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Get ready for the catastrophic DEF shortage.
The DEF Shortage – As Prices Rise, Supply Challenges Continue.
FYI: School Busses also use the DEF.
If you don't know what DEF is: Diesel Exhaust Fluid, If a driver cannot fill both tanks [diesel and DEF], he can only park the truck."
The DEF Shortage – As Prices Rise, Supply Challenges Continue.
Yup! Sometime around 2013 ( IIRC) there was a BIG E.P.A. study report that showed how bad Ethanol is when burned in engines.
To 'Splain it as simply as I can, Alcohol and all it's variants produce much lower BTU's ( Heat) when burned or combusted, that means less power for normal piston engines. To make it work ( I.E. Equal power) you need very high compression ratios, AND, you need More of that fuel to compensate, none of this is very good for normal street driven cars and trucks, they will not last very long. Also, Alcohol really likes high temps, not the normal ambient temps we humans like, the hotter the air going into the engine, the better the alcohol runs.
So, why is this so dirty and bad for the environment? To put it simply, when you supplement alcohol into your fuel, you not only generate less BTU's and less power, you actually need more gas to compensate for that loss of power, which not only produces lower fuel efficiency, but increases the carbon output by a pretty substantial amount. What's worse, the alcohol is corrosive and it's a "Dry" fuel, in that it has ZERO lubricating properties, so it's washing down your cylinders of their micro thin layer of protective oil, which not only increases friction, but also produces far higher internal temps which are far harder to counter. It's especially bad for the fuel system, in that it's corrosive, requiring ether specially coated lines, pumps, filters and such, or stainless steel, which adds to the cost and complexity of the systems. Any one with an older carbureted auto that has ran this blend knows all too well the head aches of having to dissemble and clean the carb after just a few gallons of fuel, not to mention normal rubber fuel lines that were used cannot handle the alcohol blend and will break down and cause leaks which can lead to fires!
Correct me if you guys can find it, but I remember some time after the big E.P.A. report that the Feds were supposed to outlaw the Alcohol blends outright, combined with the serious warranty claims against the auto manufactures who tried to sue the gov and states for forcing the continued use. I know it didn't happen because the feds doubled down and demanded E-85 compliance not too long after, which is essentially the gov mandated blend formula!
Now, ask me how well the D.E.F. fluid is screwing us all over, and leading to serious warranty claims against the manufactures when those systems go wonky, or the fact that we are now required to run the Exhaust Juice or else! It doesn't do anything what the feds promised, and causes serious safety issues and shortened engine life! I had to completely dissemble my DEF system and make it non functional ( But still in place), then basically illegally copy the engine ECU minus the DEF code, and re flash the ECU to run as normal and show the DEF as active and fully functional! It was far cheaper to "Hack" the system and do all that then to replace any one single component in that DEF system should it fail, which it already had, TWICE, to the tune of $1500 per part each time! My Fuel systems on the aircraft both had to be custom made out of stainless steel ( which is SUPER expensive, and very hard to find any shop to make any of it) so I bought the tools and made them my self. The pumps and filters had to be special ordered from an "Automotive" supplier, as no civil aircraft parts supplier will make them and sell them to civilians, only to certified shops or big OEM aero companies! Doesn't matter that i'm Experimental, they don't care! The Gov strikes yet again!
FYI: School Busses also use the DEF.
If you don't know what DEF is: Diesel Exhaust Fluid, If a driver cannot fill both tanks [diesel and DEF], he can only park the truck."
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