Home heating fuel specifications

This category comprises conventional LPG (commercial propane and butane), home-heating oil and heavy fuels. All these materials are used to produce thermal energy in equipment whose size varies widely from small heaters or gas stoves to refinery furnaces. Without describing the requirements in detail for each combustion system, we will give the main specifications for each of the different petroleum fuels. 

It is mainly in cold behavior that the specifications differ between bome-heating oil and diesel fuel. In winter diesel fuel must have cloud points of -5 to -8°C, CFPPs from -15 to -18°C and pour points from -18 to 21°C according to whether the type of product is conventional or for severe cold. For home-heating oil the specifications are the same for all seasons. The required values are -l-2°C, -4°C and -9°C, which do not present particular problems in refining. 

For other physical properties, the specification differences between diesel fuel and home-heating oil are minimal. Note only that there is no minimum distillation end point for heating oil, undoubtedly because tbe problem of particulate emissions is much less critical in domestic burners than in an engine. 

The high C/H ratio for heavy fuels and their high levels of contaminants such as sulfur, water, and sediment, tend to reduce their NHV which can reach as low as 40,000 kJ/kg by comparison to the 42,500 kJ/kg for a conventional home-heating oil. This characteristic is not found in the specifications, but it is a main factor in price negotiations for fuels in terms of cost per ton. Therefore it is subject to frequent verification. 

Refineries produce more than 2,000 products, but most of these are very similar and differ in only a few specifications. The mam products, with respect to volume and income, are liquefied petroleum gases (LPG), gasolines, diesel fuels, jet fuels, home heating oils (No. 1 and No. 2), and heavy heating oils (No. 4, No. 5, No. 6, and bunker fuel oil). Some refineries also produce asphalts and petroleum coke. 

LP gas is a generic term for fuels that include butane, propane, and small amounts of other hydrocarbons. The common characteristic among these fuels is that they are easily liquefied by the application of modest pressures (less than 300 psi). LP gas is widely used in rural areas of the countiy as a home cooking and heating fuel, and for use in outdoor home barbecues. For fuel use, the industry has standardized on a specification that requires 90% propane minimum, 2.5% butane maximum, and 5% propylene maximum, known as HD-5. Since this discussion centers on use of LP gas as a transportation fuel—which means LP gas conforming to the HD-5 specification—propane will be used instead of LP gas. 

At the same time as diesel fuel specifications are tightening, the demand for diesel is growing in Asia as well as in Europe. Although the growth rate for middle distillate in Asia Pacific was relatively stagnant from 1996-1998, it rose to 4.6% in 1999, and future demand in developing Asia is forecast to be 5.1% per year. In the EU, the increase in demand for mid-distillates has been at about 1.2%/armum over the past 5 years. It is predicted that the diesel demand in the EU will increase by 30% over the next 15 years. There is a reduced demand for home heating oil and fuel oil cutter stocks, which can help meet the increased need for diesel, but these lower quality stocks will require severe hydrotreatment to meet the future specifications for diesel fiiel. 

Domestic fuel oils are those used primarily in the home and include kerosene, stove oil, and furnace fuel oil. Diesel fuel oils are also distillate fuel oils, but residual oils have been successhjlly used to power marine diesel engines, and mixtures of distillates and residuals have been used on locomotive diesels. Heavy fuel oils include a variety of oils, ranging from distillates to residual oils, that must be heated to 260°C or higher before they can be used. In general, heavy fuel oil consists of residual oil blended with distillate to suit specific needs. Heavy fuel oil includes various industrial oils and, when used to fuel ships, is called bunker oil. 

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