Fuel Modifactions

[Chuck Feldman]

Have any of you ever recovered fuel by removing the Castor oil? Have any of you distilled the alcohols out of the fuel which would leave you with only the oil? If you fuel with 25% oil 10% nitro how much menthanol can you add to blend down the oil to get 20% oil? What would the nitro % be if you did this? Why am I asking this? I have 2 gallons of 10% nitro with 25% Castor oil. I do not want to run this fuel any longer even in a fox 35. That is why I am asking. I might put a gallon of this fuel on the hot plate and heat it up. With a sealed lid and a tube going through a pan of water which is cooled with ice I should be able to recover the alcohol and the oil will be left in the heated pot. That done I can recover the Castor and the alcohol. Then I can re-blend the oil with synthetic and have the blend that I want. As far as the nitro it should still be at 10% so I can add nitro or methanol and get the nitro content that I want.   

[Louis Keller, Jr.]

THIS SITE MAY HELP WITH CALCULATIONS.

http://www.nitrorc.com/fuelws/oilonly.asp

[Rob Killick]

Chuck ,

For saftety's sake heat the fuel can in a container of water , like a double boiler .

We don't want you to catch fire !

Maybe use a meat thermometer to check the temperature ?

Just a thought ...

Good luck ,

Rob K

[Garf]

Use the fuel as an additive to straight synthetic oiled fuel. There is a lot of that out there now.

[Andrew Tinsley]

Please don't even think about doing what you suggest! I hate to think of the potential explosion hazard! Unless you are an industrial chemist with experience of distillation techniques you really are asking for trouble with a capital T.
I would use the fuel to help you light your barbeque, a much safer use for it.

Regards,

Andrew.

[Russell Shaffer]

Mixing it 50/50 with straight synthetic fuel would give a much less oily mess.   Too fast burning to use for charcoal starter, but it would have a unique odor. 

[Steve Helmick]

I would consult with a local moonshiner. It will be a lot safer to either dilute it with 10-18 or just swap it off to somebody who can use it as-is. 

[Tim Wescott]

Distilling anything with methanol isn't worth the fire risk.

Ethanol, yes, but only if you're going to drink it.

Do you want fuel with a mix of Castor and synthetic?  How much of each?

[GregArdill]

Chuck,

I hope you're not seriously considering condensing your fuel. You could end up as the next man on the moon.

Surely it would be simpler to work out what fuel mix you want to make it into and do the maths.

It's not that difficult. Certainly safer than possibly ending up a burns victim!

Regards

G

[Chuck Feldman]

Guys,

I do understand distillation so fear not. I am thinking of putting a pint of fuel in the freezer over night and see if the Castor freezes or separates. The other thing is I can add 20% synthetic oil and that would take care of the oil then I could add 70% methanol and that would bring the fuel close to what I want. The nitro would be less but I could add it to get the power that I want.  What do you think?

[Tim Wescott]

I'm starting to play with mixing my own fuel.  I can get Methanol easily thanks to a club member who also drag races.  Nitromethane is hard to come by -- it is, apparently, on the list of handy things to use to make ANFO-type explosives, so the hazmat fees are through the roof.

The cheapest way that I found to mix my own fuel is to buy the castor from Fox, buy the methanol from my friend in the club, and buy my nitro from my local hobby shop in the form of high-nitro car or heli fuel.

It makes the math harder, but I'm saving about $2/gallon on fuel.

[Howard Rush]

Tim, I have leftover fuel fixings I can deliver to you at the Stuntathon. 

[Tim Wescott]

Tim, I have leftover fuel fixings I can deliver to you at the Stuntathon. 

I'll take em', with thanks.

[GregArdill]

Guys,

The other thing is I can add 20% synthetic oil and that would take care of the oil then I could add 70% methanol and that would bring the fuel close to what I want. The nitro would be less but I could add it to get the power that I want.  What do you think?

Chuck,

That's a far better solution to your situation.

The maths is simple really, determine what mix you want - subtract the fuel you have & add the difference to get your "perfect" blend.

It's worth determining first whether the original mix was mix by volume (best) or by weight (cheapest for the manufacturer). Use the same and you'll end up with what you're after.

Good Luck & don't blow yourself up! We need all the control liners we can get!

Regards

Greg