Future of GA piston fuel?

Peter Dohm wrote:

If you had to do a bit of crystal ball gazing, what do you think the
engines
of the GA fleet will be drinking in 10-15 years time?

The same avgas as today, just much more expensive?

Jet-A in diesel engines?

Something else?


When the alternative fuel discussion, and the automotive fuel STC, first
gained popularity; I read that 100LL AvGas was about 96 octane without the
lead.

That would suggest an obvoius solution of 96 octane for most of the fleet,
and blend-at-the-pump (or from the truck) for those that actually make use
of the higher octane fuel. OTOH, that makes too much sense...

From what I understand, the TEL is just far too toxic to deal with when it
isn't dilluted by a lot of (also toxic) gasoline. It's challenging enough at
the oil company production tank farm level, I don't see how it would work at
the pump dispensing (or even regional terminal) level.

NASCAR is finally going lead free in the very near future, I expect piston
aircraft will as well. Even absent a government regulation banning lead fuel
in aircraft, the simple economics of the situation will make it more and more
untenable.

Diesel engines running with Jet A for high and low power applications and
piston engines burning lead free avgas (UL__ or whatever they want to call it)
for low applications will be the future.