oEPA EPA/600/R-18/258 | August 2018 | www.epa.gov/research
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Gasoline Composition in the U.S.
from Three Datasets 1976-2017
Office of Research and Development
National Risk Management Research Laboratory | Groundwater, Watershed, and Ecosystem Restoration Division
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Gasoline Composition in the U.S.
from Three Datasets 1976-2017
by
James W. Weaver
U.S. EPA/National Risk Management Research Laboratory,
Groundwater, Watershed, and Ecosystem Restoration Division
Ada, OK 74820
Groundwater, Watershed, and Ecosystem Restoration Division
National Risk Management Research Laboratory
Ada, Oklahoma 74820
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Notice/Disclaimer
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, through its Office of Research and Development,
funded and conducted the research described herein under an approved Quality Assurance
Project Plan (Evaluation of Gasoline Compositional Data and Regulatory Requirements G-
GWERD-0030747). It has been subjected to the Agency's peer and administrative review and
has been approved for publication as an EPA document. Mention of trade names or commercial
products does not constitute endorsement or recommendation for use.
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Foreword
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) is charged by Congress with protecting the
Nation's land, air, and water resources. Under a mandate of national environmental laws, the
Agency strives to formulate and implement actions leading to a compatible balance between
human activities and the ability of natural systems to support and nurture life. To meet this
mandate, US EPA's research program is providing data and technical support for solving
environmental problems today and building a science knowledge base necessary to manage our
ecological resources wisely, understand how pollutants affect our health, and prevent or
reduce environmental risks in the future.
The National Risk Management Research Laboratory (NRMRL) within the Office of Research and
Development (ORD) is the Agency's center for investigation of technological and management
approaches for preventing and reducing risks from pollution that threaten human health and
the environment. The focus of the Laboratory's research program is on methods and their cost-
effectiveness for prevention and control of pollution to air, land, water, and subsurface
resources; protection of water quality in public water systems; remediation of contaminated
sites, sediments and ground water; prevention and control of indoor air pollution; and
restoration of ecosystems. NRMRL collaborates with both public and private sector partners to
foster technologies that reduce the cost of compliance and to anticipate emerging problems.
NRMRL's research provides solutions to environmental problems by: developing and promoting
technologies that protect and improve the environment; advancing scientific and engineering
information to support regulatory and policy decisions; and providing the technical support and
information transfer to ensure implementation of environmental regulations and strategies at
the national, state, and community levels.
This report discusses and summarizes regulations that impact gasoline composition, as an
introduction to a review of major components in historical gasoline samples from major cities
and regions in the United States.
Ann Keeley, Acting Division Director
Groundwater, Watershed, and Ecosystem Restoration Division
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Abstract
Gasoline composition in the U.S. varies due to market, technical and regulatory factors. Technical factors
include seasonal and elevation adjustments for drivability, and needed anti-knock properties. Regulatory
factors derive from the Clean Air Act and its amendments. The Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA) of
1990 created two major types of gasoline in the U.S.: reformulated and conventional gasoline. Since the
implementation of this Act, conventional gasoline has tended to be approximately two-thirds of U.S.
gasoline and is used in rural areas and smaller cities. Major urban areas are required to use
reformulated gasoline (RFG) to meet ozone and carbon monoxide standards and reduce toxic air
pollutants. In addition, the CAAA specified that oxygenated gasoline could be used in certain cities to
meet carbon monoxide standards in winter. Given the combination of technical and regulatory
requirements, and that they have varied over time, the best way to understand the composition of
gasoline at any specific location is to evaluate historical data. In this report, three historical datasets
were used to trace the historical composition of benzene, oxygenates and alcohols in 15 cities or RFG
compliance areas. For the RFG cities, the benzene content dropped when the CAAA mandates went into
effect. The median benzene content was consistently less than 1% after 1995. Typically, methyl tert-
butyl ether (MTBE) was used to meet the requirement for an oxygenated additive until, either a state
ban of ether use was imposed or until MTBE was removed from the fuel supply in 2006. Ethanol use
typically replaced MTBE to meet continuing requirements of RFG. In conventional gasoline, benzene was
not uniformly limited, but producer baselines were developed. Benzene levels typically decreased over
time. When the Mobile Sources Air Toxics Act requirements were imposed in 2011, all U.S. gasoline was
seen to have reduced benzene levels. The ether and alcohol content of conventional gasoline varies
widely, and is best assessed through historical data. This follows because both ethers and alcohols can
be used as octane boosters and they could be used for a variety of market reasons. Oxygenated
gasoline, which can be conventional or reformulated, shows the benzene characteristics of its type. The
ether and alcohol levels vary seasonally prior to the imposition of national requirements for biofuel
usage in 2006 and later years.
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Acknowledgements
The author acknowledges the assistance of several individuals in obtaining access to the gasoline
datasets. First, Robert Anderson and Thomas Boylan of the EPA Office of Transportation and Air Quality
(OTAQ) provided access to publicly-available RFG compliance data. Rafal Sobolowski of OTAQ, and
Sharon Roth and Valeria Ughetta of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers (Alliance), arranged for
access of the Alliance datasets.
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T?dJ' * oi .
Notice/Disclaimer ii
Foreword iii
Abstract iv
Acknowledgements v
List of Figures vii
List of Tables ix
Acronyms and Abbreviations x
I.0 Introduction 11
2.0 Outline of Gasoline Requirements 11
3.0 Leaded Gasoline 13
4.0 Reformulated and Conventional Gasoline 14
4.1 Reformulated Gasoline 14
4.2 Conventional Gasoline 17
5.0 Oxygenated Gasoline 19
6.0 Ethanol Mandates 23
7.0 MTBE Bans 24
8.0 Data and Methods 26
9.0 Data Combination 27
10.0 Results 27
10.1 Reformulated Gasoline 28
10.2 California Reformulated Gasoline 32
10.3 Conventional Gasoline 34
10.4 Oxygenated Gasoline 38
II.0 Conclusions 42
References 43
Appendices 48
Appendix A 48
Conventional Gasoline Cities not appearing in the main text: Denver, Colorado 48
Appendix B 50
Reformulated gasoline areas not appearing in the main text: Baltimore, MD; Boston-Worcester,
MA, Chicago-Lake Co, IL-Gary, IN; Dallas-Fort Worth, TX; Philadelphia, PA—Wilmington, DE—
Trenton, NJ; Portsmouth-Dover, NH; St. Louis, MO; Washington DC area 50
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List of Figures
Figure 1: Data illustrating the phasing out of lead from gasoline in the United States in premium
(top), mid-grade (middle), and regular (bottom). After declining through the 1980s, lead was
completely eliminated by January 1, 1996 by the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 14
Figure 2: Federal reformulated gasoline and state cleaner-burning gasoline programs in the
United States (California, 2003a; Clark County, Nevada, 2003; U.S. CFR, 2005, Title 40,
Part 80, Section 40 U.S. CFR, 2007, Title 40, Part 80, Section 40, U.S Federal Register,
2004). Durations of oxygenate mandates are shown on the legend. All areas not highlighted
on the map use conventional gasoline. Reformulated gasoline is required above 4,500 ft
elevation on Whiteface Mountain in northern New York 18
Figure 3: Amounts of total, conventional and reformulated gasoline produced per week in the
U.S. (EIA, 2018) 19
Figure 4: Oxygenated gasoline programs in the United States. Cities where an oxygenated
additive was, or is, required for winter time gasoline are indicated by triangles and circles,
respectively. Six states have imposed year-round oxygenate mandates 22
Figure 5: Total weekly gasoline production and the total containing ethanol. (data from EIA,
2018) 23
Figure 6: Advertisements at a gasoline station in Oklahoma City, July, 2018, advertising the
availability of ethanol-free gasoline and gasoline with 10% ethanol 24
Figure 7: State MTBE, ether, and/or alcohol bans, showing effective dates and maximum levels
allowed for MTBE. Please refer to Table 9 for full details on other ethers and alcohol 25
Figure 8: Benzene content in RFG from Houston and Galveston, Texas 29
Figure 9: Benzene content in RFG from the New York City area, including New York, New
Jersey, and Connecticut 30
Figure 10: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in Houston-Galveston gasoline 31
Figure 11: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in NY-NY-CT area reformulated gasoline 32
Figure 12: Benzene content in California RFG (Alliance data: North American Auto Alliance,
2018) 33
Figure 13: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in Los Angeles gasoline (Alliance data: North
American Auto Alliance, 2018) 34
Figure 14: Benzene content in Atlanta, GA conventional Gasoline (Alliance data: North
American Auto Alliance, 2018) 35
Figure 15: Benzene content in Seattle, WA conventional Gasoline (Alliance data: North
American Auto Alliance, 2018) 36
Figure 16: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in Atlanta, GA conventional gasoline (Alliance data:
North American Auto Alliance, 2018) 37
Figure 17: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in Seattle, WA conventional gasoline (Alliance data:
North American Auto Alliance, 2018) 38
Figure 18: Benzene content in Phoenix, AZ conventional/oxygenated gasoline (Alliance data:
North American Auto Alliance, 2018) 39
Figure 19: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in Phoenix, AZ conventional/oxygenated gasoline
