63 Cetane Synthetic Diesel?

[MOates]

Over on one of the Jeep Liberty CRD forums there was a discussion about Shell starting up production of synthetic diesel from natural gas (GTL process) and already selling it in Europe.



One gent posted a link to a company in TX that is selling high octane race gas, biodiesel, and synthetic diesel made using a different process from above - High Performance Fuels and Additives or High Performance Fuels and Additives .



I did a little digging, and when I did a Google search under it's tradename - Topaz Syndiesel - found a link to a geocities webpage that had the MSDS sheet.



Basic specs were 63 cetane, pour and cloud points of minus 60 F (60 F below zero), source was listed as Alpha Olefin Process, 20300 btu/lb.



Company sells this stuff in 5 and 15 gallon containers and 55 gallon drums. Price on a 55 gallon drum works out to 4 bucks per gallon - what we're already paying at the pump for regular #2 45 cetane diesel. Not only is it higher cetane (a LOT higher), but looks to have more energy content (btu/lb) than regular diesel.



I'm thinking of maybe getting a 15 gallon container and try splash blending this stuff with regular pump diesel to get a 50 plus cetane mix, or if I'm feeling froggy try running it uncut just to see what it does.



They claim that unlike regular diesel or biodiesel, you can store this stuff for years and it won't be be affected.



Apparently these guys have been around for some time - I found an ancient post on tdiclub from '99 where one guy said he was buying some of this to try out, but couldn't find any results he may have posted.



Comments or opinions? Anyone heard of this company before?

 

[mr.wilson]

It's a shame that they don't make it cheaper than regular fuel. :-(

 

[GOTSOOT]

Where I live their is a "very large" commercial biodiesl plant and they ship that stuff out by the tanker load to the port-and where does it go?! GERMANY, this is substantiated by the truck driver that works there. ! WTHe_ _! is up with this?

 

[The patriot]

It's a shame that they don't make it cheaper than regular fuel. :-(

They probibally wouldnt be doing this unless there was a LOT of bucks to be made in it.

In other words, if the prices of diesel would get "normal" they most likley wouldnt be doing it.



JM. 02

 

[AH64ID]

I thought our motors didn't higher cetane? As in they loose power and run hotter???

 

[Headshot zod]

I've been on to their site on occasion, but it was never for sale. If your running veggie oil. I think this would be a great fuel to start/stop on. And if you buy the 55 gallon drum and pay road tax on it. I think you would still be saving cash.

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

I'll bet the $4/gallon price does not include federal/road taxes. When I buy kerosene the "advertised" price is like $4. 30/gallon but when they ring it up they add two tax line items (federal and sales) which pushes it to over $5/gallon.

AH64ID: Higher cetane does not increase combustion heat, if anything would help lower it. Higher cetane= quicker,easier ignition of fuel plume when injection begins, resulting in a smoother & more efficient combustion event.

Years ago before all this reformulation of fuel to lower sulfur and the general decline in quality US fuel used to consistently be above 50 cetane. Nowadays it's closer to 40, often lower than that. I remember in one old TDR article when fuel was randomly sampled at pumps around the country one station's diesel only scored a 32!! Back when Marco was starting to work on his ECM enhancements/products (before the common rail came along) he had difficulties with his programming working well over here because- our diesel fuel is very poor compared to what he was used to over in Europe.

Vaughn

 

[AH64ID]

AH64ID: Higher cetane does not increase combustion heat, if anything would help lower it. Higher cetane= quicker,easier ignition of fuel plume when injection begins, resulting in a smoother & more efficient combustion event.

I have seen dyno results showing lower hp with cetane boost... I also have read that it can increase the EGTs of the truck... So I am not sure what to believe, it could be like octane on a gasser, most rigs dont have the ability to benefit from the increased octane.

 

[Crunch]

Basic specs were 63 cetane, pour and cloud points of minus 60 F (60 F below zero), source was listed as Alpha Olefin Process, 20300 btu/lb.

I'd be wary of getting improved performance from higher cetane. I've read that once you get to a 50 cetane rating the returns diminish very quickly. And from our own TDR:

Mixing Gasoline And Diesel

"Cetane is to diesel fuel what octane is to gasoline. It is a measure of the fuel’s ignition quality and performance. Cetane is actually a hydrocarbon chain, its real name is 1-hexadecane. It is written as C16H34, or a chain of 16 carbon atoms with 34 hydrogen atoms attached. All HC chains are also referred to as paraffins. Cetane is a hydrocarbon molecule that ignites very easily under compression, so it was assigned a rating of 100. All the hydrocarbons in diesel fuel are indexed to cetane as to how well they ignite under compression. There is very little actual cetane in diesel fuel.



All the hydrocarbons in diesel fuel have similar ignition characteristics as cetane. Cetane is abbreviated as CN. A very loose way to think about cetane is if the fuel has a CN of 45, then the fuel will ignite 45% as well as 100% cetane. Diesel engines run just fine with a CN between 45 to 50. There is no performance or emission advantage to keep raising the CN past 50. After that point the fuel’s performance hits a plateau.



Diesel at the pump can be found in two CN ranges: 40-46 for regular diesel, and 45-50 for premium. The minimum CN at the pump is supposed to be 45. The legal minimum cetane rating for #1 and #2 diesel is 40. Most diesel fuel leaves the refinery with a CN of around 42. The CN rating depends on the crude oil the fuel was refined from. It varies so much from tanker to tanker that a consistent CN rating is almost impossible. Distilling diesel is a crude process compared with making gasoline. Gasoline is more of a manufactured product with tighter standards so the octane rating is very consistent. But, the CN rating at the diesel pump can be anywhere from 42-46. That’s why there is almost never a sticker on a diesel fuel pump for CN.



Premium diesel has additives to improve CN and lubricity, detergents to clean the fuel injectors and minimize carbon deposits, water dispersant, and other additives depending on geographical and seasonal needs. More biocides added in the south in summer, more ant-gel added in the north in winter. Most retailers who sell premium diesel will have little brochures called POPs (Point of Purchase) at the counter explaining what’s in their fuel. Please don’t ask the poor clerk behind the counter any technical questions after reading this discussion. All they need to know how to do is sell you beer, milk, cigarettes, lottery tickets, and take your money. "

Interestingly, I read that article when I was researching diesel trucks back in 2003, and it is one of the main reasons I decided on the Dodge diesel and joined TDR.