195 INTRODUCTION In an attempt to reduce the environmental consequences associated with incomplete fuel combustion, the US Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990, required that oxygenates are added to reformulated gasoline. Since 1979, methyl tert butyl ether (MTBE) has been used in the USA as an octane enhancing replacement for lead, primarily in mid and high grade gasoline. It is the most commonly ...

In response to the widespread contamination caused by MTBE-blended reformulated gasoline (RFG), legislative initiatives in several states and at the federal level have phased out, or are trying to phase out, the use of MTBE as a gasoline oxygenate. Ethanol is currently the most likely gasoline oxygenate alternative to MTBE. This potential for increased use of ethanol has been most widely acknow...

An initial goal of the U.S. Geological Survey’s National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program is to determine the frequency of occurrence and concentrations of a wide range of anthropogenic and natural compounds in the Nation’s surface and ground water. A large number of contaminants are being monitored including volatile organic compounds (VOCs), pesticides, nutrients, and trace elements. ...

In order to monitor the behaviour of contaminants in the aqueous environment effective enrichment techniques often have to be employed due to their low concentrations. In this work a robust and sensitive purge and trap-gas chromatography-isotope ratio mass spectrometry method for carbon and hydrogen isotope analysis of fuel oxygenates in water is presented. The method evaluation included the de...

Asymmetric tubular alumina-supported poly(vinyl acetate) (PVAc) and poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) (PVP) membranes were created and characterized by pervaporation separation of binary mixtures of methanol and methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE). The active separation layer was created by free-radical graft polymerization of PVAc and PVP onto a vinylsilane-modified alumina substrate with an average native p...

In this study, the draft genome of Rhodococcus sp. strain ENV425 was determined. The propane-grown strain ENV425 cometabolically degrades environmental contaminants such as methyl tert-butyl ether and N-nitrosodimethylamine. The sequence revealed the presence of multiple hydrocarbon metabolic genes that could play pivotal roles in the biodegradation of pollutants.

methyl tertiary butyl ether (mtbe) is known as a promising substitute for tetra ethyl lead (tel) in order to increase the octane number of gasoline. mtbe process, as many other processes, has two distinguished section, namely reaction section and separation section. in this paper we focus only on synthesis and optimization of separation section of this process. in order to achieve this objectiv...