The home heating oil industry has a long and proud history, and Fuel Oil News has been there supporting it since 1935. It is an industry that has faced many challenges during that time. In its 77th year, Fuel Oil News is doing more than just holding
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/302379
editor's note E D I T O R I A L S T A F F Editorial Office 1030 W. Higgins Road Suite 230 Park Ridge, IL 60068 847/720-5600 Publisher John Prusak 763/383-4402 jprusak@snowgoer.com Editor Keith Reid 847/720-5615 kreid@specialtyim.com Managing Editor Nicholas Upton 763/383-4466 nupton@epgmediaLLC.com Columnists Charles Bursey, Sr. Shane Sweet George Lanthier List Rentals MeritDirect, Jim Scova jscova@MeritDirect.com 914/368-1012 Reprints Debra Welter, dwelter@SpecialtyIM.com P R O D U C T I O N Production Manager – Karen Kalinyak Art Director – Brian Snook A D v E R T I S I N g S A L E S East – Dave Campbell, Associate Publisher 413/528-8835 Cell: 413/717-1007 dcampbell@specialtyim.com Central & South Rich Alden 603/899-3010 Fax: 603/899-2343 ralden@specialtyim.com Barbara Reynolds 603/588-2086 breynolds@specialtyim.com West – Ken Jordan 972/540-2122 Fax: 972/540-2127 kjordan@specialtyim.com M A I N O F F I C E 1030 W. Higgins Road, Suite 230 Park Ridge, IL 60068 847/720-5600 • Fax: 847-720-5601 C U S T O M E R S E R v I C E 847/763-9565 • Fax: 847/763-9569 Fuel Oil News PO Box 2123, Skokie, IL 60076-7823 i 've been familiar with the potential corrosion issues related to the adoption of ultra-low sulfur diesel from practically the beginning. In fact, when I was editing NPN Magazine there was an opportunity to jump out in front of the issue in a big way that I, admittedly, downplayed it time. My rationale was that ULSD had already been massively adopted nationally. A number of severe corrosion problems were observed, but there was no rhyme or reason behind them and the problem was not massive in scale. You would assume that would be the case if there was a fundamental problem with the petroleum product itself. Nor could the issue be traced to a specific batch of fuel or a specific supplier. Was there a specific issue in combination with this fuel that created the site-by-site concern? There was nothing obvious at the time. I then did some degree of additional research and called some of the largest national and regional diesel distributors to get their feedback. The issue was so new (and sporadic) at the time that several were unaware that it was even a potential problem. One thought that crossed my mind, fairly or not, was the possibility that these corro- sion issues were coincidental in nature. For example, a distributor might have experienced a more traditional corrosion issue in a system that now coincidentally contained ULSD, and assumptions were being made. That explanation made as much sense as just about anything else. So, while I did not ignore the potential issue I certainly did not push it to the forefront of the magazine's coverage. We have also covered the issue in the same manner in Fuel Oil News over the years. There is a responsibility where you certainly do not ignore potentially serious issues that might be uncertain and/or politically sensitive, but at the same time you do not want to use the power of the media, even within trade circles, to drive a potentially destructive narrative that might turn out to be overblown. We have a fairly graphic corrosion picture on the cover of this issue of Fuel Oil News. So what has changed? To my estimation, frankly, not much. I believe the issue has almost as many uncertainties today as it did a half a decade ago. You cannot ignore the degree of corrosion that some distributors have experienced. At the same time, ULSD has become even more dominant in the marketplace, but it is still not an issue that diesel distributors seem highly concerned about. An initial study has been conducted, which is covered in the article that Steve Bennett and I wrote on the topic on page 14 that outlines a potential source behind the corrosion (ethanol cross-contamination from gasoline storage). However, that study was limited in nature and it is broadly acknowledged that a much more involved study must be conducted to have the degree of confidence required for any major product or infrastructure adjustments. It's telling that there appears to be little outcry in the industry to get that study rolling. For heating oil dealers and marketers, especially if you do not market bulk gasoline that contains ethanol, the potential problem is not one for excessive concern, but it should not be ignored. Ultra-low sulfur fuel combined with biofuel is a great story for the industry, and I expect nothing will arise to change that from a product perspective. However, basic due diligence would suggest keeping an eye on any storage and dispensing infrastructure that handles ultra-low sulfur fuel, from the bulk plant, to the truck to the customer's tank. Just in case. l F o n Keith Reid 8 MAY 2014 | FUEL OIL NEWS | www.fueloilnews.com Membership applied for January 2014 Corrosion Concerns