(JAXAshby) wrote in message ...
Alcohols are in fact added to many common gasolines to boost octane
rating.

no since 1930's hot rod engine. from then on until the mid 50's, benzene was
used by hot rodders. late 40's to early 60's AV/GAS was used for those engines
needing unusually high octane rated fuel. Mid 60's on to mid 70's the gas
companies sold the hot rodder's fuel. By the mid 70's, insurance company rates
killed the need for high octane rated fuel.

You are focusing only on high octane rated "hot rod" fuel, never
mentioned tetra-ethyl lead and missed even the distinction between
regular and premium gasoline.

Ethanol has tax incentives that can make it advantageous as an octane
booster even when oxygenation is not the primary goal.

%mod%

You are focusing only on high octane rated "hot rod" fuel, never
mentioned tetra-ethyl lead

the discussion was regarding alcohol.

tetra-ethyl lead came about from reaseach done by General Motors in 1920 on
ways to improve the quality of gasoline ("normal" octane of the times were
about 65, though 100 octane gasoline was produced -- at huge expense -- for WW1
aircraft engines). Several compounds were found to be useful increasing
"octane rating" of gasoline without super-expense refining. The very best of
those compounds was tetra-ethyl lead. The second best -- by some distance --
was a chemical still commonly used by farmers to reduce fungus growth on their
crops [sorry I don't recall the name]. the GM vice-president in charge of the
reasearch project left GM at project's end to form The Ethyl Corporation
(apparently with GM's blessing). This was all reported in The Petroleum
Institute of America Journal [Apr/May ? 1921?], an original copy of which I
read in 1981. Find a copy and read it if you wish.

Ethanol has tax incentives that can make it advantageous as an octane
booster even when oxygenation is not the primary goal.

a commonly used farm fungicide -- available in 1981 for $70 for a 55-gallon
drum, plus shipping, quantity one -- works far better on an ounce by ounce
basis. I seem recall GM's research indicated that 1 ounce of that fungicide
increased the octane rating of a gallon of gasoline by about 5 points.