{"id":1412,"date":"2021-09-14T08:54:00","date_gmt":"2021-09-14T12:54:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.sahilnawab.com\/blog\/?p=1412"},"modified":"2021-09-13T00:10:37","modified_gmt":"2021-09-13T04:10:37","slug":"its-not-over-yet-leaded-fuel-is-here-to-stay","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.sahilnawab.com\/blog\/its-not-over-yet-leaded-fuel-is-here-to-stay\/","title":{"rendered":"It\u2019s not over yet, leaded fuel is here to stay"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Beyond the locked gate of the airport, the plane waits patiently out on the tarmac. It\u2019s thirsty for fuel. I punch in the code and push open the chain-link door as it squeals on its tired hinges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Filling up fuel in your car is typically not a fun activity. But, somehow, it\u2019s different with a plane. Perhaps it\u2019s the fact that the tank is just the inside of the wing \u2014 you can see (and hear) quite clearly as the fuel laps up against the edges. I watch the blue tinged fuel slowly creep its way up to the top. As it nears, I slowly let up on the pressure of the filler handle and let the fuel slow to trickle. As the vapors vent, I smell the distinct odor of AvGas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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N8831N at Mansfield Municipal Airport, 1B9 in December 2020<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Climbing under the wing and bracing myself against the wheel, I drain the fuel sump to check for contaminants. I lift up the fuel inspector to the sunlight to check for the characteristic blue tint of the fuel. In the old days, some would simply dump the 50-odd mL of fuel on the ground, but today, conscious of the environment and the rising cost of fuel, most pour it back into their tank, including myself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During this whole process, a few might even don protective rubber gloves as to avoid touching the fuel. After all, unlike automative gasoline, AvGas \u2014 or more appropriately 100 Low Lead (100LL) \u2014 is still contains trace amounts of tetraethyl-lead. The additive serves several purposes, including preventing engine knock and detonation as well as for lubrication of valves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This situation plays out every day at nearly all airports in the United States and the rest of the world. Yet, according to the United Nations Environment Programme in their August 30 press release, \u201cthe era of leaded petrol is over.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As others have pointed out<\/a>, that\u2019s not exactly the case. The UN EP announced that leaded fuel was finally phased out in Algeria, one of the last holdouts for automotive gasoline. However, leaded fuel in the form of 100LL AvGas is ever-present, exhausted by the light planes flying in the skies directly overhead. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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