# Better gas milage by using Acetone?



## NaeKid

I have been hearing about people experimenting with acetone in the fuel to increase fuel-milage in gasoline engines.

I just found one YouTube video of a guy doing some testing with a 4-cyl car and by doing a couple of small changes, going from just over 30mpg to just under 40mpg ...






What are your thoughts on this process and if I did it with my DailyDriver vehicles, would I kill the motor?


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## Caribou

Interesting. How much acetone did he add? How big is his Tank? Roughly a 10% increase with the acetone and a bit more from the air cleaner unless the cleaning action of the acetone had additional effect as time went on.


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## BillS

This site explains it:

http://www.pureenergysystems.com/news/2005/03/17/6900069_Acetone/

Acetone In Fuel Said to Increase Mileage

Acetone (CH3COCH3) is a product that can be purchased inexpensively in most locations around the world, such as in the common hardware, auto parts, or drug store. Added to the fuel tank in tiny amounts, acetone aids in the vaporization of the gasoline or diesel, increasing fuel efficiency, engine longevity, and performance -- as well as reducing hydrocarbon emissions.

How it Works

Acetone
A colorless, volatile liquid with a sweet odor. It is considered the least toxic solvent in industry. It can occur naturally. It is used in the production of lubricating oils, chloroform, pharmaceuticals, pesticides, paints, varnishes and lacquers. If present in water, it is more likely to volatilize or biodegrade before bioaccumulating or adsorbing to sediments. Acetone will also readily volatilize and biodegrade in soil. It is also a common laboratory contaminant, so its presence in a sample does not always indicate its presence in the environment. Synonyms - Dimethylketone and 2-propanone.
-- Environmental Terms Glossary
(U.S. Military)

Additive: changes the specifications of the base it is added to
Complete vaporization of fuel is far from perfect in today's cars and trucks. A certain amount of residual fuel in most engines remains liquid in the hot chamber. In order to be fully combusted, the fuel must be fully vaporized.

Surface tension presents an obstacle to vaporization. For instance the energy barrier from surface tension can sometimes force water to reach 300 degrees Fahrenheit before it vaporizes. Similarly with gasoline.

Acetone drastically reduces the surface tension. Most fuel molecules are sluggish with respect to their natural frequency. Acetone has an inherent molecular vibration that "stirs up" the fuel molecules, to break the surface tension. This results in a more complete vaporization with other factors remaining the same. More complete vaporization means less wasted fuel, hence the increased gas mileage from the increased thermal efficiency.

That excess fuel was formerly wasted past the rings or sent out the tailpipe but when mixed with acetone it gets burned, though the engine still thinks it is running straight gas.

Acetone allows gasoline to behave more like the ideal automotive fuel which is PROPANE. The degree of improved mileage depends on how much unburned fuel you are presently wasting. You might gain 15 to 35-percent better economy from the use of acetone. Sometimes even more.

How Much to Use

Add in tiny amounts from about one part per 5000 to one part per 3000, depending on the vehicle -- just a few ounces per ten gallons of gas. This comes to between 0.0003 % to 0.0025 % acetone maximum or approximately 1/15th of one-percent. Note that is around .78 cc per liter or one ounce per 10 gallons. Not more than three oz. per 10 gallons.


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## hiwall

Some use mineral spirits instead.


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## mojo4

Does anyone have any actual first hand experience with this? I got rid of my junky car and can't afford to blow up my daily driver playing mister wizard with stuff I saw on the Internet!!!! Acetone is fairly inexpensive for a gallon and I would just need to find some small bottles to fill and leave in the cars. Very interesting thread but I don't wanna be the first one to try it out!!


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## Tirediron

I think that I might try acetone as a stale gasoline refresher just cause I can, but I would urge caution in using much in a modern fuel injected engine, although it shouldn't really be able to cause much trouble.


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## lovetogrow

I ran this by my hubs who's a mechanic and he's gonna have a closer look at the information, so if he decides to give it a go I'll update y'all on the outcome.


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## bigg777

I saw some debunking of acetone for better gas mileage online. *REMEMBER*, it will eventually eat the paint off of your car if spilled onto it.


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## backlash

I have read about this for years.
Just another Internet story.
If it actually worked it would be big news and everyone and their brother would be adding acetone.
Even the gas manufactures would be adding it as a marketing ploy.


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## readytogo

Mechanics and automotive-combustion experts will tell you that adding acetone to your gas tank does nothing to increase mileage, likely reduces your mileage and that it may damage non-metal parts in your fuel delivery system. The caveat added is that adding acetone to your gas tank '...may damage your engine and void your car's warranty.


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## Caribou

Gasoline and diesel do not burn. Their vapors burn quite easily, so, in theory, if acetone broke the surface tension and allowed more rapid vaporization you could get a more complete combustion. Your carb or injector is designed to cause many tiny droplets increasing the surface area and vaporization. I don't know if this works but the explanation is consistent with combustion theory.

My concern is what it might do to the non metal parts of the fuel system. Alcohol will eat the seals and other parts in many cars and trucks. Biodiesel will do the same. The fuel system must be designed for these biofuels. The problem does not seem to occur until the biofuel exceeds a certain percent. B-5 diesel, 5% biodiesel, is not a problem. B-10 should be okay as well but above that you risk your fuel pump and other seals or hoses. Likewise, you can add a jug of fuel line antifreeze (alcohol) without risk but trying to run your car on larger percentages of alcohol can cause severe damage. Certain cars have fuel systems designed to resist alcohol and can run on E-85, 85% alcohol.

