ASTM D4176-2014
Clear & Bright is an outdated and minimum standard for judging diesel fuel appearance when it had 2,000 PPM of Sulphur. As written by the ASTM D4176 as recently as 2014, it’s a specification for the Appearance of fuel (i.e. NOT fuel quality) with the following statement regarding the scope of applicability: ‘This standard does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety and health practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.’
Where the WWFC, the diesel engine manufacturers and the National Fire Code of Canada all specifying ISO 18/16/13 – for any Facilities Management company to be held to a higher standard – how can the Clear & Bright support this position?
We’ve seen fuel PASS Clear and Bright with particulate levels higher than manufacturers fuel quality requirements by a factor magnitude 7. Put another way, the ISO particle distribution was up at almost 100,000 particles per mL of diesel fuel – imagine how THAT contributes to the following factors which Facilities Managers need to be avoiding:
- Poor operation of the engine
- Failure to start
- Poor transient performance
- Shorter engine life
- Inability to carry load