Is 91 Octane or 95 Octane the More

Efficient Fuel?A science investigation on fuel by Max and Joseph.

Purpose

My friend, Max, and I, Joseph, irde motorbikes. As is predictable, the fuels cost adds up. This can lead up to a huge bill at the end of the month. We believe that there may be another octane fuel that we are able to run in our bikes that will make them ride further and harder. We will be testing if there is a more cost efficient fuel to run or if the regular 91 is the real deal.

Hypothesis

We predict that 95 unleaded will take us the furthest. This is as it has more isooctane than 91, and will knock at a lower density. However, 91 is cheaper, therefore it might mean more cost efficiency.

MethodStep 1:

Obtain the two fuels 91 octane and 95 octane. Fill a measuring glass. Step 2:Using your selected vehicle, fill the tank with 100 ml of the selected fuel. Make sure this is 100 ml only.Step 3: Run the tank dry. Record the distance and speed using a GPS.Step 4: Repeat step 2 and 3 as many times as you like to get the best average results.Step 5:Compare the results against the price. For example, say 91 was $1.00, and 95 was $2.50. 91 went 1.5km on 100 ml, and 95 went 5km on 100 ml. This shows that 95 is more cost efficient by 50%, because 91 only went 1.5 times its price, and 95 went two times its price.

The difference between a lower octane fuel and a higher octane fuel.

You have to look at octane as a part of a family. This family is the hydrocarbon family. Hydro meaning hydrogen. Carbon? Well marshmallows have spots of carbon in them. This is why when you roast a

marshmallow it will only burn in the same spot, it won’t expand.Hydrocarbon is flammable. Hydrocarbon is colourless and boils at about 125 degrees Celsius. A member

of the hydrocarbon family is isooctane. This is used as a standard flammability measure or a ‘benchmark’. The octane is dependent on the isooctane. The isooctane can’t be too low or the fuel will not ignite. You can have high isooctane, but you need heptane to counter that. Isooctane has an octane rating of 100; heptane has an octane rating of 0. It is really just a balancing act. Although it is possible to get an octane rating in fuel that is higher than 100, but we won’t go into that, we are looking, during the

test, at 91 octane fuel and 95 octane fuel.

91 950

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Cents Per KM

Fuel Types

Cents

Cents per Kilometre

Results

ConclusionThe verdict is… 91 octane is cheaper by just under 2 cents per Kilometre. This proves that if you want to be more cost effective when riding your motorbike, use regular old 91 octane instead of 95. However, the statistics show that 95 had a higher top speed of 98kph compared to 91s top speed of 84kph, so if you’re looking for performance, choose a higher octane.

Bibliography: www.PlanetMinis.comwww.Wikipedia.comwww.reddit.com/r/ForumReddit