Boating Industry Canada

surveying, retrofitting, repairing, owning or operating an older boat be sure to determine the tank material. If the tank is fibreglass make sure there is no degradation. Surveyors and repairers should also pay close attention to the condition of flexible gas lines and hoses whenever servicing boats.”

When combined with MTBE gasoline, fuel filters severely clog and even deteriorate. The two products mixed in boat tanks upset the vapour pressure of the fuel causing cold start and vapour-lock problems. In isolated cases, severe corrosion of aluminum fuel system components have been documented and attributed to mixing the two fuel types. To avoid this problem, boat tanks should be run down to the lowest safe level before taking on ethanol fuel. Fuel suppliers are in transition. Boat owners who navigate the initial switch need to be

wary of where they take on fuel during the season. Boat owners who trailer their boats and fill at service stations must be aware of what they are buying.

Marinas must also sell their stored fuel off before adding the ethanol blend. Reputable fuel distributors will give dealers the steps required to prepare storage tanks and pumping equipment. Those include: ensuring tanks are clean; there is no water in the system; upgrading filters to 10-micron, ethanol compatible, and water separating filters. Because ethanol is a solvent, it will clean dirt or contaminants from both dispensing and boat fuel systems. Boat owners and marinas report that filters clog often with the first few loads of fuel but the filters do remove the dirt suspended in the fuel. Carrying spare ethanol-compatible filters will be a must for boaters and marinas. Boaters must have the spares

and the means to change them, including a method of safely storing the old filter and the gasoline it contains, onboard.

Ethanol, being alcohol-based, absorbs water. Marine fuel systems are very susceptible to water intrusion. E10 has the ability to absorb 6,000 to 7,000 PPM of water into solution and allow it to be burned by the engine. In a 375- litre tank, the fuel could hold about 2.5 litres of water without separation. The problem comes when the fuel is saturated beyond its capacity to hold any more water. Phase separation takes place and leaves two solutions: a high concentration of water and alcohol; and, gasoline with no oxygenate. The water-alcohol solution is highly corrosive to aluminum and other fuel components and the oxy-genate-shorted gasoline will cause engine damage. The only solution is to drain the system and start over again.

The Thin Edge of the Wedge

US Renewable Fuels Association Makes a Case for E12 on the way to E15

Engine and boat builders should be aware that the American Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) is making a powerful case for E12 gasoline and the effects of increased ethanol in fuels used by boats is a significant concern.

Currently, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is considering a formal waiver request from the ethanol industry to allow for the blending of up to 15% ethanol in a gallon of gasoline. The RFA strongly believes that both the science and existing statute compel EPA to approve this waiver. Under the law, however, EPA has 270 days to consider the request. The clock is running and a decision is due on December 1, 2009.

In the United States however, the RFA is promoting the idea that fuel suppliers can immediately take steps to increase ethanol use.

Their reasoning is that the EPA has authority to define E12 (12% ethanol/88% gasoline) blends as “ substantially similar” to fuels used in certified motor vehicles.

The basis for this conclusion is that the weight percentage of oxygen that EPA allows in oxygenated gasoline actually equates to an oxygen percentage that would be present in 12% ethanol blends. Ethanol as a fuel

additive is an oxygenate. Including ethanol raises the oxygen content of gasoline, causing for a cleaner, more complete combustion of gasoline in vehicles with closed fuel tanks and systems.

The fuel systems in boats are open to ventilation and adding 2% more ethanol will just increase the absorption of water from the surrounding air, accelerating the process of phase separation.

“We need not wait until EPA decides on the formal E15 waiver request to increase the amount of ethanol we use,” said RFA President Bob Dinneen. “This interim and legally supported step of approving E12 blends would provide an immediate boost to America’s ethanol producers and provide gasoline marketers the flexibility they need to meet the requirements of the Renewable Fuels Standard and capitalize on the cost savings associated with increased ethanol blending. “