(Alliance data: North American Auto Alliance, 2018) 40
Figure 20: Median values of oxygenate concentration (MTBE and ethanol) in Phoenix, AZ
conventional/oxygenated gasoline (Alliance data: North American Auto Alliance, 2018). ..41
Figure 21
Figure 22
Figure 23
Figure 24
Benzene content in conventional gasoline from Denver, Colorado 48
Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in Denver, Colorado conventional gasoline 49
Benzene content in reformulated gasoline from the Baltimore, Maryland area 50
Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in reformulated gasoline from the Baltimore,
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Maryland area 51
Figure 25: Benzene content in reformulated gasoline from the Boston-Worcester,
Massachusetts area 52
Figure 26: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in reformulated gasoline from the Boston-
Worcester, Massachusetts 53
Figure 27: Benzene content in reformulated gasoline from the Chicago-Lake Co, Gary Indiana
area 54
Figure 28: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in reformulated gasoline from the Chicago Lake
Co—Gary Indiana area 55
Figure 29: Benzene content in reformulated gasoline from the Dallas-Ft Worth, Texas area 56
Figure 30: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in reformulated gasoline from the Dallas—Ft Worth,
Texas area 57
Figure 31: Benzene content in reformulated gasoline from the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania—
Wilmington, Delaware—Trenton, New Jersey area 58
Figure 32: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in reformulated gasoline from the Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania—Wilmington, Delaware—Trenton, New Jersey area 59
Figure 33: Benzene content in reformulated gasoline from the Portsmouth—Dover, New
Hampshire area. Only data from OTAQ were available 60
Figure 34: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in reformulated gasoline from the Portsmouth
Dover, New Hampshire area. Only data from OTAQ were available 61
Figure 35: Benzene content in reformulated gasoline from the St Louis, Missouri area 62
Figure 36: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in reformulated gasoline from the St. Louis Missouri
area 63
Figure 37: Benzene content in reformulated gasoline from the Washington DC area 64
Figure 38: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in reformulated gasoline from the Washington DC
area 65
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List of Tables
Table 1 Oxygen and benzene requirements for reformulated gasoline 15
Table 2 Oxygen and required amounts of oxygenates to meet requirements of reformulated and
winter oxygenated gasoline. Values given as weight percent 16
Table 3 MTBE and benzene requirements for California cleaner burning gasoline (CBG), given
in units of volume %. California allows refiners to meet standards for each batch of finished
gasoline—the "flat" limit. Alternatively, a refiner can meet standards on an average over
180 days. In the latter case, the averaging limit must be met for all batches and no batch
can exceed an upper/lower limit ("cap"). The lower cap limit of 1.8% in Phase 2 and Phase
3 apply to certain counties in the winter (California, 2003a) 16
Table 4 Selected parameters of the statutory baseline for conventional gasoline (40 CFR 80.91
and 40 CFR 80.45) 17
Table 5 Cities currently implementing the winter oxygenates program (U.S EPA, 2008c) 20
Table 6 State ethanol mandates 21
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Acronyms and Abbreviations
API
American Petroleum Institute
Cal-RFG
California Reformulate Gasoline
CAAA
Clean Air Act Amendments
CG
Conventional Gasoline
EPA
Environmental Protection Agency
EPAct
Energy Policy Act of 2005
EISA
Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007
MTBE
Methyl tert-butyl ether
NIPER
National Institute of Petroleum and Energy Research
OG
Oxygenated Gasoline
OTAQ
Office of Transportation and Air Quality
RFG
Reformulated Gasoline
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i Ifrattion
Gasoline composition has changed throughout the period of extensive automobile use to
balance the needs of ever more powerful engines with environmental concerns. Thus, there has
been a progression of additives and gasoline components ("blending components") that have
contributed to mechanical needs but may have generated environmental concerns. The most
well-known of these are the aromatic and BTEX1 fractions, organic lead, methyl tert-butyl ether
(MTBE) and other ethers, and alcohols. The impact of a given type of gasoline depends on
several factures, not the least is the composition. Is a certain component present above a
threshold or present at all? If gasoline composition didn't vary due to technical factors—season
of the year, elevation—refinery capacity, and oil supply, and the varying regulations by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the states, the answer to this question could be
answered in a straightforward way. Under the framework of the Clean Air Act of 1970 and its
amendments, the states have also imposed requirements on gasoline composition. These have
varied by location and time. So, to answer the question of the composition of leaked gasoline,
historical data provide the best source of information. The purpose of this report is to better
understand gasoline composition through reviewing requirements for gasoline composition by
various regulatory programs and through presenting historical data illustrating the variation in
benzene, MTBE and ethanol for cities across the U.S.
2.0 Outline of Gasoline Requirements
Gasoline is designed to meet performance specifications and regulations based on the Clean Air
Act. The Clean Air Act established the framework for setting nation-wide air quality goals
(NAAQS) for six pollutants. Subsequently, states developed implementation plans (SIPs) to meet
those goals. To date, EPA and states have set goals for six pollutants: sulfur dioxide, particulate
matter, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide (CO), ozone, and lead (Ayres and Kornreich, 2004).
EPA was authorized to require registration and testing of specified fuels and fuel additives (US
Federal Register, 1975, 1976). Because of these requirements, we know MTBE was registered
for use in 1979, ferf-amyl methyl ether (TAME) in 1981, and ethyl ferf-butyl ether (ETBE) in 1981
(Stikkers, 2002). Under authority granted by the Clean Air Act, EPA phased out leaded gasoline
over a period of time that ended on January 1, 1996. The original focus of the Clean Air Act was
to limit emissions through improved vehicle technology. As time went on this approach became
less viable for solving persistent pollution problems, and Congress believed that lead was being
replaced by toxic organic chemicals (Martels, 2004). Consequently, the Clean Air Act
Amendments (CAAA) of 1990 (42 U.S. Code 4701) expanded regulation of fuels to help meet
NAAQs for ozone and carbon monoxide and reduce toxic air pollutants (e.g., benzene).
The CAAA introduced several requirements that have had a major impact on gasoline
composition throughout the United States, beginning with implementation in 1992 and 1995,
and continuing to the present. The most important requirements for Leaking Underground
Storage Tanks (LUST) sites were the total ban on lead in gasoline, and new requirements for
1 BTEX is benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylenes
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three types of gasoline: conventional, reformulated, and oxygenated. Both reformulated
gasoline (RFG) and oxygenated gasoline (OG) required oxygen-containing additives, because the
fuel would burn cleaner. Initially, the most common oxygenate was MTBE. The RFG program
limited the amount of benzene and total aromatics in reformulated gasoline. Since RFG areas
were specified at county or partial-county level or, in a few cases, at the city level, there are
different requirements in adjoining counties. This spatial distinction between RFG and CG might
not be absolute, however, because market forces guide gasoline sales, and there are no
restrictions on selling RFG in CG counties.
Parts of the country not using RFG were also affected by the CAAA because the Act contained an
anti-dumping provision to prevent air quality deterioration in areas using conventional gasoline
(CG). This requirement prevented benzene from being moved out of the RFG and into the CG
supply by establishing benzene concentration limitations from producer/importer baseline
conditions that existed in 1990. An important distinction between CG and RFG is that CG
baseline limitations are applied to producers/importers, while RFG requirements apply to where
the fuel is used. Historically, at a given location the benzene concentration in CG was usually
variable and not very predictable. In 2011 the Mobile Sources Air Toxics rule (U. S. Federal
Register, 2007) reduced benzene levels in all gasoline to an average of 0.62%.
In response to concerns with ground water contamination, a number of state legislatures
banned MTBE and, in some cases, other ethers and alcohols, beginning in 2000. These state
bans did not affect federal oxygen requirements for RFG and OG, however, so MTBE typically
was replaced by ethanol. In 2005, Congress passed the Energy Policy Act (EPAct 2005) which
removed the oxygenate mandate from the RFG program. Gasoline suppliers responded by
reducing the use of MTBE and other ethers.
A composition-related aspect of gasoline is octane number. Some gasoline - called straight run
gasoline - is a direct output from distilling crude oil, but its octane number is too low to prevent
engine knock in modern engines. Therefore, the octane number is boosted in a number of ways.
These commonly include the use of alkyl leads, aromatic hydrocarbons, ethers, alkylate and
alcohols (Owen and Coley, 1995). Shifts among these have occurred, partly due to laws and
regulations that address different goals (see e.g., Stikkers, 2002). Only small amounts of certain
additives, 1 g/L or less of alkyl leads or 0.017 g/L methylcyclopentadienyl manganese tricarbonyl
(MMT), are needed to increase octane levels from 5 to 25 octane numbers, depending on the
blendstock (Owen and Coley, 1995). Blending higher amounts of some organic compounds also
increases resistance to engine knock, but their levels typically must be one percent or higher. In
1979, MTBE was registered as an octane enhancer, so it may have appeared in gasoline for
octane purposes even when there was no regulatory mandate for oxygenated additives. This has
been borne out by gasoline composition studies in which MTBE appeared in CG when it was not
required (Weaver et al., 2005), and as seen the results below.
