DERR-2024-009182

UTAH TANK NEWS
Winter 2009

Published by the
Utah Department of
Environmental Quality

Division of Environmental
Response and
Remediation

Underground Storage
Tank Branch

Bill Sinclair
Acting Executive Director

Brad T Johnson
Division Director

Dale Marx
Branch Manager

DeAnn Rasmussen
Gary Harris
Editors

INSIDE:
Petroleum Brownfield
Projects in Utah…. Page 1

Tanks Under the Ethanol
Influence .........Pages 2 - 4

Stage 1 Vapor Recovery
Requirements….... Page 5

Certification
Corner .................. Page 6
Petroleum Brownfield Projects in Utah by Dale T. Urban
These investigations are intended to move
sites toward redevelopment and sustainable
reuse. Abandoned gas stations or other
underutilized properties, with either real or
perceived environmental contamination, are a
common site in almost every city and every
town throughout the United States.
Redevelopment and reuse of these
petroleum-contaminated properties can be
complicated due to liability issues, site
assessment costs, and potential cleanup costs.
1
Utah communities have an opportunity to access Petroleum Brownfield grant
monies to identify eligible sites, and to perform environmental site assessments
at underutilized properties with suspected or known petroleum contamination.
The goal of Utah’s Petroleum Brownfield’s
Program is to assist communities with
information and opportunities to redevelop
these under utilized contaminated
properties. Utah’s Department of
Environmental Quality (DEQ) has
developed strategic partnerships with
multiple stakeholders, creating strategies
that maximize resources for site
assessments, subsurface investigations, and
even cleanup activities. These efforts
enable site redevelopment of the land into beneficial and sustainable reuse, such as
residential and affordable housing, city parks, access roads, and commercial businesses.
For more information on this exciting opportunity, and to determine if your
community is eligible for funding, please visit our web page at
http://www.undergroundtanks.utah.gov/ustfields.htm.

2

Have you ever been watching one of those old movies about the days of prohibition when the bootlegger is illegally
transporting some homemade moonshine and is being pursued by the local police and runs out of gasoline? It seems the
bootlegger always has enough of a head start to get out of their car, go to their trunk, pull out a brown jug of moonshine and
poor it into the gas tank. Then, of course, they make a quick getaway before the pursuing police actually catch-up! So, you
may be wondering by now what all this has to do with underground storage tanks?

Electrical Conductivity ~ Gasoline is not generally a good conductor. Ethanol is a good electrical conductor because of
its ability to bond with water and uptake contaminants from the fueling system. The addition of ethanol can increase the rate at
which corrosion occurs, especially on aluminum and some alloys like brass, which is made from copper and zinc.

Good magicians make things disappear, but great magicians also need to make things reappear in order to bring about closure
and to thrill an audience. Ethanol is a great magician; it can corrode parts of your fueling system and make them “magically
disappear.” The metal that has disappeared from your system is not gone forever. Unfortunately, the reappearance of the
missing metal from your tank system will not bring about cheers and applause. It will be found in plugged filters in your
dispensers and can potentially damage the fuel systems of the automobiles fueled from the tank system.

Tanks Under the Ethanol Influence by Mike Pecorelli
Funny how life has come full circle since the “Good Ole Days.” The
moonshine the bootlegger was transporting, and running his car on in an
emergency was mostly ethanol. We now use ethanol as an alternative fuel
for some vehicles. There are some good lessons we can learn from the
bootleggers. One was the way they stored their moonshine in a ceramic
bottle or a mason jar. Ethanol does not readily react with ceramic and glass.
Unfortunately the cork on the jug or the gasket on the Mason jar would
need replacing after being used, some from wear and some from being
degraded by the moonshine.

