I don’t see how anybody can know what stuff is in the petrol from a petrol station…
You can do ethanol tests before you use the stuff, but if it comes up as containing it, do you drive down to the petrol station down the road??
We have done this before but ethanol is likely to eat PR1422 and its variants which are commonly used as fuel tank sealants. It will take time but if you look up the sealant spec the vulnerability is obvious.
I’m sort of running on the principle that these are fairly basic engines and not likely to be that fussy about what they drink.
Peter wrote:
You can do ethanol tests before you use the stuff, but if it comes up as containing it, do you drive down to the petrol station down the road??
I am yet to see a positive test for ethanol, so I don’t know! Apparently the fuel company certifies it as ethanol-free, so in theory one could return it for a refund. Whether one could be bothered with this is another matter.
Would I put it in the aeroplane anyway? If I owned it outright, then probably. As those with Africa experience tell us, you just get on with it. One dose of ethanol isn’t going to hurt, and if the next can from the same filling station tested positive too then one would look for a different supplier or ask the company about their spec.
But it’s a group-owned aircraft and I have a responsibility to the other guys to do the right thing – so no, in this instance I would not put it in the aeroplane.
Indeed, Vic, you wrote this here.
However, isn’t ethanol an alcohol?
I did look at this before but, now, looking at the PR1422 data sheet it does say excellent resistance to alcohols. So you are right on the fuel tank sealant.
I wonder if @Maoraigh is still about?