Timing of the mandates varied according to federal requirements or state implementation
plans. Nationally, the RFG program had an implementation date of January 1, 1995, so RFG
began appearing on the market in late 1994. Opt-out and opt-in provisions allowed areas to
enter or leave the programs at different times. The oxygenated gasoline program began in the
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fall of 1992. Since it specified oxygenated fuel to be used only during a few months in winter,
there was a characteristic pattern of oxygenate usage in these locations. Where NAAQs for CO
were met later, implementation plans were revised to remove oxygenated gasoline
requirements; for example, see U. S. Federal Register (1999, 2000) for an example from New
York State.
3.0 Leaded Gasoline
Use of lead in gasoline declined throughout the 1980s (Figure 1) and this phasing out
contributed to the rise in use of ether in gasoline (Stikkers, 2002). Averaged data from
NIPER/Northrup-Grumman show that lead usage was highest in premium gasoline and, on
average, lower in mid-grade and regular gasoline. For example, Figure 1 shows that in 1978,
premium gasoline contained at least 1 g/gal, mid-grade at least 0.5 g/gal, and regular may have
contained no lead at all. After reaching levels as high as 4 g/gallon, by 1986 most lead was
reduced to concentrations of 1 g/gallon. Complete removal of lead was mandated by the Clean
Air Act Amendments of 1990, and occurred on January 1, 1996. Lead can still be used, however,
in aviation gasoline and racing fuel.
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5 —i
Premium (>90 Octane)
1976 1978 1980 1982 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998
5 —i
Mid Grade (88.5 < Octane < 90)
1976 1978 1980 1982 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998
5
CO 4
D)
D) 3
Regular (<88.5 Octane)
~a 2
CO
1
~~
0
1976 1978 1980 1982 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998
Year
Figure 1: Data illustrating the phasing out of lead from gasoline in the United States in premium (top), mid-
grade (middle), and regular (bottom). After declining through the 1980s, lead was completely eliminated by
January 1, 1996 by the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990.
4.0 Reformulated and Conventional Gasoline
4.1 Reformulated Gasoline
EPA defines reformulated gasoline as gasoline that is certified to meet requirements and
standards specified in U.S CFR, 2007, Title 40, Part 80, Section 42. The requirements varied
during four time periods: 1995-1997; 1998-1999; 2000 to May 5, 2006; and May 5, 2006 to the
present (April 24, 2006 in California, see U.S. EPA, 2006). Although other requirements of RFG
changed over these times, the required oxygen content and benzene limitation did not change
until the Energy Policy Act passed in 2005 (Table 1). The oxygen requirement was removed in
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California effective April 24, 2006, and in the rest of the U.S. effective May 5, 2006. Beginning in
2011, benzene content in all U.S. gasoline was reduced to 0.62 vol % to comply with the Mobile
Sources Air Toxics Rule (U.S. Federal Register, 2007).
As shown in Table 1, standards were met on either an averaged or per-gallon basis. Using
average basis, oxygen concentration in a gallon may have been as low as 1.5 wt %, but had to
average 2.1 wt %. The total oxygen content could have been limited to 3.2 wt % when gasoline
contained ethanol (U.S. CFR, 2007, Title 40, Part 80, Section 41 (g)(i)).
Table 1 Oxygen arid benzene requirements for reformulated gasoline.
Component Effective Dates RFG Content Requirements
Per-gallon Averaged Basis
Basis Standard Limit
Oxygen (weight percent) 1995 to May 5, 2005 > 2.0 > 2.1 > 1.5
May 5, 2005 to present none none none
Benzene (volume percent)* 1995 through 2010 <1.00 <0.95 <1.30
*After Jan 1, 201 all gasoline must meet an annual average benzene content standard of 0.65%
(Vol) and after Jan 1, 2012 a maximum average benzene standard of 1.3 vol % must be met.
The amounts of various ethers and ethanol that were needed to meet the oxygen requirement
are shown in Table 2; for example, a gallon of gasoline containing 11.0 vol % MTBE met the per
gallon oxygen requirement of 2.0 wt %. If the producers chose to meet the standard on an
averaged basis, there could have been compliant gasoline with MTBE content as low as 8.25 vol
%. Thus, while a gallon of gasoline containing 11.0 vol % MTBE clearly complied with the
standard, gasoline containing less than 11.0 vol % could comply in two ways. First, if the
producer chose to meet the standard on an average basis and the batch met the 2.1 wt %
oxygen requirement, then the fuel was compliant. The second was when more than one
oxygenate was present: any single oxygenate could be present in a relatively low concentration,
but the total oxygen supplied by all compounds had to meet the requirement. Similarly, RFG
containing 1.0 vol% benzene complied with the per-gallon basis. One specific gallon of gasoline
containing 1.30 vol % benzene could be compliant if the producer met the standard using the
average basis.
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Table 2 Oxygen and required amounts of oxygenates to meet requirements of reformulated and winter oxygenated
gasoline. Values given as weight percent.
Required Oxygenate Concentration
RFG Winter Oxygenate
Per-gallon Averaged Basis 2.7% 3.1% oxygen
Basis Standard Minimum oxygen required
2.0% 2.1% L5% required
Weight percent of oxygen
Common Oxygenates and Required Content to Meet Oxygen Requirements
Methyl tert-butyl ether
11.0%
11.6%
8.25%
14.9%
17.1%
Ethyl te/t-butyl ether
12.75%
13.4%
9.6%
17.2%
19.8%
7e/t-amyl methyl ether
12.75%
13.4%
9.6%
17.2%
19.8%
Diisopropyl ether
12.75%
13.4%
9.6%
17.2%
19.8%
Ethanol
5.8%
6.0%
4.3%
5.4%
6.2%
State Cleaner Burning Gasoline Programs
Three states, Arizona, California and Nevada, have implemented cleaner burning gasoline (CBG)
programs. A summary of requirements for California's program are given in Table 3. Arizona
requires cleaner burning gasoline in the Phoenix area (U.S. Federal Register, 2004), and Nevada
requires the same for the Las Vegas area (Clark County, Nevada, 2003). Arizona's cleaner
burning gasoline matches the characteristics of either federal RFG or California CBG. Nevada
imposes limits on sulfur and aromatic composition.
Table 3 MTBE and benzene requirements for California cleaner burning gasoline (CBG), given in units of volume %.
California allows refiners to meet standards for each batch of finished gasoline—the "flat" limit. Alternatively, a
refiner can meet standards on an average over 130 days. In the latter case, the averaging limit must be met for all
batches and no batch can exceed an upper/lower limit ("cap"). The lower cap limit of 1.8% in Phase 2 and Phase 3
apply to certain counties in the winter (California, 2003a).
Component
Phase 1
January, 1992
flat
Phase 2
March, 1996
avg
cap
Phase 3
January, 2004
flat avg
cap
Oxygen content 1.8%-2.3%
Benzene 1.7%
1.8% - 2.2% n/a
1.0%
0.80%
1.8%-3.5%
0% - 3.5%
1.20%
1.8% - 2.2%
0.80%
n/a 1.8%-3.5%
0 %- 3.5%
0.70% 1.10%
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nventional Gasoline
Conventional gasoline is gasoline that has not been certified as RFG (i.e., meeting the U.S. CFR,
2007, Title 40, Part 80, Section 41 requirements), but it must meet requirements of anti-
dumping provisions of the CAAA (U.S. CFR, 2007, Title 40, Part 80, Section 90 and following
sections). These were designed to prevent increased average per-gallon emissions of volatile
organic compounds, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide and toxic air pollutants, in addition to
requirements imposed on reformulated gasoline (CAAA Sec 211(k)(8)). Baselines for each refiner
and producer were set, using their production/importation for 1990, or by statutory baseline
with a benzene content of 1.53 vol % for winter and 1.64 vol % for summer (U.S. CFR, 2007, Title
40, Part 80, Section 91(c)(5) and Section 45, (b)(2)). Other features of the statutory baseline are
given in Table 4. Because of different producer baselines, benzene content of gasoline in
conventional gasoline areas can vary. Recent EPA studies have shown benzene content in
conventional gasoline ranged from 0.5 vol % to 3.0 vol % or in very limited instances to 5%
(Weaver et al., 2005)..
Table 4 Selected parameters of the statutory baseline far conventional gasoline (40 CFR 80.91 and 40 CFR 80.45).
