Kerosene burns cleanly in most diesel engines and causes no harm. As a result, kerosene burns cooler than diesel and lacks the lubricating additives found in diesel. This means that if you use kerosene in your diesel engine, it will place a strain on your injector pump unless you use the proper lubrication.
What happens when you mix kerosene and diesel?
If you go about on the internet, you can come across a forum question like this:
In most cases, the responses are mixed. ‘Don’t worry, you’ll be OK,’ said half of the people. “Watch out for ________,” the other half will warn.
Regular diesel is referred to as #2 diesel fuel oil, whereas kerosene is referred to as #1 diesel fuel oil. Some people believe it is similar enough to conventional (#2) diesel fuel that they may try to use it interchangeably. What would motivate them to do so, and what problems may they face?
What Makes Kerosene What It Is
The qualities of kerosene determine what happens when it is burned. Because kerosene is a lighter diesel oil than #2, it is referred to as #1 diesel. Because of its smaller weight, it has somewhat less energy – roughly 135,000 BTU per gallon vs. 139,000 BTU for #2.
Aromatic compounds are often concentrated in #2 and heavier diesel fuel oils; kerosene does not have extremely significant levels of them. This is one of the reasons why #2 diesel burns drier and with less lubricity than kerosene.
Drier burn
The most prevalent worry is kerosene’s dry burn, which can harm gasoline pumps. In comparison to #2 diesel, kerosene has extremely little lubricity. When running on kerosene, gasoline pumps without lubricity suffer a lot of wear and may burn out. Additional wearable pieces, such as rings, gaskets, and valves, are mentioned by some. Adding some automatic transmission fluid to the kerosene is a simple cure for this. In this case, 2-cycle oil can also be used.
Hotter burn?
Some will argue that kerosene burns hotter than #2 diesel, resulting in worries about rings being burned out. Others argue that because kerosene has a lower energy value, it will not burn at a higher temperature.
The fact that kerosene has less total energy than #2 is undeniable. However, having less total energy simply means that a gallon of kerosene produces less total heat than a gallon of standard on-road diesel.
Kerosene has a lower viscosity than gasoline, which allows it to burn at a higher temperature in an engine.
Cutting Diesel with Kerosene
Kerosene can be combined with diesel fuel for a few advantages. Kerosene is particularly beneficial in the winter for modifying the cold weather handling temperatures of diesel fuel. The rule of thumb is that adding ten percent kerosene to a diesel fuel blend lowers the cold filter plugging point by five degrees. It may be more cost effective to use kerosene as a mixer than than a cold flow polymer in extremely cold climates.
To reduce emissions, kerosene and #2 are mixed together. According to the theory, kerosene “burns cleaner” than #2, resulting in lesser pollutants.
How much kerosene do I mix with diesel?
To improve winter fuel operation, kerosene is combined with diesel fuel. Depending on the severity of the cold weather, kerosene blended diesel fuel is mixed in ratios ranging from 80 parts diesel to 20 parts kerosene to a maximum of 50 parts to 50 parts combination. While kerosene has a similar igniting quality to #2 diesel fuel, it is too thin to be used as a standalone engine fuel and lacks the lubricating properties of heavier #2 diesel. The vehicle owner or operator can combine kerosene with diesel fuel.
What fuels can a diesel engine run on?
My car can run on diesel (the fossil fuel version), SVO (straight vegetable oil), biodiesel (modified SVO), or any mix of the three. That’s not unusual: anything with a diesel engine can run on diesel, SVO, or biodiesel, including planes, boats, and motorcycles. SVO is a broad word that encompasses a variety of materials other than vegetable oil, such as animal fats (chicken, tallow, lard, and omega-3 fatty acid leftovers from fish oil) and algae. SVO can come from either virgin feedstock (crops planted expressly for fuel) or recycled feedstock (spent cooking oils) (WVO for waste vegetable oil).
Will kerosene keep diesel from gelling?
You get ready to go to work one morning, but your car won’t start. Overnight, your fuel in the tank has solidified. So, what exactly do you do?
For truck drivers, the winter months are more than just a dangerous time when they must drive extra cautiously. In fact, the colder months bring with them a slew of new issues, one of which being diesel fuel gelling. When the temperature of diesel fuel drops, the paraffin that is normally contained in it begins to harden. The wax in liquid form will solidify at 32 degrees, clouding the fuel tank. It will ultimately start to gel at 10-15 degrees and block the tank and fuel filter.
The gel point of diesel is the temperature at which it solidifies and can no longer flow through the fuel lines. The pour point, on the other hand, specifies the temperature at which a fluid begins to harden.
This is the most important one. The diesel fuel in the fuel lines has solidified and clogged the fuel filter. The engine will not start if petrol cannot enter through the fuel filter.
