# Fuel Catalyst? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 15, 2001, 11:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuel-catalyst/62054 "2001-04-15T11:51:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Anachronism](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e56c9b/32.png) [@Anachronism](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anachronism)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2001, 11:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuel-catalyst/62054/1 "2001-04-15T11:51:26Z")
In my local motorcycle shop the sell a ‘fuel catalyst’ for $50, it’s two metal looking pellets in a plastic cage about the size of a 35 mm film case. You drop these into your fuel tank and you get more power, better fuel economy, easier starts, better sex life, eat all you want and still loose weight, etc. Here is their pitch on how it works– > [@](#): > > The Fitch catalyst process works in a manner similar to the cracking process used in the petroleum industry to make high octane gasolines. > > Imagine a bell-shaped curve representing the components of the fuel. The most combustible materials are in the middle range and make up the majority of the fuels composition but at either end there are elements that cause ignition problems. The lighter components burn too fast causing pre-ignition and the heaviest components burn slowly causing late ignition resulting in smoke and carbon buildup-- it is these problem components on which the catalyst works. > > Through an electro-chemical reaction the Fitch catalyst converts these lighter and heavier components into energy producers rather than to excess smoke. From this website [http://www.customfuelcatalyst.com/index.htm](http://www.customfuelcatalyst.com/index.htm) it’s a different brand than the one a saw, but they make the same claims. So is this complete BS, does it make an improvement to small to be noticed, or does it :rolleyes: really work? ---
**Author:** ![Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/50afbb/32.png) [@Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duck_Duck_Goose)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2001, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuel-catalyst/62054/2 "2001-04-15T17:29:10Z")
Okay, I’ve been sitting here putting “fitch catalyst” into Google, and all my scam alarms are going off. The only websites that I can find that say yeah, this works, are the ones that are selling it, motorcyle shops included. I find the factoid “tested by the U.S. Department of Energy Oak Ridge Laboratory” widely repeated, however, this doesn’t prove anything, other than the fact that they tested it. The most I can find is this: [http://www.wayfarermarine.com/fitch.html](http://www.wayfarermarine.com/fitch.html) > [@](#): > > Testing by the U. S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory concluded that " . . . it is very clear that the catalyst is changing the fuel composition, and in the direction of higher octane, higher energy-fuel constituents, for all . . . fuels analyzed." (December 12, 1994).\* This is the first and only time that Oak Ridge has confirmed the performance of a product of this type. If you read it carefully, all it really says is that Oak Ridge found that the catalyst does change the fuel composition, **in the direction of** higher energy-fuel constituents. This doesn’t necessarily mean that the resulting brew of low and high-octane “constituents” is going to make your engine run better. Adding an aspirin to the water in a vase changes the constituents, too, but it doesn’t necessarily mean your flowers will last longer. My understanding of the “catalytic cracking process” was that it required specialized equipment to deliver heat and pressure, a factory, refinery, etc., that it wasn’t something where you just drop some kind of metal in and poof! you’ve got instant high-octane fuel. But IANA petroleum engineer, so hey… So personally I’m gonna go with “no, it doesn’t work”, just based on consumer instincts. And think about it–if it did work, wouldn’t it be more mainstream? Wouldn’t we be hearing about it on the news, especially with gas prices inching back up towards $2 a gallon? ---
**Author:** ![Anachronism](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e56c9b/32.png) [@Anachronism](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anachronism)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2001, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuel-catalyst/62054/3 "2001-04-15T18:12:33Z")
Thank you DDG Master of Google, I used Google but didn’t get any sites that debunked the fuel catalyst. I was _very_ skeptical which is why I posted here. ---
**Author:** ![Una\_Persson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/una_persson/32/346_2.png) [@Una\_Persson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Una_Persson)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2001, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fuel-catalyst/62054/4 "2001-04-16T07:27:17Z")
I had exactly the same luck (or lack thereof) as DDG, so I didn’t post. All I got were references that it was _tested_ at Oak Ridge - which itself doesn’t mean anything. I also read many online non-scientific tests, which are not even worth linking here, as they typically came down to such qulaifiers as “the car _seemed_ to run better”, or “the weedeater started in only 2 pulls instead of 4”, etc. I saw no scientific testing at all worth linking to. This in itself does not mean it has no merit, but sends up warning flags. From the site linked by DDG, I saw that they said that “Oak Ridge found that the catalyst does change the fuel composition, in the direction of higher energy-fuel constituents.” I would like to know how this happens - the first law applies to chemical reactions as well as anything else. Barring the addition of heat to the catalyst, I wonder just how the gasoline molecules (yes, I know gasoline is not one molecule, but a whole zoo of them) re-arrange themselves in higher energy configurations. So the short answer is - wait until someone trustworthy tests it.