Parameter
Winter
40CFR 80.91(c)(5)(i)
40CFR 80.45(b)(2)
Summer
40CFR 80.91(c)(5)(ii)
40CFR 80.45(b)(2)
Average
40CFR 80.91(c)(5)!ii)
Benzene (vol %)
Aromatics (vol %)
Olefins'*' (vol %)
Reid Vapor Pressure
(psi)
API Gravity'**' (°API)
I.64
26.4
II.9
8.7
1.53
32
9.2
8.7
60.2 57.4
'''Olefins are also known as alkenes
'**' API Gravity (°API) is defined by:
1.60
28.6
10.8
8.7
59.1
API Gravity =
141.5
Specific Gravity
- 131.5
A map of locations required to use federal reformulated and conventional gasoline is shown in
Figure 2. The map shows that RFG has been used in the northeast corridor, large Midwestern
cities, Arizona and California. It also shows that geographically, most of the U.S. uses
conventional gasoline. For the majority of counties using RFG, the RFG oxygenate mandate was
in force from January 1, 1995 to May 5, 2006. Detailed exceptions to these dates are given on
the figure.
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^3 State Cleaner Burning Gasoline (CBG)
Federal Oxygenate Reqiirement Duration
I 1 1.1.95 to 3.10.99
I I 1.1.95 to 4.24.06
I 1 1.1.95 to 5.5.06
I 1 6.1.96 to 4.24.06
I 1 8.1.97 to 6.18.98
I 1 6.1.99 to 5.5.06
I I 1210.02to4.24.06
I I None
0 200 400 600 800 1000 Kim
Figure 2: Federal reformulated gasoline and state cleaner-burning gasoline programs in the United States (California, 2003a; Clark County, Nevada, 2003; U.S.
CFR, 2005, Title 40, Part 80, Section 40 U.S. CFR, 2007, Title 40, Part 80, Section 40, U.S Federal Register, 2004). Durations of oxygenate mandates are shown
on the legend. All areas not highlighted on the map use conventional gasoline. Reformulated gasoline is required above 4,500 ft elevation on Whiteface Mountain
in northern New York.
18
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
The total gasoline production in the U.S. is thus split between conventional and reformulated
(Figure 3). The trend in gasoline production has been upward through the period from 1990 to
2018, with a notable leveling off associated with the economic crisis of 2008. Production follows
an annual cycle with higher production associated with higher demand in the summertime. The
first reformulated gasoline was produced in late 1994 and quickly rose to approximately one-
third of U.S. gasoline production. This ratio has remained approximately the same overtime,
although reformulated gasoline plateaued in 2008.
Total2000
2"
m
0)
£ 10000
f/i
C
O
"(5
bo
c 8000
CD
t/1
D
O
-C
¦M
g 6000
"¦P
u
3
"D
0
1 4000
£
"o
(A
HI
2000
0
0>
§
o
1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 2022
Year
Figure 3: Amounts of total, conventional and reformulated gasoline produced per week in the U.S. (ElA,
2018).
5.0 Oxygenated Gasoline
The Clean Air Act Amendments (42 U.S.C. 7545, m, 1) required states to mandate at least 2.7 wt
% oxygen in gasoline sold in areas where carbon monoxide standards were not attained. This
requirement was imposed for at least four months of the year when ambient CO concentrations
were highest. EPA could reduce the duration if a state demonstrated there were no
exceedances of the carbon monoxide standard. If a carbon monoxide standard was not attained
by a required date, gasoline containing 3.1% oxygen by weight was required.
The program began in late fall 1992 in 39 areas, with one more added in 1993. Six cities began
winter oxygenate programs earlier - in the 1989/1990 winter season: Denver, Colorado; Reno
and Las Vegas, Nevada; Tucson and Phoenix, Arizona; and Albuquerque, New Mexico (Stikkers,
Conventional
Reformulated
-Total
"Conventional
-Reformulated
19
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
2001). Table 5 lists the nine areas still in the program to the present, along with their required
oxygen content and effective months. Detailed lists of the exit dates for cities that have left the
program are given in Weaver et al. (2010).
Table 5 Cities currently implementing the winter oxygenates program (US EPA, 2008c).
Control Area (Consolidated Metropolitan Oxygen Content
Period Statistical Area) (wt %)
10/1 to 1/31 Reno, NV 3.5
10/1 to 3/31 El Paso, TX 2.7
Las Vegas, NV 3.5
Reno, NV 3.5
Tucson, AZ 1.8
11/1 to 2/29 Albuquerque, NM 2.7
Missoula, MT 2.7
Los Angeles, CA 1.8 to 2.2
11/2 to 3/31 Phoenix, AZ 3.5
20
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
»State ethanol mandates.
State
Ethanol
Requirement
Vol %
Effective Date
Citation
Florida
Hawaii
Minnesota
Missouri
Oregon
Washington
9 to 10;
Repealed 2013
10
2.7
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
Gulf of Mexico
Alaska
X//\ State ethanol requirement
Winter oxygenate requirement
® Current Cities
& Past Cities
Hawaii
Figure 4: Oxygenated gasoline programs in the United States. Cities where an oxygenated additive was, or is, required for winter time gasoline are indicated by
triangles and circles, respectively. Six states have imposed year-round oxygenate mandates.
22
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6.0 Ethanol Mandates
EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
Five states have continuing state-wide oxygenate mandates (Table 6). Each of the state
requirements differ, but the required ethanol contents do not exceed the federal limit of 10%.
Montana imposed a conditional requirement for using ethanol in gasoline, in conjunction with a
ban on MTBE (Montana, 2005). The ethanol mandate was repealed in 2017 (Montana, 2018).
The Florida requirement for ethanol was rescinded in 2009.
The federal Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) was created by the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and
extended by the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. It requires the replacement of
petroleum fuel by renewable fuels which can be conventional, advanced or cellulosic. The
program established renewable fuel targets for each year until 2020. The current target for 2020
is 36 billion gallons (EPA, 2018). For conventional vehicles, ethanol is approved at concentration
of up to 10%. Because the refining of gasoline produces a petroleum product that is intended to
be used with 10% ethanol, ethanol is typically seen in gasoline at 10% by volume. By mid-2018,
90% of gasoline in the U.S. was formulated with ethanol (Figure 5). Although the majority of U.S.
gasoline is formulated for use withl0% ethanol, there are places where non-ethanol gasoline is
available (Figure 6). These are located in states without ethanol mandates, such as Oklahoma.
12000
-St
0)
a>
3
10000
ni
oo
c 8000
•
CD
a>
4000 -
¦g" 2000 -
0
"Total
-Ethanol Gasoline
1990 1994 1998
2002
2006
Year
2010 2014 2018 2022
Figure 5: Total weekly gasoline production and the total containing ethanol. (data from EIA, 2018).
23
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
qnNa
Figure 6: Advertisements at a gasoline station in Oklahoma City, July 2018, advertising the availability of
ethanol-free gasoline and gasoline with 10% ethanol.
7.0 MTBE Bans
Beginning in 2000, Twenty-seven states, two counties, and one city banned MTBE or ether
oxygenates in gasoline (Figure 7). Three states have imposed absolute bans, while most allow
some MTBE to remain in gas (Weaver et al. 2010, Table 9). In 17 states, the level was 0.5%,
while in others ranged from 0.05% in California to 1% in Nebraska. Six states banned MTBE and
other oxygenates which included the other gasoline oxygenate ethers2. The bans did not affect
requirements to use reformulated or oxygenated-gasoline, but did cause a shift to another
oxygenate. Data presented below show that the primary substitute was ethanol. Dates and
specific requirements for each MTBE-banning state are given by Weaver et al. (2010).
2 ethyl tert-butyl ether (ETBE); tert-amyl methyl ether (TAME); diisopropyl ether (DIPE); and alcohols,
mostly tert-butyl alcohol (TBA)
24
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
01 f'04
Washington
Montanta
01706
Maine
01/07
North Dakota
08/05
Minnesota
07/00
Hampshire
Wisconsin
08/04
01 07
South Dakota
07,01
01/04
New York
Vermont
01/07
Michigan
El Dorado
County C
041000 , . v Wa$hoe
County NV
12/03
i; •,u 3
Rhode Island
06/07
Connecticut 01/04
Nebraska
07 00
Chicago^ \ Ohio
12/00 I I 07/05
Indi
Illinois ( 07/04
07/04
01/06
Kentucky
New Jersey 01.09
Colorado
0402
Kansas
07/04
California
12'03
North Carolina
01/08
Arizona
2005
Atlantic
Ocean
Pacific
Ocean
Guff of Mexico
A V - 3
not to scale
Total MTBE ban or not
greater than
I 10,05 voi%
I 10.3 vol%
I 10.5 vol%
| 10.6 vol%
I 11.0 vol%
I I Total MTBE ban
I I Trace amounts only
| | No ban
Figure 7: State MTBE, ether, and/or alcohol bans, showing effective dates and maximum levels allowed for MTBE. Please refer to Table 9 for full details on other
ethers and alcohol.
