1: octane rating of gasoline, as displayed at a. typical gas station. The octane rating is a measure of a fuel's ability to avoid knock. Knock occurs when fuel is prematurely ignited in the engine's cylinder, which degrades efficiency and can be damaging to the engine.
What exactly is octane?
An octane rating, or octane number, is a standard measure of a fuel's ability to withstand compression in an internal combustion engine without detonating. The higher the octane number, the more compression the fuel can withstand before detonating.
Is higher octane fuel better?
Higher octane allows engines to have higher compression ratios (for a more energetic explosion), more advanced ignition timing or forced-air induction like turbochargers or superchargers. It's the fuel's ability to be compressed more without pre-igniting that results in more power when used in the appropriate engine.Apr 6, 2016
What is the purpose of octane rating?
Octane ratings are measures of fuel stability. These ratings are based on the pressure at which a fuel will spontaneously combust (auto-ignite) in a testing engine.
Does higher octane fuel make a difference?
Raising the octane rating (also known as the anti-knock index) doesn't change the energy content of a gallon of gasoline. A higher octane rating indicates greater resistance to knock, the early combustion of the fuel-air mixture that causes cylinder pressure to spike.Aug 4, 2019
Why is it called octane rating?
Octane History. The name "octane" comes from the following fact: When you take crude oil and "crack" it in a refinery, you end up getting hydrocarbon chains of different lengths. These different chain lengths can then be separated from each other and blended to form different fuels.
What is my octane rating?
An octane rating is a measurement of the fuel's ability to resist engine pinging. In short, an octane rating is a reading of the fuel's stability. Regular fuel typically has an 87 octane rating, mid-grade fuel typically falls between 88-90, and premium fuel is typically rated at 91-94 octane.