Antiknock Agents

Antiknock Agents

 

chemical compounds added in small quantities (less than 1 percent) to motor fuels to improve the antiknock ratings of the fuels. The best-known antiknock agents are tetraethyllead (TEL) Pb(C2H 5)4, te-tramethyl lead Pb(CH3)4, methylcyclopentadienyl manganese tricarbonyl CH3C5H4Mn(CO)3, and pentacarbonyli-ron Fe(CO)5. Of all the familiar antiknock compounds, only TEL is widely employed in the form of ethyl fluid. This antiknock mixture includes in its composition one or several “lead carriers” (ethyl bromide, dibromoethane, or di-bromopropane), which upon combustion form volatile compounds with lead that are readily removed from the combustion chamber. Motor fuels containing TEL are called ethyl-ated, or leaded. Leaded fuels are highly toxic; safety measures are mandatory when working with them.

REFERENCES

Nefteprodukty, svoistva, kachestvo i primenenie: Spravochnik. Edited by B. V. Losikov. Moscow, 1966.
Motornye, reaktivnye i raketnye topliva, 4th ed. Edited by K. K. Papok and E. G. Semenido. Moscow, 1962.