Services Performed

Chemistry laboratory investigation and analysis 

Summary

For 18 months, our laboratory personnel were engaged to investigate and analyze the oxidation rate of the odorant (Ethyl Mercaptan) that is added in residential LP gas tanks. Because LP gas is odorless, colorless and tasteless, the odorant was used as a safety feature. It was suspected that the odorant, over time, was oxidizing with the metal inside the tank, reducing its odorant capacities and increasing the risk of injury or death to persons if a leak in the system developed.

Throughout our engagement, our chemist collected LP gas samples, which were odorized with Ethyl Mercaptan, from a total of (15) 500-gallon tanks that had been filled with approximately 50 gallons of the product. The samples were taken at intervals of seven days, 14 days, 30 days, 3 months, 6 months, 12 months and finally 18 months from the date of filling. The samples were analyzed for the content of the odorant using a gas chromatograph in our chemistry laboratory and sent to the client for compilation into a final report. This study was commissioned in part by a Texas public university, who recorded all of our results and generated the report.

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