage/power pretty badly..but I wouldn't buy into the claims of better mileage.

[gripracer]

I don't know about increasing gas mileage, but there is something you can buy at your local paint shop to increase the octane/knock resistance of your gasoline, much to the effect of using real race gas.

It's called Toulene. I'm not sure what the mix ratio is, but if you have a high-compression or high-boost forced-induction engine, and you can't get your hands on any race gas for any reason, Toulene works great in a pinch.

[Wavebourn]

Yesterday I filled Honda Civic Hybrid by 91'st gasoline, let's see the difference I get against usual 87...

[jackinnj]

Originally Posted by gripracer

It's called Toulene. I'm not sure what the mix ratio is, but if you have a high-compression or high-boost forced-induction engine, and you can't get your hands on any race gas for any reason, Toulene works great in a pinch.

Toluene - it's a benzene with one methyl group attached -- also called methyl benzene. Add a 3 moles of nitric acid and you'll get an interesting reaction.