[Les the Scientist (OP)]

http://pesn.com/2005/03/17/6900069_Acetone/ [nofollow]

Total nonsense or not ??

[ukmicky]

People have been putting acetone in fuel for years as an easy way to gain a significant bhp increase. its supposed to be safe and one of the best additives to use. It basically increases the octane level of the fuel. if i were to use it i would do a bit of research on how much to use and to see what pro's and cons it may or may not have. as the wife keeps tells me, most things have a good side and bad side.  but yeah it can be used.
but be carefull.[]

Michael                                      

[Andrew K Fletcher]

Very easy to test

And even easier to understand how it can work. I have approached a friend with a haulage business and will explain it to him, hopefully he will try it and give us a report back on fuel consumption on long journeys which he already knows the fuel consumption for.

Thanks for this post.

"The explanation requiring the fewest assumptions is most likely to be correct."
K.I.S. "Keep it simple!"

[daveshorts]

It might work, although I would have thought it would have more of an effect on older engines than new ones, as in the last few years engine manufactureres have started to understand the way fuel behaves in the cylinder so have probably been dealing with the problem in a different way.

One thing to be careful of... Acetone + Plastic -> horrible white mess, so be very careful if you have any plastic parts on your fuel system...

[Andrew K Fletcher]

Good point Dave

"The explanation requiring the fewest assumptions is most likely to be correct."
K.I.S. "Keep it simple!"

[DoctorBeaver]

4yo child + nail varnish + my hi-fi = smack round the head

[DoctorBeaver]

Doesn't nail varnish remover contain acetone?

[daveshorts]

Traditional stuff does, although I think some types don't, it may depend on the concentration, definitely test it on a part of the hi-fi that is not very obvious first...

[DoctorBeaver]

Dave - it was years ago that happened. The 4yo concerned is now in her 30s.

[rosy]

Of course, not all plastics make a revolting white mess with acetone... it's kept in plastic wash-bottles in most labs. But most, yes.
Many nail varnish removers (those marked "acetone free"!) don't contain acetone, because it's beastly stuff and will dry out the skin/cuticles round the nails. However, as the reason for acetone's effectiveness in nail polish removal is basically its plastic-melting tendancies, so as Dave says definitely don't start on the front..

[DoctorBeaver]

quote:Many nail varnish removers (those marked "acetone free"!) don't contain acetone

Really? []

[Les the Scientist (OP)]

Instead of Acetone they use Ethyl Acetate, smells nicer too.

[syhprum]

Increasing the octane rating of the fuel will not automatically lead to more BHP often the reverse.
Higher octane fuel enables you to increase the expansion ratio (commonly called the compression ratio) without pre-ignition if the engine is not knocking higher octane will reduce the BHP.
Modern engines have subtle electronics that detect knocking and retard the timing to control it, my BMW will produce slightly more power if I use 97 octane instead of 95 but this would only apply to high performance engines.

[lightarrow]

Increasing the octane rating of the fuel will not automatically lead to more BHP often the reverse.
Higher octane fuel enables you to increase the expansion ratio (commonly called the compression ratio) without pre-ignition if the engine is not knocking higher octane will reduce the BHP.
Modern engines have subtle electronics that detect knocking and retard the timing to control it, my BMW will produce slightly more power if I use 97 octane instead of 95 but this would only apply to high performance engines.

You have resumed quite an old thread isnt'it?

However the document in the OP doesn't talk about octane rating at all, but about increasing fuel evaporation and decreasing surface tension and viscosity. Anyway, I don't believe much of what it says about acetone not being corrosive, I don't believe in so much increase of mileage, and many other things it says.

I know that acetone, in very small amounts, is a useful additive for diesels (diesel fuel has an higher average boiling point, viscosity and surface tension than petrol).

[syhprum]

I have been without an internet connection for two months and was desperate for a subject I well understand that I could comment on!

[lightarrow]

I have been without an internet connection for two months and was desperate for a subject I well understand that I could comment on!

Welcome back, then syhprum!
(By, the way, I have always wondered what "syhprum" means).