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Increased Power Test for Acetone in Acura Comes up NegativeAdded acetone in increasing concentrations to regular non-alcohol fuel in Acura Integra 1992. Power of acceleration dropped slightly with acetone at all concentrations tried, compared to control. Note: Acetone brand used is not "100% pure". (Contains 2% water and other chemicals in smaller quantities, according to Bondo corp.) by Sterling
D. Allan FOUNTAIN GREEN, UTAH, USA IntroductionAs various people have been trying out small concentrations of acetone in
their fuel, many have noted subjectively that they thought their car had more
power than before. Wishing to document and quantify this, I set out on an
experiment to see what acetone does to the power in my Acura Integra 1992.
Some were reporting as well that the improvements with acetone seem to be
dampened in fuel that has alcohol in it.
I later discovered that the fuel that I assumed had alcohol in it did not, as it is no longer considered "winter", and the two gas stations prior to the experiment have not even had alcohol in their fuel all winter. So the differences I noted were actually a function of a difference between Walker fuel and Sinclair fuel (the latter performing better). What I found was that the power increased by a significant amount when going
from Walkers to Sinclair regular fuel. But when I added acetone in various
concentrations to the Sinclair fuel, beginning with 1/4 oz added to 5 gallons,
the power was not as good. There was a clear statistically significant
difference from the Sinclair fuel, and marginally statistically significant
difference from the Walker fuel. Experiment DetailsMaterialsCar: Acura Integra, 1992, with 190,000 miles on it; in good shape. Fuel: Acetone: by Bondo Corp (www.bondo.com) from Checker auto parts store. 32
Oz bottle. ($5.79) MSDS
Sheet available on their website. Syringe: I measured out the acetone using "The MixMizer"
fuel syringe I picked up from the Automotive section at Wal-Mart. Thermometer: attached to hinge of driver's door to read outside temperature. * * * * ProcedureClearing the Fuel In preparation for the experiment, because I had previously ran an acetone
experiment in the fuel, I wanted to dilute out what was there the best I
could. To do this, I ran the tank to near empty three times, added a small
amount of fuel (~1.5 gallons) in-between. I had intended on actually
running the tank dry, having a refill in my trunk, but was recommended against
that because I was told the crud that floats on top of the fuel gets into the
fuel filters when you run a car out of gas. I taped a hard piece of plastic about 1.5 inches thick underneath the
accelerator pedal so as to not stress the engine too much when depressing the
gas pedal and holding it there. The stretch of road was relatively clear
of traffic, with speed limit 55 going to 65. I used the two speed limit
signs as markers. At the start position, I lined up my field of vision
such that the sign was just barely in view out of the corner of my
windshield. I counted to five and then started the stop watch and pressed
the accelerator all the way down. The tires were on pavement, so there was
essentially no skidding. After accelerating with the pedal in the same
position, I stopped the stop watch nearly a mile away, when the next speed limit
sign lined up with the furthest right peak of Mt. Nebo.
