Esso Synergy Supreme 99+ unleaded

[astonman]

Its great to see the theoretical increase in energy value per unit volume of Ethanol Free petrol, actually decreasing your fuel consumption,as the sensors and " brain", in your modern car feed back to the fueling requirements.
You have effectively compared fuel consumption between Ethanol Free ( esso) and E5 Shell.
Now,!!!!! if we compare E5 with the new E10 spec,on paper the decrease in energy per unit volume of fuel is,,,,,,Much More!
I would not be surprised if your fuel consumption increased,dropping your mpg by 4 or even 6.
Or 10/12mpg less than Ethanol free.This suggests to me that E10 is a Con,and that if the mpg facts were explained to the population,they would be outraged?
Anyway,it certainly shows E10 is definitely Not TVR compatible and ideally you should avoid E5 as well.In my humble opinion of course

Edited by astonman on Friday 16th July 00:12

Edited by astonman on Friday 16th July 00:16

[frontfloater]

Esso have just sent me this further information, which sadly seems to confirm that they will not be rolling out ethanol-free fuel to the "missing" areas :

" In certain regions of the UK, fuel terminals that are owned and operated by third parties may choose to blend ethanol in UL97 or UL99 grades in order to meet their own biofuel obligations.

In those regions it makes sense for us to source fuel from the third party terminals, rather than transport fuel hundreds of miles from our own terminals. Our own special blend of additives is added to the fuel to ensure it performs to Esso’s high standards, but it would not be practical or economic to remove the biofuel content.

Currently, where terminals are wholly owned and operated by Esso, Supreme+ Unleaded grades remain ethanol free. I regret to inform you that service stations in North England are not supplied from our terminals."

Edited by frontfloater on Tuesday 3rd August 15:22

[astonman]

Unfortunately,I'm not surprised,Stanlow currently supplies great swathes of North Wales,and the North West ,all with Ethanol added.
Last time I read anything in the press,they seemed to suggest Stanlow was running at a loss or very meagre profit.So,anything which allows them to simplify production and keep their costs down ,is likely?
They are therefore very unlikely to supply Esso with a " special", zero ethanol base for their supreme unleaded.If ALL the super unleaded outlets using Stanlow decided to go Ethanol free( which makes total sense as more cars go electric) then things moving might improve?

[bobfather]

What about fuel treatments?? Ethanol Shield reports that it protects flexible fuel pipes and resists water absorption

https://www.toolstation.com/b3c-ethanol-shield-fue...

[astonman]

You can't undo what ethanol does by adding something.You just don't want it there to start with.
I really don't see how any additive will solve all the issues ethanol causes .

[bobfather]

astonman said:

You can't undo what ethanol does by adding something.You just don't want it there to start with.
I really don't see how any additive will solve all the issues ethanol causes .

I'm not sure that's true. I agree that eliminating it would be better but as I understand this, ethanol has two issues, firstly it chemically attacks the flexible pipes and secondly it is hygroscopic (absorbs moisture from the atmosphere). If Ethanol Shield coats the inner surface of the pipes to prevent ethanol erosion and it locks onto the ethanol molecules to prevent bonding with water molecules. It must be better than doing nothing. If we eventually end up with little choice, then these treatments may be our only answer. Ethanol Shield has been around for decades, ever since E5 fuel was launched. The original purpose was to prevent pipe damage and water ingress in hand tools and boat engines as they can sit unused for months allowing ethanol to do damage

[astonman]

Umm,well it may well be better than nothing?
The Aston guys are having fuel pump failure on DB7s and Vanquishes using E5, never mind E10.
I have wondered why the fuel companies can't add something that's more calorific to the fuel ,to offset the lower calories of the Ethanol.In theory that would be the easiest thing to fix.
However,any additive may have unforeseen consequences Eg: lowering octane rating,creating soot on burning( affecting lambda sensors and catalysts, generally gumming up the engine), creating more toxic combustion products,being more carcinogenic or mutagenic etc.
If they could make E10 with less downsides,then you would wonder why not?
Probably, ultimately all about cost and profit?

[astonman]

Fuel stabilisers,attempt to prevent phase separation of petroleum ( the upper layer) and ethanol + water ( the lower layer).
You can achieve this by adding More alcohol,Eg methanol ( which is itself an oxidizing agent,causes corrosion), or another alcohol like isopropyl alcohol.Or,you could add a solvent like acetone .
This will stop the fuel separating into two layers and keep it burnable.But it will alter the characteristics of the fuel,Eg octane rating, calorific value etc .
It really isn't the answer,I'm afraid,in my honest opinion.

[WeAreWolves]

Should be ok (Ethanol free) in the Midlands as Esso has a fuel terminal in Birmingham, that is directly supplied by an underground pipeline from the Esso Fawley refinery near Southampton.

Edited by WeAreWolves on Friday 12th November 18:53