Legacy Vehicle Fuel System Testing with Intermediate Ethanol Blends

Research output: NRELTechnical Report

Abstract

The effects of E10 and E 17 on legacy fuel system components from three common mid-1990s vintage vehicle models (Ford, GM, and Toyota) were studied. The fuel systems comprised a fuel sending unit with pump, a fuel rail and integrated pressure regulator, and the fuel injectors. The fuel system components were characterized and then installed and tested in sample aging test rigs to simulate theexposure and operation of the fuel system components in an operating vehicle. The fuel injectors were cycled with varying pulse widths during pump operation. Operational performance, such as fuel flow and pressure, was monitored during the aging tests. Both of the Toyota fuel pumps demonstrated some degradation in performance during testing. Six injectors were tested in each aging rig. The Fordand GM injectors showed little change over the aging tests. Overall, based on the results of both the fuel pump testing and the fuel injector testing, no major failures were observed that could be attributed to E17 exposure. The unknown fuel component histories add a large uncertainty to the aging tests. Acquiring fuel system components from operational legacy vehicles would reduce theuncertainty.
Original languageAmerican English
Number of pages137
DOIs
StatePublished - 2012

NREL Publication Number

  • NREL/TP-5400-53606

Keywords

  • E10
  • E17
  • fuel systems
  • testing
  • vintage components

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Legacy Vehicle Fuel System Testing with Intermediate Ethanol Blends'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this