The unleaded issue

["Brian A.Tink" <batink@domain.elided>]

[brian's note included an msword document as an attachment. posting such
things is never a good idea; included in this posting is the text version
of the article, but the ms word document has been clipped out -- rpw]

Greeting from Canberra where the weather today is lousy, cold, wet and good
day to stay inside, to say the least.

Over this newsgroup from time to time, there have been many articles
regarding the use of unleaded Fuel.  While I accept the fact that most of
us are concerned about the effects UL fuel has on our cars, hence the fact
that all the "talk" has been about the wear and tear, particularly in Value
seat problems, it is a concern to me, and should be a concern to many
others, that there is never a mention of the health issues.  As most of you
know, I have a health problem and it concerns me that one never hears any
mention of health apart from the comments on how unhealthy leaded fuel is. 

Recently Mike Wattam provided me with a number of published articles
(approximately 20) regarding UL fuel, and every one of them concerns
themselves with either the mechanical effects on older cars or how rosey
the environment is going to be.

As we all know, if one takes out lead from fuel then something has to be
added to maintain the octane rating, this is why benzene and other
carcinogens, commonly known as aromatics (that is nice word to pretty up
the nasty facts) have been added.  Of the twenty articles Mike supplied
only one recognizes the health issues and makes a one line statement
"notably the benzenes, which are under suspicion of being carcinogens".
Under suspicion?? It is a well known fact that they rate among the greate=
st
"nasties" known to mankind.

The sad fact is that here in Australia, and I suspect in many parts of th=
e
world governments are encouraging, or forcing, owners of older cars to
convert to unleaded without the inclusion of Catalytic converters.

When one hears stories that several years ago, the Belgiums linked an
increase in Leukemia cases to the increase us of UL fuel, and that the
British House of Commons held an inquiry and expressed concerns about
unleaded and commented that they saw a need to have pre-heated catalytic
Converters, and one must ask why in Australia and I believe in the UK the=
re
is a sudden and unexplained increase in Asthma cases, one gets concerned =
as
to what are the ramification 10 or 20 years down the track.=20

I know what is like to live with the question of cancer and it something
that I would not wish anyone to have to live with, but is that the way we
are going?

For those whose have difficulties in handling attached files, below I hav=
e
included an article which appeared in a local suburban newspaper back in
August of 1994.   It was hidden away on page 52 and never published as an
article of concern in the daily papers. The writer is member of the Rolls
Royce Club here in Canberra.=20

I have also attached the article as a word document.

Keep staggering   brian

CLEANING UP VEHICLE EMISSIONS IN THE FACE OF LEADED PETROL
By St. John Herbert

The early car engine had a very low compression ratio and the reason for
this was the available low-grade fuel.

Once the compression started to go past five to one, pre-ignition (or
=93knocking=94) became a problem.  In the early 1920=92s, Thomas Midgie
discovered that platinum, silver and lead stopped =93knocking=94 in car e=
ngines.

With further research, Midgie found that a compound called lead tetraethy=
l
was the ideal substance that not only stopped =93knocking=94  in a car en=
gine
but was also soluble in petrol and vapourised like petrol.  It also broke
down into lead at upper cylinder temperatures.  Midgie=92s research enabl=
ed
the octane rating to be raised from 50 to 65, and with improvements at th=
e
refinery, the octane number during the 40=92s and 50=92s climbed to 80 an=
d
finally with further developments to 110 for aviation fuel.  Today=92s le=
aded
petrol is 96 octane.

THE GREEN DEBATE
During the 60=92s and 70=92s, the call to clean up the atmosphere started=
 to
make governments quiver.  =93Clean up car exhausts=94 was the cry from the
Green lobby.

Lead is poisoning our children and should be banned, was one of their
statements which caught the attention of governments and people at large.
It is a fact that lead is a poison if absorbed by the body.  But does it
follow that the lead in our bodies came from lead in petrol?

Tests were carried out all over the world to check the effect of lead
emissions from car exhausts on humans.  The German government cut lead in
petrol from 0.4 to 0.15 grams per litre and after five years discovered
that there was no detectable reduction in lead levels despite the lead
content in petrol being reduced by two thirds.

In London, Professor Lowthur of the University of London, pointed out tha=
t
lead that comes out of the car exhaust is baked at 2000 to 3000 degrees
centigrade (like a house brick) and is microscopically small.  It does no=
t
get absorbed by the lungs and does not even get dissolved in the
hydrochloric acid of the stomach.

In Australia, research by Doctor Warren, a retired research scientist for
the Department of Defence, showed that the lead in our blood came from
eating or drinking it and the main source was from soldered food cans, le=
ad
based paints and lead piping.  In fact, research showed that blood lead
levels were higher in country people who drank bore water.  Papua New
Guinea Highlanders and people on remote islands (where there where no car=
s)
were found to have higher lead levels that in blood samples taken from
those living in the heart of Melbourne.

The original reason for the introduction of unleaded petrol was that
catalytic converted were required to get rid of nitric oxides, carbon
monoxide and the unburnt petrol that comes out of car exhausts.  And lead
rendered catalytic converter useless.  The problem, however, was that if
lead was removed from petrol, what was going to be used in its place so
that the octane level could be maintained.

It was decided at the time that benzene was the best alternative.
Benzene is a known carcinogen and Dr. Warren has warned that unleaded
petrol appears to be so dangerous that it should not be used in a car
without a catalytic converter because of the resulting pollution.

Similarly, it should not be used in your motor mower, chain saw, whipper
snipper or outboard motor and it should never be used as a cleaning agent.
Also, avoid getting unleaded petrol on your hands, and avoid the fumes wh=
en
refueling.  And as the catalytic converter does not work until it reaches
400 degrees centigrade avoid breathing the fumes from the exhaust of a cold
engine.

In Britain the risk has been recognized to the extent that the National
Society for Clean Air has now withdrawn its support for ULP.  In the USA
all new cars are fitted with anti-fume filters so that the fumes emitted
while refueling are kept away from the person doing the refilling.

Sadly, in Australia, the government and the petrol companies continue to
perpetrate the myth that the lead in leaded petrol is more dangerous that
the benzene and other carcinogenic aromatics in ULP.  And it has happened
because a vocal minority stole the agenda and through misinformation has
saddled us with a potential increase in cancer rates.

It is cause for concern that motorists with engines without catalytic
converters are still being encourages by the government to use ULP in the
cars, not only by media promotions but, as occurred on August 1, 1994, by
 a
higher tax on leaded petrol.

Time will determine the final cost to the Australian people of a decision
to listen to what was put forward as a =93fact=94 rather than taking note
 of
available scientific evidence.

This article was written by St. John Herbert and published in the Chronicle
on Wednesday 22 August 1994.  The Chronicle is a Canberra based community
newspaper.