gelled up diesel

[Diesel_Boy]

hypothetical question. if i had some diesel fuel in a 5 gallon container, and it gelled up due to cold weather, would it be ok to use it after it "thawed" out? or does the act of gelling somehow deteriorate the diesel in any way? thanks.

 

[cowpie1]

"Gelling Up" is the solidification of the parafin (wax) molecules by bonding together. This begins at the cloud point of diesel and becomes complete at the pour point. Bio, D1, and D2 all have different cloud and pour points.

Once the fuel temp has been allowed to get above the cloud point, it would be fine to use. Mixing in a little additive that controls this process and mixing up the fuel would be beneficial. To answer the point, "can this fuel be used again after it gels", the answer is yes. It does not deteriorate the fuel quality after a gelling process.

 

[DieselPower]

cowpie hit it on the nose. Once it thaw's out it will be fine. Adding a degel additive lowers the temp at which it will gel.

 

[cp1969]

One thing to be aware of is that it won't "thaw out" at the same temperature at which it froze.

Usually you have to get it back up to something like room temperature to get the wax to go back into solution.

 

[Mike_Lipke]

Actually, you would be hard pressed to get it cold enough to look like jello. It can be done, but it will plug your filter and lose power or even stop engine long before it goes to the jello state.
Usually what happens is that the disolved waxes start to turn to particulates, which look like snow actually, and they deposit themselves on the filter surface, blocking flow. Think of those glass scenery things that you shake and snow falls. Thats what it looks like, and it will cause problems til you get it warm again.

 

[RalphVa]

Easiest way to ungel it, if you can't easily or safely heat it, is to add up to 50% kerosene to it. Or add some diesel additive such as Power Service; however, this won't go into solution in gelled fuel without heating.

It's just wax in the fuel that causes it to gel. Wax is just like fuel or is an excellent motor oil as long as it isn't solid. Heat it up, and it's fuel or oil again.

Ralph