(50c) Compatibility Studies of Metals and Elastomeric Seals in Contact with Biofuels 3rd Generation

Biofuels and biofuel additives of the third generation are currently being developed. While progress is being made on the synthetic branch, it is highly necessary to gauge their impact on common construction materials. With a set of typical components of all three groups (biofuel components, metals, elastomers), compatibility studies are performed. The results are interpreted along structural considerations. The metals are stable with respect to the biofuels, whereas after ca. 1000 hours, the elastomeric seals display swelling, carbon black leaching and quite puzzling stability behavior. The latter is in good agreement with basic chemical considerations, viz. the polarity and the chemical interaction potential. The implications for possible implementations in cars etc. are discussed.

This work was performed as part of the Cluster of Excellence "Tailor-Made Fuels from Biomass", which is funded by the Excellence Initiative by the German federal and state governments to promote science and research at German universities.