25
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ethods
EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
Data were obtained from three surveys: the National Institute of Petroleum and Energy Research (NIPER) and
its successors (e.g., American Petroleum Institute (API), Northrop-Grumman), the Alliance of Automobile
Manufacturers (Alliance), and the U.S. EPA Office of Transportation and Air Quality (OTAQ) in collaboration with
industry (i.e., API, National Petroleum Refiners Association). In the next two sections, data from these three
sources were compared to the regulatory time lines. First was the NIPER data set (e.g., Dickson, 2006), which
published results from an industry consortium that has collected data since the 1930s. This company was the
latest successor to the well-known NIPER. Its analyses were performed using ASTM standard methods for
analysis of aromatics, ethers and alcohols. Northrup-Grumman data from 1976-2009 were obtained in an
electronic format. From the late 1930s until 2009, NIPER and its successors collected and distributed gasoline
survey data. The cities included and the parameters measured varied throughout time. Formerly the successors
to NIPER distributed electronic data for the summer of 1976 through the winter of 2010. As many as 174 cities
were included at various times. About 35 of the cities included have fairly complete records for the period of
1990 to 2010.
The second data source was the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers (Alliance), and their data were used with
permission. The data developed by the Alliance represents snapshots of retail fuel collected from retail service
stations located in North American cities and do not represent a statistical or market based survey (North
American Fuel Survey, 2018). The cities and specific service stations can vary from survey to survey. In
accordance an agreement with the Alliance only data for conventional gasoline and California RFG were used
from their sources, as no other data source covers these in later years. The primary presentation of all the data
are as a minimum, median and maximum for each survey date.
The third source was data generated by the Reformulated Gasoline Survey Association (RFGSA). The RFGSA is a
non-profit trade association that was formed through a collaboration of the American Petroleum Institute(API),
the National Petroleum Refiners Association (NPRA) and EPA. Since 1995, RFGSA has conducts surveys of RFG
required by the Clean Air Act and reports the results to EPA for evaluation of RFG compliance. EPA supplied a
publicly-available version of RFGSA data which spanned the time period from 1995 to 2017.
The RFGSA survey designs utilize an aerial-based random sampling methodology with probability proportional to
size to generate samples that represent the fuel sold without bias. Thus, the quantity of samples follow from the
regulatory program—here reformulated gasoline and coordination between industry and EPA (RGSA, 2018).
California is not included in these surveys because of its exemptions under the Clean Air Act. So the California
data below was selected from NIPER and Alliance data.
To assess gasoline composition in locations around the U.S., the data were compiled for:
• Conventional gasoline cities of
a. Atlanta, GA
b. Denver, CO
c. Phoenix, AZ
d. Seattle, WA
• Federal RFG areas of
a. NY-NJ-Long Is.-CT
b. Baltimore, MD
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
c.
Boston-Worcester, MA
d.
Chicago-Lake Co., IL; Gary, IN
e.
Dallas-Fort Worth, TX
f.
Houston-Galveston, TX
g-
Philadelphia, PA-Wilmington, DE-Trenton, NJ
h.
Portsmouth-Dover, NH
i.
St. Louis, MO
j-
Washington, D.C.-area
Cal-RFG
a. Los Angeles
The CG cities cover the east and west, high-elevation, and winter-oxygenate cities. Seattle is included as the
Pacific Northwest was known to have historic elevated benzene levels. NIPER and Alliance data were used
because OTAQ does not supply CG compliance data to the public. Most of the major east-coast federal RFG
cities (Baltimore, Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Washington) were included as were the midwestern and Texas
cities included in the program (Chicago, St. Louis, Dallas, and Houston). NIPER and OTAQ data were combined
for these cities. Los Angeles was the sole Cal-RFG city included in the study because it had the only complete
data set (NIPER and Alliance). California areas are not included in the Federal RFG compliance surveys, so OTAQ
data were not available.
9.0 Data Combination
The data were combined using a custom-written java program. The program reads each available instance of
each survey and combines the three data sets based on location, which is done in two ways: by city name for CG
and Cal RFG cities, and by RFG compliance region. This process is straightforward for NIPER and Alliance data
from CG and Cal RFG cities, as the city names were recorded in a similar way (i.e., New York City versus New
York). Combining OTAQ data NIPER data, however, requires that the RFG regions be assigned to cities within the
NIPER data set. In both cases, a list of equivalent location (city and RFG compliance region) names were
developed for combining the data.
The surveys also differed in parameters reported and their nomenclature. For example, NIPER reported the
month and year of the survey, while OTAQ reported a date, and Alliance reported either summer or winter.
Because the main purpose was to differentiate summer and winter survey results, NIPER data were assigned to
the 15th day of the collection month, and Alliance data were either assigned to January 15 or July 15. Some
parameters (MTBE, ethanol, and others) were reported either as percent by weight or percent by volume. As the
data were processed all of the percent by weight values were converted to percent by volume, either by using
the actual or an averaged fuel density.
10,0 Results
Cities were selected for discussion to highlight characteristics of reformulated, California-reformulated,
conventional, and oxygenated gasoline. These were selected from the list given in Section 3. Data from the cities
not specifically discussed below are presented in Appendix A.
27
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b" it \ efcnur'fated Gasoline
EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
Data from NIPER and OTAQ patterns in reformulated gasoline. The Houston-Galveston and NY-NJ-CT areas are
used as examples, while data from the other RFG areas are presented in Appendix A. The pre-1995 data were
drawn from the NIPER data (dashed lines), and OTAQ data (solid lines) extend the time range through 2017. The
data are presented as minimum, median, and maximum values in each survey. The median values establish the
general trends. The minimum and maximum define the limits of what was observed, and represent single
values. They were chosen to represent the single-valued extremes of gasoline that could have been leaked.
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s the median concentration of benzene in Houston-Galveston gasoline ranged
from 0.67 to 1.67% (Figure 8). Median concentrations above 1% do not appear after 1995, due to the Clean Air
Act Amendments. Because the requirements can be met by average, rather than each individual sample, there
were samples with higher concentration, including some with concentration of about 5.5%. NY-NJ-CT area
gasoline followed a similar pattern with the median benzene concentration dropping and staying below 1% after
the implementation of the RFG program in 1995. After the imposition of the MSAT benzene requirement of
<0.62% in 2011, the median benzene in Houston-Galveston was less than 0.535% and that of NY-NJ-CT less than
<0.73%.
28
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
1970
Houston
— 1 NIPER Benzene-Minimum
— NIPER Benzene-Median
— NIPER Benzene-Maximum
M OTAQ Benzene-Minimum
M OTAQ Benzene-Median
B OTAQ Benzene-Maximum
1980
1990
2000
2010
2020
Year
Figure 8: Benzene content in RFG from Houston and Galveston, Texas.
29
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
Benzene NY-NJ-CT
?5
:§
a) 4
c
ISI
c
07
to 3
f
H
I I *
*
!;!
P** I
1 I I 1
>4! I
11
6
*
1970
1980
' NIPER 8enzene>-Mifi«nrium
¦ ~— NiPEft &en«ne-Med»on
- <*- NIPER BtrtMne-Mtaimum
• • OTAQ Benzene-Mrfiirryiw
• OTaQ. &cnicne-Median
OTAQ Bentene-MaKimum
1990
2000
2010
2020
Year
Figure 9: Benzene content in RFG from the New York City area, including New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut.
Prior to the EPAct removal of the oxygenate mandate from RFG, MTBE was the dominant oxygenate in Houston-
Galveston area gasoline (Figure 10). The median concentration of MTBE was around 11% (as required) prior to
2006. Because other oxygenates were sometimes used, the total oxygenate content may have been provided by
other compounds (not shown). NIPER data (dashed lines) show usage of MTBE prior to the 1995 start of RFG
program, as MTBE, in addition to the later regulatory mandate, MTBE serves as an octane enhancer (Stikkers,
2002). In 2006 MTBE was removed from the gasoline supply. After that time, ethanol was used to boost octane
and help meet requirements of RFG, although a specific amount of oxygenate was not required. The EPAct did,
however, require use of biofuels at levels up to 10%.
NY-NJ-CT area gasoline shows a more complex picture in two ways (Figure 11). First, this area participated in the
oxygenated gasoline program from its inception in 1992 until it 1999 (NJ) and 2000 (NY and CT). Under the
oxygenated gasoline program, the oxygenate was required in the winter and not the summer, hence the data
show fluctuating MTBE concentration from 1992 to 1995. From 1995 to 2000, the median MTBE is around 11%.
Some oxygenate was supplied by other ethers during this time (not shown). The second feature that New York
and Connecticut banned MTBE in 2004 while New Jersey did not until 2009 (Figure 7). Thus, in this data set MTB
use is seen to continue from the date of the New York and Connecticut bans in 2004 until it was removed from
the fuel supply in 2006. New Jersey samples showing MTBE usage, while New York and Connecticut samples
showed ethanol use. This is one of the few examples of a data set showing use of both MTBE and ethanol as an
artifact of the sample area, rather than an indication of simultaneous use of MTBE and ethanol. Detailed
characterization studies show that the two are not used together in individual gasolines (Weaver et al. 2005).
30
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
Houston-Galveston
MTBE
Ethanol
-<¦- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Minimum
-«¦- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Median
— -0- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Maximum
— NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Median
— NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
• OtAQMTBE Vol %-Minimum
• OTAQVol %-Median
• OTAQMTBE Vol %-Maximum
* OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
* OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
* OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Median
o
1985
1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015
Year
1
2020
Figure 10: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in Houston-Galveston gasoline.
