determiningthecompositionofgasolines.docVIP

DETERMINING THE COMPOSITION OF GASOLINES USING A GAS CHROMATOGRAPH (Revised: 2-6-96) BACKGROUND INFORMATION TEL and Gasoline Knocking or pinging in internal combustion engines is a complex phenomenon. For example, engine knock can be caused by incorrect compression ratios, preignition of the gasolineair mixture, or flaws in the engine design. These characteristics can disrupt piston speed and travel, and this can cause engine knock. Tetraethyl lead (TEL) Research on engine knock began in the early 1920s. The research suggested that the chemistry associated with the fuel (gasoline) was primarily responsible for engine knock. This led scientists to explore various antiknock” additives that could be combined with the fuel to either reduce or eliminate engine knock. One of the most effective antiknock fuel additives that was discovered was tetraethyl lead (TEL). This compound reduces engine knock because it increases the octane rating (see below) of the gasoline. Even though TEL was known to be extremely toxic, it did not take long before refineries started producing gasoline containing TEL. In May of 1925, fortyfive cases of lead poisoning were discovered among workers at a gasolineproducing pilot plant. This caused the federal government to issue regulations that limited the amount of TEL that could be used in gasoline to 3 mL per gallon. There were some other problems associated with the use of TEL in gasoline, too. For example, the use of gasoline containing TEL caused the accumulation of lead deposits in the engine which decreased engine performance. This problem was eventually solved by adding compounds like ethylene bromide and ethylene chloride to the TELcontaining gasoline. When the gasoline was burned in the engine, the TEL was converted to lead bromide and lead chloride. Lead bromide and lead chloride are sufficiently volatile at engine temperatures that these compounds could easily escape from the cylinders in the exhaust gases. As