Some truck drivers have told us about filling up with diesel fuel in the winter and neglecting to add anti-gel treatment. When they get on the road, they discover that their vehicle is at best sluggish, and that it can’t even accelerate correctly. When accelerating, a mismatch between the intended fuel rail pressure and the actual rail pressure is detected. Because of the gelling of the diesel fuel, the required pressure frequently jumps while the actual pressure remains low, preventing the fuel from getting where it should go.
Truckers frequently mix #1 diesel, which has a kerosene blend, with diesel #2, which is utilized for road applications. Kerosene lowers the plug point temperature of the fuel and reduces its viscosity, reducing the likelihood of diesel gelling even at low temperatures.
Another typical option for diesel fuel gelling is additives and fuel treatments. They function in a similar way to the previous alternative in reducing the production of paraffin crystals. They also help to reduce the fuel’s pour and gel points. For than two decades, AFS products have reliably and affordably protected New England and Mid-Atlantic diesel enthusiasts with its patented cold weather innovations and comprehensive fuel oversight programs.
Our Winter Diesel 2010 Additive, which combines wax modifiers and wax anti-settling chemicals to improve low-temperature operability, is a good example of a fuel treatment. While ensuring fuel economy and emission management, it also provides L10 injector detergency, fuel stabilization, and corrosion inhibition.
Our technical staff is available to discuss any issues you may have about winter operability with you. They can provide advice on best practices and preventative measures that will help you and your customers prepare for whatever the winter brings. Advanced Fuel Solutions can be reached at 978-258-8360 for more information.
Can you run a kerosene heater on diesel?
Number 1 diesel is the most suitable substitute for kerosene. There are a variety of reasons why you would want to utilize diesel. Kerosene, for example, is double – and occasionally three times – the price of diesel. Furthermore, if there are no kerosene merchants nearby, diesel is commonly available and accessible.
However, if you want to use diesel, you must take some care to ensure that the process is safe for both you and the heater. The following are some important pointers to keep in mind:
- Diesel Additive – To guarantee that the diesel burns cleanly and without damaging the wick, you’ll need to add an additive to it. Kerosene, kerosene additive, and isopropyl alcohol are some of the varieties that are advised.
- Number 2 Diesel – This is a more substantial type of fuel, so stay away from it. In the next paragraph, we’ll look at the characteristics that make number 2 diesel such a good choice.
- A good wick – The diesel will help the candle burn faster. It’s critical to find a 100 percent wick that can withstand such a high rate of burning.
You could get up and feed the machine number 1 diesel if you absolutely need your heater to function and you’re out of kerosene. This type of fuel differs from number 2 diesel in that it has qualities comparable to kerosene, such as:
- It doesn’t contain as many aromatic compounds that can be harmful to your health if discharged into the atmosphere.
- It produces roughly 135,000 BTU per gallon, which is less than number 2 diesel but comparable to kerosene power.
- Burns cleaner than #2 diesel, creating less wick damage and releasing energy into the environment at a slower rate.
- When compared to number 2 diesel, it requires less lubricative power to burn, although it still requires more than regular kerosene.
Kerosene heaters are one of the most commonly used heating gadgets in apartments, houses, and rooms. Their popularity has been continuously growing due to their inexpensive operating costs and long-lasting performances. Many kerosene heater owners, on the other hand, have fallen into the trap of just adding any fuel or combustible liquid to it.
Such liquids can generate heat and hence achieve a similar result to kerosene. Continuous use of such compounds, on the other hand, may cause damage to your heater’s internal mechanics. Worse, they could be emitting poisonous particles that are harmful to your health.
What burns cleaner diesel or kerosene?
The most common fuel oil is kerosene, followed by diesel fuel. Diesel has a larger paraffin/wax concentration and produces more BTUs (heat) than kerosene. Kerosene, on the other hand, is frequently utilized at extremely cold temperatures since it does not thicken as easily as diesel. During the winter months, some individuals add a little kerosene to their diesel fuel to reduce the temperature at which it solidifies. Due to the road fees that are added to the price of diesel fuel, kerosene is normally less expensive than diesel. Despite the fact that diesel fuel has more BTUs than kerosene, the latter burns cleaner.
Does kerosene or diesel burn longer?
Because kerosene has a lower viscosity than diesel, it burns hotter. This can assist heat the house, but it can also cause issues if the heater isn’t designed to manage heat that’s hotter than regular heating oil heat. The heat from a kerosene heater may readily heat a standard home in a warm environment if your furnace is suitable for kerosene, according to “The Decatur Daily News.” When diesel is unavailable, kerosene heating oil K-1 is typically utilized; nevertheless, it is more expensive than its diesel cousin. Installing a fuel oil heater also makes it comparable to standard No. 1 heating oil, which is useful if you choose to swap oils later.
Can heating oil be used in a diesel engine?
Heating oil has not been refined and is not intended for use as a vehicle fuel; when used in your tractor, it may smoke or contain pollutants not found in diesel fuel.