Fuel Instability 1: Organo-Sulfur Hydroperoxide Reactions

Instability in middle distillate fuels continues to be a problem. Instability is usually defined in terms of sediment formation and increases in peroxide species. There is a growing body of evidence that heteroatomic species, organo-sulfur, nitrogen and oxygen compounds are intimately involved in this deposition process. This is a two part review of the recent literature on middle distillate fuel instability as related to these heteroatomic species.