Originally Posted by
Phydeaux88
Mostly a background in organic and biochemistry that raises little red flags when trying to mix liquids of such disproportionate molecular size and weight.
There are adamant proponents of blending out there. They concoct all sorts of exotic mixtures of VO, #2, gasoline, kerosene, hydraulic fluid, automatic transmission fluid, naphtha. benzene, and etc..
I make the same admonition to all of them. You are gambling the life of your engine on an unproven potentially damaging mixture of fuels to save a few $$. There are other safer ways to achieve the same goal. It's your engine, the choice is yours.
OK, fair enough. Like empiretc pointed out, most of them are starting out with used - versus my NEW - oil, so it is a bit of a different ballgame. It almost sounds like you're trying to give a a "better safe than sorry" sort of warning. One of those "this isn't likely but you need to be aware of the possibility - no matter how remote" kind of legal disclaimers. Am I readng you right on that - or do you think there is a truly significant risk of the oil/diesel separating in a manner that isn't readily discernable (an idea I'll refer to as gradient separation) - or are you only pointing out that it is at least possible?
You mentioned the two fluids having "such disproportionate molecular size and weight" as part of the reason for your concern. I think I have a basic understanding of the role that plays in mixed fluids separating (specific gravity, etc.), but I don't quite understand how they can be so different at the molecular level, and only partially separate. It seems to me that either the molecular sizes and weights are significantly different - and they will separate fairly quickly and distinctly, or the molecular sizes and weights are similar enough that they will remain fairly well mixed.
As I've always understood it any given single-weight petroleum-based oil will also have a fairly large range of variation in molecular sizes (and correspondingly molecular weights), and (disregarding additives) the larger the molecules (carbon chains) the higher the viscocity of the oil. Conversely the smaller the molecules the lower the viscocity. Yet if you mix 30 weight and 90 weight they don't separate to any great degree in any reasonably short period of time. Certainly not in a matter of a few hours. Even if you mix something as low viscocity as gasoline with 90 weight, they still won't separate in a short time. Admittedly the molecules of two petroleum fluids are chemically more similar than a molecule of petroleum and a molecule of vegetable oil - due to the glycerol (glycerine?) chain in the vegetable oil molecule - but in terms of viscocity and molecular size and weight aren't vegetable oil and diesel more closely matched than the example of gasoline and 90 weight? I'm just trying to understand the principles behind your idea about what I'm calling "gradient" separation.
Obviously there is always SOME risk - but such is life. I'm at least taking SOME risk of getting run over every time I step off the sidewalk too, right? Like I said, from reading your posts I've come to respect your opinion, I'm just trying to get a better "feel" for what level of risk you believe there to be.
Also, is there some reason you aren't commenting on the fuel heating system I'm proposing? I'd really appreciate it if you would least give me your opinion on the merit of the concept and/or any potential pitfalls/problems you can foresee with it. So far no one has commented on my proposal - here OR elsewhere. Either it is so well thought out no one can find anything to critcize, or it is so poorly conceived that no one knows where to start...
