Diesel Fuel test from different stations

Would you donate to help with testing costs?

  • Total voters
    10
  • Poll closed .
slamhouse

slamhouse

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 3, 2011
Location
Stanwood, WA
TDI
2006 Jetta TDI SE
Im debating whether to test fuels from several different fuel stations like Arco, Shell, 76, Exxon, Some truck stop, Safeway, and others to see what kind of qaulity their diesel fuel is.

The testing results will include the following:
Flash Point
Water and Sediment
Kinematic Viscosity
Sulfur
Cetane Index
API Gravity
Distillation
Thermal Stability
Bacteria, Fungi, Mold
ICP

The laboratory that will be doing the testing is Polaris Laboratories.
http://www.polarislabs.com/fuel-analysis.php

With a gasoline contamination result as well.

i dont know pricing yet but just curious if any of you might consider donating a few dollars to help out with the costs.
 
Last edited:
W

worldwide73

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 12, 2012
Location
Richmond, IN
TDI
99.5 Jetta TDI GLS
The main problem would be that diesel fuel can vary from state to state, so they would only be valid for your area. Station to station would be different as well due to age and condition of tanks etc.
 
slamhouse

slamhouse

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 3, 2011
Location
Stanwood, WA
TDI
2006 Jetta TDI SE
Well, if people dont think that this would be somewhat conclusive of the stations fuel qaulity then i may just abort the idea while its young.

if you get poor qaulity fuel from a high end provider(shell) then you know how well they either maintain their tanks or select the fuel that goes in them.

it might give some insight to the hpfp failures as well...
 
UTAH

UTAH

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 17, 2001
Location
Salt Lake City/Las Vegas
TDI
2012 A3 TDI/DSG
worldwide73 said:
The main problem would be that diesel fuel can vary from state to state, so they would only be valid for your area. Station to station would be different as well due to age and condition of tanks etc.
Click to expand...
I agree.

The proposed effort is commendable, slamhouse. And, the results would definitely be interesting to see. But, having said that, I would not see a connection to the quality of fuel available in my area and stations.

Bill
 
T

tdiatlast

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jan 21, 2009
Location
Fort Worth, Texas
TDI
2009 Sportwagen (boughtback); 2014 Passat TDI SEL (boughtback)
Great idea, Slamhouse, but sadly, there are way too many variables. I don't think the analysis can account for the changes in fuel that can occur between the fuel distribution point (the terminal of the pipeline) and the end user (fuel station).
 
T

tditom

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Sep 5, 2001
Location
Jackson, MI
TDI
formerly: 2001 Golf GL, '97 Passat (RIP) '98 NB, '05 B5 sedan
x3 on including lubricity. Nothing is more important than this attribute.
 
IFRCFI

IFRCFI

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 4, 2010
Location
Winchester, VA
TDI
2013 Touareg TDI Lux
No value. You're better off picking a retailer based on bathroom cleanliness, quality of coffee, and availability of paper towels and clean windshield wash.

Contamination and lubricity are all over the map. I don't buy the "premium" brand BS. Pure marketing. Your best defense is making sure the hose is connected to the pump labeled DIESEL.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
slamhouse

slamhouse

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 3, 2011
Location
Stanwood, WA
TDI
2006 Jetta TDI SE
Seems like nobody likes the idea, so ill let it lie... i may just test a station or two for my own records so i know whats going into my rank. But i wont spend my money on something nobody wants :)
 
C

cardinarky

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 26, 2002
Location
arkansas
TDI
NB 99 White
There is going to be no dramatic
change in lubricity but I would really like to see if anyone is making an attempt at meeting the astm spec.
 
dweisel

dweisel

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jul 28, 2006
Location
Wheeling, West Virginia
TDI
dweisel isn't diesel anymore!
slamhouse said:
It would be interesting but wuthout any financial support, i cant do the tests...
Click to expand...
Testing your fuel only benifits you for that particular batch of fuel. Unless you are going to have your own 500 to 1000 gallon fuel tank to refuel your vehicle,fuel test are a waste of $. The only need to test fuel would be if you were to have a hpfp failure. In that case its better to call in the state regulatory agency for fuel testing.

Below is a typical fuel analysis by a state agency. Pretty extensive analysis.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Certificate of Analysis

Page 1 of 1
Vessel / Shore Tank :
Product :
Client Reference :​
Terminal / Port / Office :
Job ID :
Sample Details :
Comments :​
IAC
IAC​
​
​
​
Analysis performed by alternative IAC laboratory.​

For Inspectorate:
Operations Supervisor​
ASTM D4530 Carbon Residue, 10% Btm , % (m/m) <0.1 0.35 Max.
ASTM D130 Copper Corrosion at 50°C (122°F) for 3h 1a 3 Max.
ASTM D6371 Cold Filter Plugging Point , ° C / ° F -11 / 12 Report
Sample Temperature , ° C 23
Vortex Observance No P and W No Pand W
Visual Observance C and B C and B
ASTM D4176 Proc. 1 Pass / Fail Pass Pass
ASTM D482 Ash Content , mass % <0.001 0.01 Max.
ASTM D4737 Proc. A Calculated Cetane Index 44.9 40.0 Min.
ASTM D976 Calculated Cetane Index 45.4 40.0 Min.
Endpoint , ° F 677.8
90% Recovered , ° F 636.4 539.6 - 640.4
50% Recovered , ° F 524.1
10% Recovered , ° F 428.7
ASTM D86 Initial Boiling Point , ° F 327.0
ASTM D6079 Lubricity, Wear Scar Diameter , um 180 520 Max.
ASTM D93 Proc. A Flash Point , ° C <40 52.0 Min.
ASTM D7039 Sulfur Content , ppm (mg/kg) 7.5 15 Max.
ASTM D2709 Water and Sediment , % (v/v) 0.005 0.05 Max.
ASTM D6304 Proc. A Water Content , ppm (mg/kg) 109 Report​
Specification​
ASTM D7371 Biodiesel , vol % 4.17 Report​
Sample Number​
Method​
​
​
​
Test
AF02232012-1​

2012-028-00054-027​
Result​
Product does not meet specification for Flash Point.
Sample Submitted By :
Analysis Performed By :
Date Sampled :
Date Reported :
Submission ID :​
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