31
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
MTBE
Ethanol
NY-NJ-CT
1985 1990
1995
2000 2005
Year
2010 2015
2020
NIPER MTBE Vol SS-Minimuin
NIȣR MTBE Vol %-MediBn
— fl— NlPiR MTBE Vol %-Maxirnum
NIP-ER Etfwnol Vol VMinlmom
— — NlPER ftti#noi Vol H'Meditn
— NiPER Ettunof Vol %-Mtoimum
¦ ~ 'OTAQMTBE Vol %-Minimu-m
t OTAQ MTM Vol VMcdlw
» QTAQ MTBE Vol ^-Maximum
—*—OTAQEthnnol Vol K-Minfmum
m OTAQ Ethanol Vol H-Maxlmum
* OTAQ Vol VMedian
Figure 11: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in NY-NY-CT area reformulated gasoline.
10.2 California Reformulated Gasoline
Los Angeles gasoline data are contained in the NIPER and Alliance data sets, and is used here as an example of
California reformulated gasoline. Because California does not participate in the RFG surveys, OTAQ data does
not cover Los Angeles or California. Los Angeles showed higher median benzene than New York or Houston
(Figure 12), prior to the imposition of RFG requirements in 1995, which reduced the median benzene to below
1%. The Alliance stopped including benzene data after 2013, so later data are not available. Certain counties in
California (including the Los Angeles area) are subject to Federal RFG requirements and the state cleaner
burning gasoline program. As for New York, Los Angeles was in the oxygenated gasoline program from 1992 to
until the present, thus in the period from 1992 to 1995 the median MTBE content fluctuated seasonally (dashed
red line on Figure 13). California banned MTBE in 2003 and MTBE disappeared from Los Angeles gasoline.
Ethanol was in use in this gasoline at median concentration of around 5.5% from 2003 to 2010, and at median
concentration of 10% thereafter.
32
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
7
o4
c 3
m
CO
0
1970
Los Angeles, CA
! II
* «!
Li !•?*!
V 9 ^ v
©
i
n
H
H
•n
l{\
i i ®
r
i«r
* Alliance Benzene-Minimum
* Alliance Benzene-Median
* Alliance Benzene-Maximum
— ^ — NIPER Benzene-Minimum
— NIPER Benzene-Median
-»*•— NIPER Benzene-Maximum
••J?
.V ft
.f'VW , i'i «
; i
1980
1990
2000
2010
2020
Year
Figure 12: Benzene content in California RFG (Alliance data: North American Auto Alliance, 2018).
33
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
18
16
14
sp
0s-
I
12
c 10
T3 8
C
<0
6
2
0
Los Angeles, CA
Ethanol
MTBE
1,1 ^
I»• d'
iliHt
Hi !•
• Alliance MTBE Vol %-Minimum
• Alliance MTBE Vol %-Median
0 Alliance MTBE Vol %-Maximum
- IMIPER MTBE Vol %-Minimum
- IMIPER MTBE Vol %-Median
- a- IMIPER MTBE Vol %-Maximum
* Alliance Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
* Alliance Ethanol Vol %-Median
t Alliance Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
- IMIPER Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Median
- NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020
Year
Figure 13: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in Los Angeles gasoline (Alliance data: North American Auto Alliance, 2018).
10.3 Conventional Gasoline
Conventional gasoline, which is by definition not reformulated, did not have an across-the-board benzene
limitation prior to the implementation of the MSAT in 2011. Producer baselines determined the allowable
benzene from each refinery (Table 4). Thus, the benzene in use at a specified city could be include products from
several refineries, each with a different baseline. Cities like Atlanta and Seattle (Figure 14 and Figure 15), had
varying levels of benzene that have generally decreased over time. Seattle and the Pacific Northwest in general
had higher levels of benzene that the rest of the U.S. In each of these cities the benzene levels were at or below
0.6% from 2011 to the end of the available data in 2013. Oxygenated additives were not required in
conventional gasoline and the usage of MTBE (and other oxygenates) varied greatly, but typically at lower levels
than mandated for RFG or OG (Figure 16 and Figure 17). Atlanta showed consistent usage through 2005, and
Seattle's usage was more sporadic. Ethanol came into consistent use at about 10% by volume in these cities
after the EPAct mandated biofuel use on a nationwide basis.
34
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
4
3.5
3
_ 2.5
o
o> 2
c
0)
M
c
Q)
<° 1.5
0.5
0
1970
1980
Atlanta
k Alliance Benzene-Median
A Alliance Benzene-Minimum
* Alliance Benzene-Maximum
— NIPER Benzene-Minimum
— <•— IMIPER Benzene-Median
— NIPER Benzene-Maximum
1990
2000
2010
2020
Year
Figure 14: Benzene content in Atlanta, GA conventional Gasoline (Alliance data: North American Auto Alliance, 2018).
35
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
5
£
Q) 3
c
-------
EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
14
12
10
£
o 8
c
m
T5
C
CO
Atlanta, GA
0
MTBfc
Ethanol
ill,''
* Alliance Ethanol Vol ^Minimum
* Alliance Ethanol Vol %-Med i&n
—A— Alliance Ethanol Vol %-Maaimum
¦ #— NiPEft Ethanol Vat ^-Minimum
¦ *— NiPEft Ethiwiol Vol %-Medtan
* •- NIPER Ethwol Vol %-MaxirtMjm
i Alliance MT&E Vol H-Minimym
» Alliance MTBE Vol %-Medtan
* Alliance MTBE Vol *irMaximum
¦ ¦- NIPER MTBE Vol ^-Minimum
•>«— NIPER MTBE Vol %-Medlan
' 9- NlP|R MT86 Vol H-Mwimgm
vV"^
1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020
Year
Figure 16: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in Atlanta, GA conventional gasoline (Alliance data: North American Auto Alliance,
2018).
37
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
14
Seattle, WA
MTBE
12
Ethanol
10
F
£
IE8
Alliance Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
Alliance Ethanol Vol %-Median
Alliance Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
— * — NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Median
— NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
LU
CO
- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Minimum
I-
5
- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Median
4
- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Maximum
2
2005 2010 2015 2020
i ¦¦Uai&iiflima in
1990 1995 2000
0
1980
1985
Year
Figure 17: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in Seattle, WA conventional gasoline (Alliance data: North American Auto
Alliance, 2018).
10.4 Oxygenated Gasoline
Phoenix has participated in the oxygenated gasoline program and requires oxygenated gasoline from November
through the end of March (Table 5). As a conventional gasoline city, the benzene content followed a similar
pattern as Atlanta and Seattle—showing a decrease over time and reduction to a median of 0.4% after the
imposition of the MSAT requirements (Figure 18). Both ethanol and MTBE were in use prior to 2005, and these
fluctuated seasonally (Figure 19). When only the median values are shown (Figure 20), It can be seen that these
were used separately: ethanol in the winter and MTBE in the summer. After 2010 ethanol use became constant
throughout the year at a level around 10%.
38
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
4.5 -i
3.5
3
sp
ON
| 2.5
CD
c
CD
M Z
c
CD
CD
1.5 H
0.5
0
1970
1980
Phoenix
a
" ?! '
t!
ti
11;»
i ;ii
A'*
i
4
i
o
i?.
"ft. »i/i j
! J
* r:Vl .! !
*ii i r ! r i 1
i i®i ^ iii ®
«v i 'i i'1,! H
i'W
i im iVs
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
4
* Alliance Benzene-Minimum
* Alliance Benzene-Median
* Alliance Benzene-Maximum
— ^ — NIPER Benzene-Minimum
— NIPER Benzene-Median
-»*•— NIPER Benzene-Maximum
1990
2000
2010
2020
Year
Figure 18; Benzene content in Phoenix, AZ conventional/oxygenated gasoline (Alliance data: North American Auto Alliance,
2018).
39
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
1985
Phoenix
MTBE
Ethanol
A Alliance Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
* Alliance Ethanol Vol %-Median
-------
EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
16
14
12
„ 10
?
i
I 8 H
J=
£
6
4
2 -
Phoenix
MTBE
Ethanol
Mill, 5 II ,1
5 ii i
'•"i i111* i
»#h ii i > i
¦ ft' III
I a i I I nil :
ill I
!!!'!•!
* Alliance Ethanol Vol %-Median
— NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Median
* Alliance MTBE Vol %-Median
-<¦- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Median
T m - , -m^w-ww ivip i • • j j
1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020
Year
Figure 20; Median values of oxygenate concentration (MTBE and ethanol) in Phoenix, AZ conventional/oxygenated gasoline
(Alliance data: North American Auto Alliance, 2018).
41
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
1 ?,¦'* \ fcr inns
The benzene, MTBE and ethanol content of gasoline across the U.S. is determined by a number of factors,
including technical, market, and regulatory factors. For reformulated gasoline, the benzene level was explicitly
capped at 1% in 1995. The median concentrations were then all maintained below 1%. Variability exists,
however, and both lower and higher values were found in the data. The benzene level in conventional gasoline
has also been regulated at the refinery (or blender) since the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 went into
effect. Because a city may receive gasoline from different refiners at various times, the producer baselines do
not provide a prediction of the benzene content at a given retail location. In contrast the MSAT requirement for
all benzene to be <0.62% is one of those time points where the benzene content is specified. As for
Reformulated gasoline, there is much variability in samples and historical data for individual locations is needed.