Some stations now carry gasoline mixed with ethanol in various amounts,
usually designated like E10 (10% ethanol mixed into the gasoline) or E85
(85% ethanol mixed into the gasoline). The decision whether or not to start
carrying an ethanol mixed fuel should not be a snap decision, but an
educated one. Storing a product like ethanol is not like adding a new grade
of gasoline to your system; ethanol’s chemical properties are different than
gasoline.
Other Compatibility Problems ~ If you have a fiberglass tank system you may think
a sigh of relief is appropriate. That may or may not be correct. Some of the older fiberglass
systems may develop leaks if used to store significant amounts of ethanol blended fuel
depending upon how they were manufactured. Do not confuse the purchase and/or install
date with the manufactured date. Also, some of the seals and non-metal parts in your
fueling system and pumps may also be adversely affected by ethanol. This could lead to
leaks and equipment failure if the non-metal materials are not compatible with ethanol.

~ continued on page 3

3
Tanks Under the Ethanol Influence ~ continued from page 2

Ethanol Likes Water ~ In medieval times, people were reputed as not being very fond of taking baths. It may have
been they just didn’t like water. Gasoline also does not like to mix with water. A small amount of water can be dissolved
in unblended gasoline (about 0.2%) before it will drop out of the gasoline as a liquid on the bottom of the tank. The
liquid, mostly water, dropping out of the gasoline mixture is called phase separation. Phase separation in dealing with a
fuel mixture is where a single fuel mixture is no longer one mixed liquid but has become two separated liquids. Water is
the key ingredient to phase separation in gasoline.

On the other hand, ethanol is like a good bird dog, it loves water. Ethanol will mix and bond with water and generally
prefers to mix with water over gasoline. In E10 fuel, the additional ethanol allows about 0.5% water to become dissolved
in the ethanol blended fuel. While the amount of 0.5% seems small, that is 2 ½ times more than just gasoline alone. The
difference now is the phase separated liquid contains ethanol, water and some gasoline components that have dropped to
the bottom of the tank. The phase separation in an ethanol blended gasoline reduces the fuel’s octane rating and the
ability of an engine to burn the fuel.

As phase separation continues in the storage tank of an ethanol blended fuel, the volume of the separated liquid at the
bottom of the tank increases while the remaining upper gasoline layer is declining in its octane rating. Most cars are not
designed to run on either part of the phase separated fuel. If a car has filled-up with phase separated fuel, it could be
stalled at the dispensers. Phase separation is not as common in an E85 fuel because of the larger amounts of water
required to cause the phase separation, but it is possible.

A Good Solvent ~ As a kid I enjoyed taking my dad’s carburetor cleaner and squirting it on Styrofoam packing
peanuts. I could dissolve a small box full of the Styrofoam peanuts into a pile of goo in less than a minute. Dad never
seemed to share my enthusiasm or entertainment with using his carburetor cleaner as a solvent for Styrofoam peanuts for
my amusement. Just like the carburetor cleaner was a good solvent for the Styrofoam peanuts, ethanol is a good solvent
for petroleum-based sediment, particulates and lacquers found in used petroleum fueling systems.

If a fueling system has been used for petroleum in the past and is being considered for storing and dispensing ethanol it
should be cleaned and inspected by a properly insured and reputable company. In the case of an Underground Storage
Tank (UST) in Utah, it will require a State Certified Tank Installer. The inspection should identify any existing or
potential corrosion problems with the tank that could result in a leak. Proper in-line filters are very important to remove
any of the particulates the ethanol may have picked-up from the fueling system. ~ continued on page 4

4
Tanks Under the Ethanol Influence ~ continued from page 3

Final Parting Comments and Other Considerations ~ The decision to sell ethanol containing products should
be thoroughly researched before you make a decision. You may want to consider the cost and peace of mind that
comes with installing a new tank and system designed for storing the ethanol blended fuel. Because of the differences
in gasoline and ethanol, questions on the reliability of tank, line and leak detectors and tests must be resolved by third
party verification. This process is still being developed. The differences in ethanol and gasoline makes using the
proper indicator paste a must for tanks storing ethanol blended fuels when dipping tanks. The use of proper in-line
filters for water and particulates is very important. If your filters are plugging quickly you could have serious
problems with the fuel in your system. Last, but not least, in Utah, you are required to notify the UST Branch before
changing or installing a system for ethanol and biodiesel in an UST.

