Booms, Busts, and Recoveries Message Board

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Strategies & Market Trends : Booms, Busts, and Recoveries

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To: energyplay who wrote (60688)	3/3/2005 8:17:05 PM
From: Maurice Winn	Read Replies (1) of 74559

EP, we ran a fleet of 100% methanol vehicles and also 20% methanol/petrol blends. Yes, vehicles need to be adapted to the fuels. Heating the methanol was an issue. We used an engine coolant-jacketed swirl chamber at the inlet, running the cars on petrol until the coolant had heated sufficiently to evaporate the methanol. In those days [early 1980s] vehicles were much more simple. Now, they'd have to be fully designed for the right fuel. Methanol is a doddle to handle in the distribution system. It's much more safe than petrol [gasoline in American]. If it catches fire for example, it can be squirted with water to extinguish the flames and dilute the methanol so it won't burn. Petrol just floats on water and keeps right on burning in a big fireball. If it gets into a river, it washes away. If a tank leaks, it dilutes with rainfall though wouldn't be good in a water supply. It's very toxic at 25ml LD50 [if I remember rightly - Google would know]. But diluted with ethanol [whisky] as an antidote, the LD50 goes up. Methanol is fun to burn on Guy Fawkes night. Mqurice

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