Easy Determination of Total/Potential Sulphate and Total Chloride in Gasoline-Denatured Ethanol

Thermo Fisher Scientific has developed a fast, simple, direct-injection ion chromatography method with eluent generation to determine total and potential sulphate and total chloride in gasoline-denatured ethanol samples. Application Note (AN) 1052: Determination of Chloride and Sulfate in Gasoline-Denatured Ethanol demonstrates that this approach—consistent with ASTM International Standard D7319-12—reliably quantifies sulphate and chloride at 65μg/L and 18μg/L, respectively—concentrations well below the ASTM Standard D4806 specifications of 4mg/L for sulphate and 40mg/L for chloride.

Made from renewable energy sources, ethanol is an attractive alternative to traditional fossil fuels and is blended into most gasoline sold in the U.S. today. The robust carbonate eluent anion-exchange column used in AN 1052 shows no column deterioration over more than 400 sample injections; thus, it is ideal for routine ASTM ethanol testing that is required to minimise contamination that can lead to corrosion of engine components.

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