The US DOE and NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) worked on a research program carried out by UL (Underwriters Laboratories).
The purpose of the project was to investigate compatibility with mid-level ethanol blends such as E15 and dispensing equipment. The project consisted of testing both new and used dispensing equipment.
UL reported:
The overall results of the project were inconclusive insofar as no clear trends in the overall performance of all equipment could be established. new and used equipment such as shear valves, flow limiters, STPs and hoses generally performed well. Some new and used equipment demonstrated reduced levels of safety or performance, or both, during either long-term exposure or performance tests. In this study, there was no noted effect on metallic parts or equipment. The lack of galvanic interaction or other significant corrosion is consistent with the relatively lower ethanol content of E15…
The complete study can be found at www.nrel.gov/docs/fy11osti/49187.pdf.