Before I dump acetone into my tank I'll go into a local auto parts store and check out the back of a few fuel additive bottles looking for acetone in the list.


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## cowboyhermit

While vaporization is very important, it is mostly a solved problem in most engines, to the point where fuels are often mixed to make it more difficult.

For instance, in northern climates places, in the winter much more butane is added to "gasoline"(which is actually a whole bunch of different stuff). Butane vaporizes easier, so it helps with starting in the winter but in places like California in the summer, evaporation is a serious problem. 

Even if Acetone did work significantly, it is questionable if fuel makers would add it to the mix, for obvious reasons. Seems like it could make a big difference in a situation where, for whatever reason, fuel wasn't being vaporized properly, but otherwise marginal at best.


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## LincTex

Caribou said:


> Before I dump acetone into my tank I'll go into a local auto parts store and check out the back of a few fuel additive bottles looking for acetone in the list.


Acetone is not that dangerous.

It's one of the main components in Berryman's B-12 and almost all "gas treatments" are nothing more than a little kerosene, naphtha and acetone mixed.


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## hiwall

> Acetone is not that dangerous.


Acetone is made by the human body and we all have it in us.


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## mojo4

Ok...... I decided to try it out. My camry is consistently around 30 MPG. I will keep up with my progress here. I also saw on an online video that it works better if used quickly like in a road trip. So I will most likely take a family road trip this fall and also try it then. And I used 3 ounces mixed in with 15 gallons of gas so I doubt there could be any serious damage to my car. Hopefully this works!!!!


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## NaeKid

Watching to see what your reports are on your testing.


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## Viking

Back in my hot rodding days of the 1960's I used acetone once and a while, did it make any difference? Not sure, but the engine ran great. Now days I use Neutra from Schaeffer Oil to clean out the carbon from rings and valve stems, Marvel Mystery Oil does this too. I've seen engines pick up a few hundred RPM at idle by running a cap full of Mystery Oil through the carb air intake. I have a 1989 F-250 diesel that had gotten hard to start and by running Neutra in the engine oil and mixed in the fuel it now starts much better and seems to have more power. I've also used the Neutra in automatic transmissions and they now shift smoother. There are a few things that help engines run just a bit better, Like LincTex mentioned, Berryman's B-12, I've used it to clean the injectors on the engine in our Windstar when the Service Engine Soon light would come on because of injector misfires, probably due to ethanol scouring out the fuel lines of any varnish. It got so bad I quit using ethanol fuel and now only use clear fuel, more expensive but no misfiring and the van gained 7 mpg. Got to watch Berryman's B-12, if you use it, add fuel right away as many fuel filler pipes in vehicles are now made of plastic and Berryman's can do a number on plastic, like melting the surface.


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## twinzen

Myth busters did show on this






Does NOT work


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## Caribou

I have used fuel additives for decades. I use Marvel Mystery Oil mostly but I change around. I don't use it in every tank but every once in a while I add some in an effort to blast out any carbon buildup. This seems to work for me. A smother running engine and better mileage seem to be the results. Adding additive to each tank does not further improve performance. This is a very unscientific application and is only my impression. I'm thinking that acetone, on an intermittent basis, might be a less expensive way to accomplish the same results.


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## Tirediron

twinzen said:


> Myth busters did show on this
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Does NOT work


Myth busters does not run any engine for long enough or use a computer controlled dyno so their results on this subject are just what they try to bust, a MYTH.

If the gasoline has lost some of it's light ends, then the addition of light ends will help,


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## twinzen

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha


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## Tirediron

Very well though out answer, If you think that Adam on the gas pedal and Jamie using a stop watch is even remotely accurate .................

And if the fuel is fresh and perhaps premium, then acetone probably won't help, if it was low octane stale gas then the addition of light ends would help.


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## mojo4

Well it looks good so far. On my way into work I have put 430 miles on a single tank and I still have just under a quarter of a tank left. Usually I have to fill up at around 425 miles. Sorry I can't give exact MPG yet, my car doesn't have that computer function. And for added info...... it's a 2010 Camry with 68k miles and a 4 cylinder engine. Pretty much a stock base model. And I live in Denver so I'm at 5 to 6 thousand feet of altitude and just regular commuting miles between city and highway roads. And I used regular unleaded, I think it's 87 octane here. Lemme know if you have any questions that I haven't covered yet! It definitely looks promising!!!


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## mojo4

So I filled up today and my mileage was 32. Considering I get anywhere from 27 to 30 (depending on work schedule ) I would say it definitely helps. I would guess around 3 to 4 extra MPG since I had my car idling a lot for work this week. Nothing like hot weather to keep the car running with the AC on! I filled up again and will try not to idle my car with this tank of gas. It also seemed like I was getting much better mileage the first few days. Wish I had a trip computer or maybe I need to plan a road trip!


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## hiwall

Many of us are watching your reports. Thank you mojo4!


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## Tirediron

mojo are you buying your gas at the same pump for this experiment? 
and thanks for posting your results,


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