SFA International

Specialty Fuel Additives for Hydrocarbon Fuels

Frequently Asked Questions

How do metal-containing combustion catalysts work?

Several metals speed up the combustion process yielding more complete burning of the fuel.  As fuel is burned and work is performed, the quench temperature is reached and combustion ceases.  This is much like blowing on a candle and extinguishing the flame with cool air (relative to the flame temperature).  Metals gain energy during the combustion process and release that energy as the system cools.  That energy reignites the fuel completing the burning process.   

Are some metals better than other metals?

A number of metals can catalyze combustion.  These include iron, manganese, copper, platinum, palladium, barium and calcium.  A way of measuring the effectiveness of these metals in the combustion process is to measure the amount of smoke in the exhaust of a boiler.  The best of these metals is iron which reduces smoke by 50%.

Why does SFA International sell combustion catalysts containing iron and magnesium?

SFA was asked by Westinghouse Corp. to solve a problem with combustion turbines using a fuel containing vanadium and causing excessive particulate matter (smoke) in the exhausts.  SFA treated the fuel with magnesium to alleviate vanadium deposits and corrosion.  Iron was added to the fuel and we immediately saw a reduction of particulate matter from 160 to 60 mg./cubic meter exhaust.  Upon further refinement of the dosing, we found a 90% reduction from 160 to 10 mg./cu. Meter exhaust.  This led to testing in gasoline and Diesel engines.  We found reduction in fuel consumption greater than previously seen with iron.  This led to SFA filing 16 patents that have issued with coverage in 34 countries.

Why does SFA International not sell a solid combustion catalyst?

Several companies sell ferrocene - known chemically as dicyclopentadienyl iron(0) - as a combustion catalyst.  Ferrocene is a crystalline product containing 30% iron by weight.  Ferrocene is a very convenient way to ship an oil-soluble iron compound.  However, it has a problem - very limited solubility in fuels.  When ferrocene in solid form -known as "caplets" or "crumbs" - is added to fuel, significant effort is required to insure that the solid dissolves in the fuel.  Unless that effort is made to dissolve the product in the fuel, the catalyst will not function.  This is one of the reasons for limited and sporadic success with solid forms of catalyst.

All Diesel fuel contains water that accumulates at the bottom of the fuel tank.  Caplets or crumbs added to the tank are more dense than the fuel and settle immediately to the bottom of the tank - and frequently into the water on the bottom of the tank.  They do not dissolve and there is no benefit from the catalyst.

Because of these problems, SFA sells only liquid products for ease of mixing into the fuel.

Why does SFA sell products that treat 1 to 1,000 or 1 to 2,000 parts by volume when other suppliers sell products that treat up to 5,000 parts by volume?

To effectively reduce fuel consumption and exhaust emissions in a reciprocating engine (gasoline or Diesel), 10 parts per million of iron must be added to the fuel.  SFA carefully calculates dosage levels to meet this requirement. 

SFA has products that are much higher in iron concentration - up to 15% iron.  These are recommended only for industrial applications where equipment is available for good dispersion and mixing into the fuel.  SFA has designed lower concentration products with 2 - 3% iron that match fuel density and viscosity and are easier to mix into the fuel.

The key to good performance is good mixing of the product into the fuel.  It cannot work if it is not properly mixed into the fuel.

What is the difference in FuelSpec® 116 and FuelSpec® 117 products?

We discovered in our research work that a lubricity agent combined with the combustion catalyst is much more effective in "Low Emission Diesel" fuels containing less than 15 ppm sulfur.  These are the types of fuel now available at the pump in the U.S. and Canada.  FuelSpec® 117 is FuelSpec® 116 combustion catalyst combined with our FuelSpec® 195 lubricity agent.  We use the guideline 1,000 ppm sulfur in the fuel.  Above that level, we recommend FuelSpec® 116.  Below that level, we recommend FuelSpec® 117. 

What is the significance of the four digits following the product number?

SFA recommends that 10 parts per million of iron must be added to the fuel to get good results.  We use the first two of the last four digits to indicate the iron concentration and the last two to indicate magnesium concentration.  FuelSpec® 117-2505 contains 2.5% iron and 0.5% magnesium.  These numbers allow the user to calculate the correct dosage rate.

What effect does the metal containing catalyst have on engine warranties?

The operator of the engine must use a fuel with specifications in ASTM D 975 Test to meet engine warranties.  The most stringent level of ash in fuel is 100 ppm.  Our combustion catalyst adds 17 ppm ash to the fuel.  Most fuels contain no more than 60 ppm total ash.  This yields about 75 ppm ash total and does not violate the fuel specification. 

SFA has letters from Wärtsilä, Cummins and Caterpillar indicating that the product will not violate their engine warranties.

Will SFA combustion catalysts damage an engine?

If properly added to the fuel at the correct dosage, no.  Excessive dosage combined with poor mixing can lead to filter problems.  There have been no known instances of damage to the internal parts of an engine from using the catalyst.

What range of reduction in fuel consumption can be expected from SFA's combustion catalyst?

We have found that fuel consumption is related to sulfur in the fuel.  An LED fuel (pump gasoline or Diesel) will yield about 4% reduction in fuel consumption with an iron-only catalyst.  Our iron-magnesium combination will yield about 6%.  We have found that combining a lubricity agent will increase that fuel saving to 6% with iron only and 9% with iron and magnesium. 

With high sulfur fuels into the 2 and 3% range, savings can go as high as 14%.

Some catalyst suppliers make claims of fuel savings as high as 20%.  Is that possible?

The effect of the catalyst is to speed up the combustion process and burn the fuel more completely.  Complex calculations on the mass balance of the combustion reaction indicates that no more that 10% of the fuel can be saved based on reduction of smoke, unburned hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide in the exhausts.  With LED and gasoline fuels, this is in the range of 3 - 5%. 

An added effect can be seen by complete burning the fuel at the maximum angle of the crankshaft in the power cycle leading to more power from the same amount of fuel.  This justifies the higher fuel savings observed.

Higher savings up to 20% are not possible based on mass balance, physics, thermodynamics and reaction kinetics.

What emissions are reduced with SFA's combustion catalysts?

We see reductions in two emissions with use of the catalyst; smoke or particulate matter and NOx.  Work by Hyundai and Westinghouse have demonstrated a reduction in particulate matter of up to 90% in combustion turbines.  Similar reductions have been seen in Diesel and gasoline engines.

The catalyst has a significant effect on reducing NOx.  Iron catalysts will reduce NOx by up to 30%.  We have seen 75% reduction under test laboratory conditions with our patented iron-magnesium catalyst.  This includes a range of fuels from residual oil to gasoline.