Office of Research and Development Publications

Ferreting Out the Identity of Gasoline Additives

Citation:

WEAVER, J. W. AND D. L. SPIDLE. Ferreting Out the Identity of Gasoline Additives. IN: L.U.S.T.Line, New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission, Lowell, MA66:12-13, (2010).

Impact/Purpose:

see description

Description:

Chemical dispersing agents for oil spills, hydraulic fracturing fluids for natural-gas production, and chemicals serving as gasoline additives share a common characteristic—for the most part, they are proprietary compounds. In the name of competitive advantage, companies carefully guard the chemical recipes of these products and are allowed by the federal government to claim confidential business information (CBI) status for them. As a consequence, there could be additives in released fuels that cause future heartburn for the L.U.S.T. program. The word could must be emphasized because, for a compound to cause a problem, it would have to be present in sufficient concentration in the fuel, have high enough water solubility to enter an aquifer, have low enough degradation to persist, and be toxic at the concentration where a receptor would encounter it. Although these criteria present a high bar to pass, we can look to the lead scavenger ethylene dibromide (EDB) as a past example of an additive that is indeed a continuing problem (see L.U.S.T.Line #47).

URLs/Downloads:

WEAVER 10 151_LL #66 WEAVER GASOLINE ADDITIVES.PDF  (PDF, NA pp,  28  KB,  about PDF)

L.U.S.T.Line   Exit EPA's Web Site

Record Details:

Record Type:DOCUMENT( NEWSLETTER ARTICLE)
Product Published Date:12/01/2010
Record Last Revised:01/24/2011
OMB Category:Other
Record ID: 231665