Will Higher Octane Fuels Equal More Pain At Pump?

DETROIT, MI — Higher costs at the pump could be coming to a gas station near you within a few years. That’s because automakers and oil companies are developing new engines and higher octane gasolines that will provide greater fuel economy and fewer carbon dioxide emissions. The tradeoff will likely mean high gas prices.

There’s no announced timetable for the introduction of higher grades of gasoline, but interest has grown as automakers eye rising fuel economy standards and emissions limits after 2021, the Detroit Free Press reported. It’s an issue oil companies and automakers are reluctant to talk about.

“Ten cents a gallon more is probably palatable,” said an industry executive who requested anonymity because his company’s plans are secret, the newspaper reported. “A quarter risks customer acceptance.”

Higher octane fuel costs more because the fuel components that boost octane are generally more expensive to produce. Octane allows an engine to run at higher compression ratios and use more of the energy in gasoline, the Free Press reported. More energy equals the ability to do more work, and that means a properly engineered vehicle will go farther or faster on the same amount of gasoline.

Development work on super-premium gasoline grades and engines to take advantage of them is going on behind the scenes while automakers and oil companies around the world ponder how to sell the public on the idea, the Free Press reported. Currently, the national average prices are $2.42 for regular, $2.77 for midgrade and $2.92 for premium, according to AAA's gas price monitor, according to the newspaper.

Most gasoline in the U.S. today is between 87 and 94 octane. The new “super-premium” grades could be as 100 octane. In Europe, where higher-octane gasoline is common, running super-premium fuel with about 98 octane increased fuel economy 10% compared with gasoline at U.S.-premium levels of 92-94, the Free Press reported.

“Most automakers are looking at higher compression to increase efficiency,” Mark Christie, vice president for engine engineering at the U.S. arm of engineering consultant Ricardo, told the newspaper. “Raising octane allows that with minimal other changes to the engine.”

He believes It’s simpler and less expensive than adding new technologies, and a building block to make those technologies even more effective. Other industry experts also claim that higher octane fuels is also the cheapest way to cut carbon monoxide emissions into the atmosphere.

Higher octane is the most cost effective way to reduce greenhouse emissions. “Higher-octane fuels are the cheapest CO2 reduction,” said GM global propulsion systems chief Dan Nicholson at an industry conference last year, the Free Press reported. “Fuels and engines must be designed as a total system. It makes absolutely no sense to have fuel out of the mix.”

The U.S. Department of Energy is working with automakers and oil companies on a project called “Optima” to cooperate on engine and fuel development. The project aims to reduce petroleum consumption by 30 percent, the Society of Automotive Engineers publication Automotive Engineering reported.

“The general position is that (premium) is what automakers are thinking for the future octane level,” Toyota senior principal engineer for energy and environmental research Marie Valentine said, according to the Free Press.

It’s unclear how much this will increase fuel prices, because oil companies aren’t talking, the newspaper reported. Cars that run on today’s regular gas will run fine on higher-octane premium and super-premium. They won’t enjoy the efficiency and performance benefits of engines developed for the fuel, though, the Free Press reported.

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