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Gold/Mining/Energy : Big Dog's Boom Boom Room
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To: whitepine who wrote (49297)9/15/2005 9:41:31 PM
From: Elroy Jetson  Read Replies (2) of 206138
 
Tetra ethyl lead was discovered in 1854 by a German chemist, but there was no patent for using it in gasoline, and the original patent had long expired.

Ethanol, Benzene and gasoline chemistry patents were part of the reparations package from Germany to pay for WW-I. Ethanol blends in gasoline had long been used in France and Germany.

Here's a brief historical outline.

In 1916 GM purchased DELCO where Charles Kettering had been experimenting with anti-knock compounds. Working with Thomas Midgley, who later invented Freon, Midgley patented a benzene/gasoline blend as an antiknock solution in 1918.

In 1920 the U.S. Navy approved an Ethanol Gasoline blend as their official high compression fuel. In 1921 Midgley demonstrated a modified high compression GM car which used 30% Ethanol gasoline.

In 1921 Thomas Midgley discovered Tetra ethyl lead raised octane and GM contracted DuPont to manufacture it. Standard Oil of New Jersey (Exxon) then created a cheaper way to make the compound and joined the consortium.

In 1923 Thomas Midgley took the year off in Miami to recover from lead poisoning.

In 1924 the general public first learned of Tetra ethyl lead in late October 1924 when half a dozen workers making Tetra ethyl lead at the Standard Oil Company of New Jersey (Exxon) refinery went violently insane and then died.

After additional employee deaths from Tetra ethyl lead, at GM and DuPont, the Standard Oil Company of New Jersey (Exxon) placed leaded gas on the market.

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