~ UST INSTALLER AND TECHNICIAN WORKSHOP ~

Installers, technicians, environmental and operational managers, and install
companies are invited to attend the UST Installer and Technician Workshop hosted by
the Utah’s DEQ, UST Section. Some of the topics of discussion will include:
secondary containment requirements, spill bucket testing, sump testing, ABC
registration requirements, UL 971 piping, alternative fuels, and vapor recovery.

Date: Wednesday, March 11, 2009 Location: DERR Building
Room 101
Time: 8:30 a.m. to noon 168 North 1950 West
Salt Lake City, Utah

Please RSVP by contacting Bruce Hagans at [phone] or [e-mail])
or Gary Harris at [phone] or [e-mail].

DON’T LOSE YOUR TANK TAGS

Owner/operators may be assessed a fee of
$25.00 to replace a lost tank tag. The
current year’s tag must be attached to the
fill pipe of each tank. Without a current
tag in place, the delivery of product is
prohibited.

Extension of Stage I Vapor Recovery Requirements
5
On September 3, 2008, the Utah Air Quality Board approved changes to R307-328 (Gasoline Transfer and Storage) that
extended Stage I Vapor Recovery requirements to all counties in the State of Utah. R307-328 requires gasoline transport
vehicles, and the bulk plants and service stations which receive gasoline from them, to capture vapors released during
transfer operations at all facilities where throughput exceeds 10,000 gallons in any one calendar month. Stage I
requirements have been required in Salt Lake and Davis counties since the 1980’s, and in Utah and Weber counties since
1999. This extension of Stage I technology to the entire state is needed to combat the increase of volatile organic
compounds that are being released to the atmosphere during gasoline transfer operations. These compounds are key
elements in the formation of ground level ozone, as well as known Hazardous Air Pollutants (HAPS).

Implementation of this rule change will be phased in over a three-year period to allow dispensing facilities time to plan
equipment purchases and to schedule necessary modifications with qualified installers. The three-year phase in schedule
requires dispensing facilities in Box Elder, Cache, Tooele, and Washington counties to be in compliance with this rule by
April 30, 2009. Facilities located in Emery, Iron, Juab, Millard, Sevier, Summit, and Uintah counties must be in
compliance by April 30, 2010. All facilities in the state must be in compliance not later than April 30, 2011.

If the implementation schedule results in a scheduling and/or financial hardship for an individual facility, that facility may
request an extension from the Executive Secretary of the Utah Air Quality Board. However, a request for an extension
must be documented and contain valid reasons why that facility will not be able to meet the phase-in schedule. The
request must also give a proposed implementation schedule that shows compliance to the rule no later than April 30,
2011. The entire rule may be found at http://www.rules.utah.gov/publicat/code/r307/r307-328.htm.

UTAH DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
DIVISION OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSE AND
REMEDIATION
P.O. BOX 144840
SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH 84114-4840

PRSRT STD
US POSTAGE
PAID
SALT LAKE CITY,
UT
PERMIT #4621
CCeerrttiiffiiccaattiioonn CCoorrnneerr
6
Groundwater and Soil Sampler
Certification Courses

Environmental Contractors, Inc. (ECI)
[phone] by appointment only

Utah Environmental Training (UET)
[phone]
Class schedule link (pdf):
http://www.undergroundtanks.utah.gov/docs/informacion%2
02008.pdf
UST Consultant Certification Program

UST release management, abatement, investigation, or
corrective action must be performed by a Certified UST
Consultant. Consultants must renew their certification
every 2 years. The renewal courses begin at 9:00 a.m. and
finish at 1:00 p.m. For more information, contact Michelle
Horning at [phone] or at [e-mail].

Initial Exam and Renewal Course Schedule
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Thursday, December 10, 2009

Exams and courses take place at the DERR
offices at 168 North 1950 West in Salt Lake