The evaporation rate of the acetone from the fuel is not known, but is probably negligible for these experiments run in such a short time after the addition of the acetone. Mathematically each infusion of addition is not a mere addition to the amount added in the last instance, because a fraction of the amount previously added has been burned in the interim. The math is left as an exercise for the ambitious student. I probably could have done it in my math prime in high school. This would make a great AP exam question! * * * * DATADate: April 4, 2005; ~4:30 pm mountain time Standard deviation calculation: Set 1 Set 2 Set 3 Set 4 Set 5 Set 6 Set 7 Set 8 Set 9 Set 10 * * * * ObservationsNotice that in sets 4 - 10, the first of the five runs for each set was significantly slower than the remaining four. I'm guessing that this is because the engine is colder on the first run, and runs hotter thereafter. This did not happen in the first two sets without any acetone, nor in the 3rd set with just 1/4 oz acetone per the 5 gallons. A standard deviation analysis of this point would easily support a statistically significant difference in the first reading, compared to the following four in a run of five in sets 4-10. This suggests that the acetone-fuel mixture is more efficient at higher temperatures. * * * * ConclusionsAverages snapshot with standard deviation According to this data, there is a statistically significant difference between the power performance of the Acura with Walkers vs. Sinclair gas. The car has more power with Sinclair gas. There is not a statistically significant difference between the various acetone runs. They all fall within the standard deviation of one another. However, considering the number of runs with acetone, the SD for the net goes small enough that there is a significant difference between the acetone runs and the Sinclair only and the Walker only runs. The Acura does not have as much power at any of the concentrations of acetone used, as it does with just the Walker gas alone, or the Sinclair gas alone. * * * * DiscussionThis is a power test, not a mileage test, but I would guess that a mileage
test would perform similarly. When I did do a mileage
test with 3.5 oz / 10 gallons, my mileage dropped by 1.1%. It is
ironic that I, as the quasi moderator for this acetone project, would have
negative results, while most everyone else is reporting such positive results. Now that I think about it, the Acura's automatic transmission shifting
signature is a significant determining factor in the run time. Most of the
time it shifted at the same two places rpm-wise. I should have been more
careful to note this on each run, and discard those runs that fell outside of
the normal shift sequence. I did watch the rpms on about 75% of the runs,
and would estimate that it followed the same sequence of rpms-shift about 80% of
the time. A more accurate test would only include those runs in which the
automatic transmission shifts were the same. I would imagine that
something that would drastically alter the fuel performance would also alter the
shift signature, requiring that the tests all be done within the first gear
prior to shifting, in order to eliminate that variable from the experiment.
# # # FeedbackClick here for PES_Acetone discussion feedback on the aboveYour Elevation Could be a FactorComment from phone call (paraphrase): "The influence of 6,000 ft. elevation must be taken into consideration. Ethanol has been proven to be more damaging to engines at higher elevations per same concentration. Google it." * * * * Let's Not Discount "Seat-of-their-pants" scientistsFrom: "jef4ers" <ramj{at}bright{dot}net> Sterling is correct in trying to obtain the most comprehensive results possible from testing. I have several ongoing projects and do not want to provide data unless it is similar to what has been run thru a few rigors. I am a little concerned that there may be a possibility that the Bondo Acetone may not even be true Acetone. As with fuel, occasionally a run will produce an excess of a particular product and the manufacturer will go ahead and label it as several different things. That run of bondo may be some other 'thinner' or solvent. Just a possibility? I am not familiar with the Honda computers or exactly how long it takes for
them to 'learn'. We have run some cars with primitive diagnostic systems that
required running from Cincinnati to Knoxville before the damn thing would 'set'
on hi-way mode. And would hold that excellent economy for quite a few miles when
returned to everyday driving. The newer OBDII and higher are excellent and
coupled with the 'Scan Guage' or similar can provide real time indications. I
can see real time changes even by switching brands of fuel or atmospheric
differences with the modern equipment. BUUUUUT>> I feel that I should point out the human element here. Some of these guys reporting here are so "tuned in" that they can immediately tell if the sound of the exhaust note or vibration or other senses relate to a change in their engine or car. Some mechanics can rebuild by picking up nuts and washers 'BY WEIGHT", yes just by picking them up they can tell the light ones from the heavy ones even though the washers are similar in diameter! We should not discount even seat of the pants feel when testing, even though it is not scientific in nature, it is real world. It is extremely difficult to accurately measure improvement in small engines, ATVs, garden equip. etc. without specific test equipment or hourmeters. Still, rudimentary judgments can be obtained. I wish that I could tell you that the 125cc used .2 less gasoline during a recent test, but I can only tell you that every single small engine is performing 'better than new'. Much better. Some have required readjustment of mix and idle screws. A couple of the Honda engines can now run at least 100 RPM lower idle, relatively smoothly. Please understand that I am not trying to be argumentative, only to suggest looking at all avenues of obtaining if not raw data but then information and personal experiences. Everything has to be taken in to account. Jeff Related Stories
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Page composed by Sterling
D. Allan Apr. 14, 2005 |
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