Originally Posted by
luv2flyrc
Jeremy,
If you google it, there are several studies that I could find showing that diesel breaks down the binding agent in asphalt causing it to crumble. One study I found was Australian, the other I think was a US study but, typically done by Transportation Ministries looking to reduce maintenance costs due to diesel spills.
Of course, there don't seem to be any such studies on Jet A or Kero as they're typically not used in road vehicles. Our experience up at Wingham airport is that, we flew there for years using Jet A or Kero and didn't notice any damage. Now, more of us are using diesel and we're seeing the asphalt problem. Certainly not scientific but, that's the observation.
Mike
Mike,
I would still be curious though as to having you test a small area maybe off on the side, put some raw diesel on the asphalt and see if it causes the same problem. I'm sure it breaks down the asphalt, and as was also mentioned there are different grades of asphalt, but are they really that different that diesel would cause it to break down that quickly on your runway or start area as opposed to at a gas station? I know Jet A and Kero get spilled and you're saying it hasn't caused a problem, but perhaps there is a different chemical change when turbine oil is added into diesel than Jet A and Kero. I'm just looking for the reason it is happening so badly at your field but not at a gas station where over the course of a day there is probably a gallon spilled in any given area.