A NEW SUBSTITUTE FOR PETROL
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The Satisfactory Results Obtained with Pynol—a Fuel with Great Potentialities.
ANY ATTEMPTS have been made
to produce a fuel which will satisfactorily take the place of petrol or benzole, but until recently these have met with but little success, or wffere successful have not been produced in. quantitieswhich make them of any great value commercially. It is only a fuel which can be produced in. really large quantities, and which can compete with fuels already on the market, beth' as regards price and performance, which is likely to win a place in the esteem of the user ,qf commercial vehicles.
Pynol, a fuel which is the invention of a Frenchman, has been. perfected by German chemists, and is being developed here by a British company, the Oil Supply Corporation, Ltd.-, 54a, Parliament Street, London, S.W..1—who have _acquired the British rights—appears to meet. these requirements, It is a patented combination of light, medium, and heavy hydrocarbons, in Which the blendingof the constituents is so well achieved that anaylists have not yet succeeded in detecting them individually, or their relative quantities: In samples Which we tested the colour -was strawyellow, but this is not important as it varies according -to..the ingredients, and may be almost black. Its basis is gas oil, fuel oil, or other heavy hydrocarbon blended with petrol (alcohol or benzoate can be substituted), ether, and something else. The process is so car
ried out that the ether is prevented from evaporating and will -remain in the mixture indefinitely.
The new fuel is slightly oleaginous, and its faint odour of ether is-not disagreeable. The specific gravity is about .800, and it has been reported as being free from coke value or ash content. The sulphur content is 0.14 per cent., and its calorific value is approximately the same as petrol, .samples tested giving 19,332 B.T.U. Tests made by well-known concerns running commercial vehicles, mid also by ourselves, have shown that the fuel can do everything expected from petrol or benzale, or mixtures of these two fuels, but with a marked increase in the distance travelled for a given quantity, improved acce1eration, and greater power. Bench tests have
mdiriled that the power constantly increases after the point where the petrol power curve begins to drop, and this in spite of the fact that Pynol is a comparatively slolv-burning fuel. The last-named property allows for a considerable advance in the ignition without pinking, and, if required, compression can also be increased.
The oily nature of the fuel allows it to act. partly as a lubricant, affording the advantages of upper cylinder lubrication. Another feature is that it does not dilute the oil in the sump. The exhaust is very slight and indistinguishable from that obtained -from petrol, and the fuel can be successfully supplied to the carburetter" through an Autovac instrument.
The following results of tests on various vehicles will he of interest ; they were made be well-known users of commercial vehicles, but at present we are not permitted to divulge their names :— 30-cwt. van ... m.p.g. on Pyeol 1L8 m.p.g. on-petrol 10.8 Percentage increase for Pynol, 3-ton lorry ... mpg. on Ppm] 10.65 m.p.g. on petrol 10.2 Percentage inerease, 2.15.
4-ton van m.p.g. on Pynol 8 m.p.g. on petrol 6.6 Percentage increaso,'21.
Tests carried out by our associated journal The Motor show that the decrease-in fuel consumption of the lighter vehicles varies .between 12 per cent. and 24 per cent.
The British company have purchased a large freehold site on the Medway for the installation of an initial plant capAle of producing 20 million gallons per year, and room for expansion for an output ten times as great. When this plant is in operation supplies will be delivered first' to the big commercial users, the price depending upon the grade, which will vary from aviation spirit to fuels suitable for motorbus and
agriinotor work. • Large users are invited to Communicate with the company.