Oxygenated additives were required in oxygenated gasoline and reformulated gasoline, these requirements
provide definitive specifications for MTBE or ethanol. RFG areas or cities (oxygenated gasoline) entered and left
these programs at different times, so again historical data provide specific local knowledge. Even when
seemingly straightforward, local complexities come into play. Phoenix is a good example, where MTBE was
present in summertime gasoline and ethanol in wintertime gasoline. Another time point was created by the
EPAct, which effectively ended the use of MTBE in U.S. gasoline. As in the case of the NY-NJ-CT data, state MTBE
or ether bans caused MTBE use to end sooner in some states than others. Imposition of the renewable fuel
standard imposed the requirement to use ethanol, at the time MTBE was discontinued. In conventional gasoline
cities, however, there was no oxygenate mandated and use of MTBE or ethanol could have occurred prior to the
beginning of the RFG program. This follows from the ability of MTBE and ethanol to boost octane ratings.
Regulatory requirements are important drivers of gasoline composition. Technical or market factors impact the
use of various components and variability exists in the range of concentrations sampled. Historical data
combined with regulatory knowledge provides the best way of understanding the composition of gasoline that
might be leaked at a leaking underground storage tank site.
42
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References
Ayres, R. E. and M. R. Kornreich. 2004. Setting National Ambient Air Quality Standards, Chapter 2, The Clean Air
Act Handbook, 2nd edition, eds. R.J. Martineau, Jr. and D. P. Novello, 13-39. American Bar Association.
Arizona. 2004. Arizona Revised Statutes, Title 41, Chapter 1, Article 6:41-2122 Standards for oxygenated fuel;
volatility; exceptions.
California. 2003a. The California Reformulated Gasoline Regulations, Title 13, California Code of Regulations,
Sections 2250-2273.5, California Air Resources Board, May 1.
California. 2003b. Amendments to the California Phase 3 Gasoline (CaRFG3) Regulations to Refine the
Prohibitions of MTBE and Other Oxygenates in California Gasoline. Final Regulation Order. California Air
Resources Board.
City of Chicago. 2000. Committee on Energy, Environmental Protection and Public Utilities. Amendment of the
Title 4, Chapter 108, Section 140 of Municipal Code of Chicago Article II. Motor Fuel Content, Sections 2-4
Prohibiting use of Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether in Gasoline. December 13, 2000.
Clark County, Nevada, 2003, Air Quality Regulations, Section 54 Cleaner Burning Gasoline (CBG): Wintertime
program.
Colorado. 2000. Colorado Statues Title 25 Health/Environmental Control Article 7 Air Quality Control
Program/25-7-139 Methyl tertiary butyl ether - prohibition - phase-out - civil penalty and Regulation No. 13
"The Reduction of Carbon Monoxide Emissions from Gasoline Powered Motor Vehicles through the Use of
Oxygenated Gasolines."
Connecticut. 2003. Public Act No. 03-122, An Act Concerning MTBE as a Gasoline Additive.
Eldorado County, California. 2000. Ordinance No. 4553. March 28, 2000.
Falta, R.W., 2004. The potential for ground water contamination by the gasoline lead scavengers ethylene
dibromide and 1,2-dichloroethane, Ground Water Monitoring and Remediation, 24. 76-87.
Falta, R. W., N. Bulsara, J. K. Henderson and R.A. Mayer. 2005. Leaded-gasoline additives still contaminate
groundwater, Environmental Science and Technology, 379A-384A.
Florida. 2009. Revised Statutes 526.203, Renewable Fuel Standard.
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Hawaii. 2004. Hawaii Administrative Rules, Title 15, Department of Business, Economic Development and
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Illinois. 2001. Compiled Statutes. Environmental Safety. 415 ILCS 122 MTBE Elimination Act. Source: P.A. 92-132.
Indiana. 2002. Indiana Code 16-44-2 Chapter 2. Inspection, Sale and Delivery of Petroleum Products as added by
Public Law 26-2002.
43
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
Iowa. 2000. Iowa Code 214A.2 § 4 "Tests and Standards" and 214A.18 "MTBE Prohibition."
Kansas. 2004. Kansas Statutes Chapter 55, Oil and Gas, Article 5, "Transportation and Sale of Oils and Liquids
Fuels", 55-527 "Limitation of MTBE in Motor Vehicle Fuel; Contingent on EPA Waiver."
Kentucky. 2002. Kentucky Revised Statutes 363.9053 "Use of methyl tertiary butyl ether as fuel additive."
Lynn, G. 2007. What's in your gasoline? LUSTLINE Bulletin, New England Interstate Water Pollution Control
Commission, Lowell, Massachusetts, 55: 11-12.
Maine. 2005. Maine Revised Statues Title 38, Chapter 4, Protection and Improvement of Air, § 585-1, MTBE
Second Special Session July 30, 2005.
Martels, J. 2004. Regulation of Fuels and Fuel Additives, Chapter 11, The Clean Air Act Handbook, 2nd edition,
eds. Martineau, R. J., Jr. and D. P. Novello, 353-421. American Bar Association.
Michigan. 2000. Act No. 206, Public Acts of 2000. An ACT to amend 1984 PA 44, entitled "An Act to provide
purity and quality standards for motor fuels."
Minnesota. 1997. Minnesota Statutes 1997, 239.791 Oxygenated Gasoline.
Minnesota. 2000. Minnesota Session Laws 2000 Chapter 434, S.F. No. 2946 An act relating to motor fuels;
limiting the use of certain oxygenates in gasoline sold in Minnesota; amending Minnesota Statutes 1998, section
239.761, subdivision 6; Minnesota Statutes 1999 Supplement, section 239.791, subdivision 1.
Minnesota. 2003. Minnesota Statutes 2003, 239.791 Oxygenated Gasoline.
Missouri. 2002. Missouri Revised Statutes. Chapter 414, Fuel Regulation and Conservation, Section 414.043,
"MTBE content limit for gasoline."
Missouri. 2008. 2 CSR 110-3.010, Rules of Department of Agriculture Division 110—Office of the Director,
Chapter 3—Missouri Renewable Fuel Standard
Montana. 2005. Montana Code Annotated 2005. 82-15-102 Enforcement of part - rules; 82-15-110 Unlawful
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Montana. 2005. AN ACT PROHIBITING THE IMPORTATION, SALE, OFFERING FOR SALE,
6 AND DISPENSING OF GASOLINE CONTAINING METHYL TERTIARY BUTYL ETHER IN AMOUNTS THAT
7 EXCEED ALLOWABLE TRACE LEVELS, SB 131
Montana. 2017. AN ACT REPEALING REQUIREMENTS FOR THE MANDATORY USE OF GASOLINE BLENDED WITH
ETHANOL, SB 101
National Petrochemical and Refiners Association. 2008. State Bulletin Board: State/Local Boutique Fuels
Standards, http://npra.org/issues/state_bb/, viewed Feb 8, 2008.
Nebraska. 2000. State of Nebraska Statutes. Section 66-1227. "Methyl tertiary butyl ether; restriction." Laws
2000, LB 1234, § 17.
44
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August 2018
New Hampshire. 2004. "An ACT requiring the department of environmental services to adopt certain rules and
to eliminate certain substances from gasoline supplies." Chapter 146-G:12 Elimination of Gasoline Ethers and
TBAfrom Gasoline Supplies and 175:9 Contingency.
New Jersey. 2005. New Jersey Act, Chapter 192. An Act prohibiting the sale of gasoline containing Methyl
Tertiary Butyl Ether, and supplementing P.L. 1954, c.212 (C.26:2C-1 et seq.). C.26:2C-8.24 Prohibitions against
sale in State gasoline containing MTBE.
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North Carolina. 2005. Session Law 2005-93, Article 3, Chapter 119, Section 1 amended to add § 119-26.3 "MTBE
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ACT to create and enact a new section to chapter 19-10 of the North Dakota Century Code relating to the sale of
gasoline containing methyl tertiary butyl ether.
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South Dakota. 2000. South Dakota Codified Law "An ACT to regulate motor vehicle fuel containing methyl
tertiary butyl ether., Chapter 37-2 amended to add 37-2-33. Enacted February 16, 2000. Source: SL2001, chapter
211, § 1.
Stikkers, D.E. 2002. Octane and the Environment, The Science of the Total Environment. 299: 37-56.
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Environment, Health and Safety, P.S. Fischbeckand R.S. Farrow, eds., 70-94. Resources for the Future,
Washington, DC.
