Red petrol – Wikipedia

The Petrol with lead (commonly called “red” petrol ) is a type of petrol whose main feature is to have added, as an anti -high agent, the tetraethyle lead. It was very widespread until the end of the twentieth century, when it was replaced by lead -free petrol. The red color is not really of the fuel, but it was added to distinguish it from lead -free petrol and to underline its exclusively motor use ^{[4] [5]} . Subsequently, the red went on to identify supercarbulants and, with the disappearance of petrol normal (which also contained lead but was colorless), petrol with lead in general.

Before the Community regulations, each European country possessed its standards in this regard. However, to allow easy movement between the boundaries of petrol vehicles, the rules were similar.

Regarding the number of octane, the Italian standards have imposed these values ​​from the post -war period ^[6]

Based on the octane number, two types of petrol were placed on sale: the normal , cheaper, with octane research 84 ÷ 86 and the super or supercarburant, used in engines with higher compression relationships and better and more expensive performance, with 98 ÷ 100 ^{[7] [8]} , in recent years reduced to 97. However, intermediate values ​​were possible, thanks to particular pumps that mixed the two species ^{[9] [ten]} .

Once abandoned, after the successful introduction of the tetraethythy lead, the gas -free petrol, the red color went on to no longer report petrol with lead in general, but only the higher quality one ^{[11] [twelfth]} . If for gluttonous benings normal The anti -condemning properties of lead were less requested, the lubricating and protective characteristics of the valve seats remained useful, allowing to use the alloys of leagues of lower resistance and cost for the heads.

The situation in the United Kingdom was peculiar, where the qualities were more and marked with stars ^[13] . There was 2 -star petrol (Ron 90), 3 stars (94), 4 stars (97) ^[14] and 5 stars, abandoned during the 70s-80s ^[15] .

As the concerns grows on the toxicity of the tetraethyle lead, since the 70s the western states began to lower the concentration of the antidetonant in petrol. In 1971, before the new rules on the subject, in each liter of petrol sold in federal Germany, 0.635 grams of tetraethyle lead were present ^[16] , who was the maximum admitted in Italy ^[17] . In the UK the limit was greater, with 0.84 g/l ^[18] .
The last country to dispose the use of Algeria was the use of lead on the largest one on 15 September 2020 ^[19] And from 1 July 2021 the sale has been prohibited, once the stocks are finished and the lead residues from the production and distribution systems are eliminated ^[20] .

In Italy [ change | Modifica Wikitesto ]

On 1 July 1981, the lowering of the concentration of metal in petrol, brought, in line with European directives, began, at an autonomous initiative of the oil industry, at 0.40 grams per liter. The octane number in petrol was affected by this change and Calò, for the super , and 98 at 97 ^[21] . In the absence of a precise government address in this regard, there were problems on the quality of fuels, that in the early days he degraded so that they have generated detonations in the engines ^[22] . The oil houses, in fact, had never had to distil fuels with such a high octane without resorting to the usual quantities of lead, therefore it took time to perfect the techniques and return to an acceptable quality product. In 1982 the Community standards were incorporated and the 0.40 grams became the maximum admissible by law ^[23] , reduced in 1989 to 0.30 grams and in 1991 to 0.15, the European minimum to be able to define as a “with lead” petrol ^[24] .

The limitation to the use of petrol with tetraethyle lead began in 1992, with the ban on the sale of gasoline with lead containing an octane number research less than 95 and the green petrol conversion of the pumps that paid it, decreeing the end of the normal , which had a market share of 36,000 tons out of a total of 14 and a half million tons of petrol sold ^{[25] [8]} . On 1 October 2001 the production of gasoline ended super And from that day, once the stocks are finished, the pumps of the super They would have disbursed unparalleled rainfall contaminated by the one with lead remained in the tanks. The intermediate lead tenor mixture between “red” and “green” obtained was vulgarly called “benzinone” and sold at a reduced price. ^[26] The super with lead (if it could still be called) continued to be distributed extensively until 31 December 2001; From the next day its trade was forbidden, except “for a maximum annual quantity of 0.5% of total petrol sales of the previous year”, intended for historic cars ^[27] , then lowered to 0.03% ^[28] .

Consequently, green petrol is not the only type of legal gasoline in Italy, as the owners of vintage vehicles is still allowed to supply fuel with lead. Considering the consumption in 2018, in 2019 the “red” petrol mass of which has been salable was 2 200 tons. ^[29]

Davide Faedo (edited by), The regulating of fuels for automotive: over one hundred years of history ( PDF ), in U & C: Unification & Certification , n. 6, Modena, Logos Publishing, Giugno 2015, pp. 10-1 19-38, ISSN 0394-9 ( WC · Acnp ) . URL consulted on February 13, 2020 .