Summer Test Program
Carbon Analysis
MeadWestvaco Corporation
Carbon Department
Covington, VA 24426
Test Cases
Boat
Manufacturer
Type
Fuel Tank Volume
Canister Volume
Test Date(s)
Four Winns
17’ Open Bow
24 gallon
1.0 liter
8/25
Four Winns
18’ Open Bow
32 gallon
1.0 liter
Crestliner
17’ Open Boat
24 gallon
1.0 liter
Crestliner
18’ Open Boat
31 gallon
1.0 liter
Crestliner
23’ Pontoon
25 gallon
1.0 liter
Crestliner
23’ Pontoon
25 gallon
1.0 liter
Four Winns
19’ Open Bow
50 gallon
1.5 liter
Four Winns
21’ Open Bow
50 gallon
1.5 liter
Four Winns
27’ Cruiser
85 gallon
2.5 liter
Century
26’ Sportfisherman
150 gallon
4.0 liter
Century
26’ Offshore
150 gallon
4.0 liter
Grady White
23’ Offshore
150 gallon
4.0 liter
9/16
Grady White
30’ Offshore
(2) 150 gallon
4.0 liter
8/4 & 9/15
Century
29’ Sportfisherman
300 gallon
(2) 3.5 liter
9/7
9/20
9/20
8/25
8/16
2
BWC Procedure
Load Canister with
100% Butane at
600 cc/min to
50% Breakthrough
Conditions
Canister to
Reproducible
State
Vacuum Purge
Canister at
10 lpm for 300 bed
volumes
Purges butane
And gasoline
From Canister
Load Canister with
100% Butane at
600 cc/min to
50% Breakthrough
Establishes
Capacity of
Canister under
Standard conditions
3
BWC Apparatus
Temp
Meter
Purge
Flow meter
Vent
Bubble
Meter
Butane
Feed
Flow meter
Butane Vent
Flow meter
Vacuum
Pump
Butane
Cylinder
4
BWC Test Results
Normalized BWC (grams/liter)
Net BWC Correlation with Canister Volume
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
0
0.5
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
4
4.5
5
5.5
6
6.5
7
7.5
8
Canister Volume (liters)
5
Repeat Testing at Grady White
Grady White Bimini 4.0 Liter On-Site Butane Test Results
8/4/2005 and 9/15/05
Discharge Flow Rate (mL/min)
500
Canister Volume
4.0 L
Carbon Type SeaGuard™ 3 mm
Net BWC
115 grams
Normalized BWC
28.7 grams
Butane Feed (100%) 600 mL/min
Purge
300 bv at 10 lpm
450
400
350
300
Initial Load
Final Load
250
200
1
150
2
1
2
100
50
0
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
110
120
130
140
150
160
170
Time (min)
No degradation in capacity was identified
6
Summary




Testing showed no degradation in capacity due to
moisture or liquid gasoline exposure
Regenerable carbon capacity was maintained
throughout test period
Carbon capacity was unaffected by physical
stresses associated with marine use
Carbon canisters did not affect performance of
boats
7
Future Work


Carbon canisters will be removed from boats and
tested for particle size distribution, heel analysis,
and capacity
Two canisters will remain on boats for long-term
testing
8