United States Code. Title 42 The Public Health and Welfare, Chapter 85 Air Pollution Prevention and Control,
Subchapter II Emission Standards for Moving Sources, Part A Motor Vehicle Emission and Fuel Standards, Section
7545 Regulation of Fuels.
45
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EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
United States Code of Federal Regulations. 2005. Title 40 Protection of the Environment, Part 80, Regulation of
Fuels and Fuel Additives, 7-1-05 Edition, Office of the Federal Register National Archives and Records
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Crude Oil Distillation Capacity (Barrels per Calendar Day) as of January 1, 2005,
http://www.eia. doe. go v/neic/ran kin gs/ref in eries. htm, 1-31-2006
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035.
United States Federal Register. 2007. Control of Hazardous Air Pollutants from Mobile Sources, February 26,
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February 19, 61(35), 6547-6550.
46
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May 15 41(102), 21323-21324.
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7, 40(216) 52009-52016.
Vermont. 2005. Act of the General Assembly, No. 26 "An ACT relating to prohibiting the sale and storage of fuel
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Rules — Limitation of section.
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Prohibited Emissions, 040.095 Oxygen Content of Motor Vehicle Fuel; Amended 9/23/92, 10/25/00, Revised
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Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC. EPA 600/R-10/001, January 2010.
Weaver, J.W., L. Jordan, and D.B. Hall. 2005. Predicted ground water, soil and soil gas impacts from US gasolines,
2004 First Analysis of the Autumnal Data. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC. EPA 600/R-
05/032.
Wisconsin. 2003. 2003 Wisconsin Act 45, "An ACT to renumber and amend 168.04; and to create 168.04(2) and
168.04(3) of the statutes; relating to: prohibiting methyl tertiary-butyl ether in gasoline...".
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Appendices
Appendix A
Conventional Gasoline Cities not appearing in the main text: Denver, Colorado
3.5
-7 2.5 -
£
1.5 H
1
0.5
1970
1980
Denver
H |>I(V* l'VWV
< W»J iLill
tl
» Alliance Benzene-Minimum
El Alliance Benzene-Median
i Alliance Benzene-Maximum
— ^ — NIPER Benzene-Minimum
— NIPER Benzene-Median
— NIPER Benzene-Maximum
1990
2000
2010
2020
Year
Figure 21: Benzene content in conventional gasoline from Denver, Colorado.
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25
20
§ 15
o
c
ro
« io
CD
1985
Denver
MTBE
Ethano
* Alliance Ethano! Vol %-Minimum
*i Alliance Ethanol Vol %-Median
A Alliance Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
- NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Median
- NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
- ¦- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Minimum
- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Median
- m- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Maximum
1990 1995
2000 2005
Year
2010
2015 2020
Figure 22: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in Denver, Colorado conventional gasoline.
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Appendix B
Reformulated gasoline areas not appearing in the main text: Baltimore, MD;
Boston-Worcester, MA, Chicago-Lake Co, IL -Gary, IN; Dallas-Fort Worth,
TX; Philadelphia, PA— Wilmington, DE—Trenton, NJ; Portsmouth-Dover,
NH; St. Louis, MO; Washington DC area.
Baltimore
NIPER Benzene-Minimum
NIPER Benzene-Median
NIPER Benzene-Maximum
OTAQ Benzene-Minimum
OTAQ Benzene-Median
OTAQ Benzene-Maximum
1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020
Year
Figure 23: Benzene content in reformulated gasoline from the Baltimore, Maryland area.
50
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20
18
16
14
S"
g 12
Baltimore
a 10
CD
MTBE
Ethanol
- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Minimum
-<¦- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Median
- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Maximum
— — NIPER Ethariol Vol %-Minimum
NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Median
— NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
* OtAQMTBE Vol %-Minimum
I OTAQVol %-Median
* OTAQMTBE Vol %-Maximum
* OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
* OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
* OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Median
1985 1990 1995 2000 2005
Year
oftoeoocx
2010 2015
2020
Figure 24: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in reformulated gasoline from the Baltimore, Maryland area.
51
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7
6
Boston
so
p 4
M
c
-------
EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
18
16
14
ST12
;>
r* 10
o
c
(D
a 8
co
P
5 6
1985
Boston
MTBE
Ethanol
'III
- <¦- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Minimum
- <¦- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Median
- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Maximum
- NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Median
- * — NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
• QtAQMTBE Vol %-Minimum
i OTAQVol %-Median
~ QTAQMTBE Vol %-Maximum
* OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
* OTAQEthanol Vol %-Maximum
—*—OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Median
1990
1995
2000
Year
2005
2010
2015
Figure 26: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in reformulated gasoline from the Boston-Worcester, Massachusetts
area.
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6
SO
I
-------
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25
20
| 15
o
c
flj
s 10
Chicago-Gary
Ethanol
MTBE
- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Minimum
-<¦- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Median
- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Maximum
— — NIPER Ethariol Vol %-Minimum
NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Median
— NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
> OTAQ MTBE Vol %-Minimum
* OTAQ MTBE Vol %-Median
* OTAQ MTBE Vol %-Maximum
* OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
* OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
* OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Median
1985
1990
1995
2000
2005
2010
2015
2020
Year
Figure 28: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in reformulated gasoline from the Chicago Lake Co—Gary Indiana area.
55
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5
4.5
4
3.5
3
£
a 2.5 -
c
-------
EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
Dallas
- N1PER MTBE Vol %-Minimum
- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Median
- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Maximum
- ^ — NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Median
- NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
* MTBE Vol %-Minimum
i MTBE Vol %-Median
* MTBE Vol %-Maximum
* Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
* Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
* Ethanol Vol %-Median
o 4—
1985
1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020
Year
MTBE
Ethanol
Figure 30: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in reformulated gasoline from the Dallas—Ft Worth, Texas area.
57
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6 -
sp
"o 4
-------
EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
25
20
g 15
o
c
(d
s 10
Philadephia Area
MTBE
Ethanol
- <¦- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Minimum
- <¦- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Median
- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Maximum
- NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Median
- * — NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
• QtAQMTBE Vol %-Minimum
i OTAQVol %-Median
~ QTAQMTBE Vol %-Maximum
* OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
* OTAQEthanol Vol %-Maximum
—*—OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Median
1985
1990
1995
2000
2005
2010
2015
2020
Year
Figure 32: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in reformulated gasoline from the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania—
Wilmington, Delaware—Trenton, New Jersey area.
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1.6
1.4 -
1.2 -
SO
oV
5.
oj 0.8
c
-------
EPA/600/R-18/258
August 2018
1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020
Year
Portsmouth-Dover
MTBE
Ethanol
—OtAQMTBE Vol %-Minimum
—~—OTAQ Vol %-Median
• OTAQ MTBE Vol %-Maximum
A OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
A OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
A OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Median
Figure 34: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in reformulated gasoline from the Portsmouth Dover, New Hampshire
area. Only data from OTAQ were available.
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4.5
3.5 -
NO
ON
I"
d)
c
Q)
M z
c
a>
CD
1.5
0.5
1970
1980
V
iu
i
>7
1;
k,,f
Benzene St Louis
1990
NIPER Benzene-Minimum
NIPER Benzene-Median
•— NIPER Benzene-Maximum
OTAQ Benzene-Minimum
OTAQ. Benzene-Median
3— OTAQ Benzene-Maximum
2000
2010
2020
Year
Figure 35: Benzene content in reformulated gasoline from the St Louis, Missouri area.
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- fl - NIPER MTBE Vol %-Minimum
- a - NIPER MTBE Vol %-Median
- -0 - NIPER MTBE Vol %-Maximum
- ^ — NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Median
- NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
* OTAQ MTBE Vol %-Minimum
i OTAQ MTBE Vol %-Median
* OTAQ MTBE Vol %-Maximum
* OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
* OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
* OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Median
o 4—
1995
2000
2005 2010
Year
2015 2020
Ethanol
MTBE
St. Louis
Figure 36: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in reformulated gasoline from the St. Louis Missouri area.
63
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4.5 -
3.5
3
NO
I2-5
aj
c
0)
CO
1.5 -
0.5
0
1970
1980
Washington
NIPER Benzene-Minimum
•— NIPER Benzene-Median
NIPER Benzene-Maximum
fr™ OTAQ Benzene-Minimum
OTAQ Benzene-Median
S— OTAQ Benzene-Maximum
1990
2000
2010
2020
Year
Figure 37: Benzene content in reformulated gasoline from the Washington DC area.
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Ethanol
Washington
1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020
Year
MTBE
- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Minimum
NIPER MTBE Vol %-Median
- NIPER MTBE Vol %-Maximum
—¦ — NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Median
- NIPER Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
> OTAQ MTBE Vol %-Minimum
* OTAQ MTBE Vol %-Median
* OTAQ MTBE Vol %-Maximum
* OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Minimum
* OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Maximum
* OTAQ Ethanol Vol %-Median
Figure 38: Oxygenates (MTBE and ethanol) in reformulated gasoline from the Washington DC area.
65
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svEPA
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
PRESORTED STANDARD
POSTAGE & FEES PAID
EPA
PERMIT NO. G-35
Office of Research
and Development
<81 oi r;
Washington, DC
20460
Official Business
Penalty for Private Use $300
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