ROD 2069349 - Caterpillar

Moisture Content
Problems with fuel filters can occur at any time. The cause of the problem can be water in the fuel or moisture in the fuel. At low temperatures, moisture causes special problems. There are three types of moisture in fuel: dissolved moisture (moisture in solution), free and dispersed moisture in the fuel and free and settled at the bottom of the tank.Most diesel fuels have some dissolved moisture. Just as the moisture in air, the fuel can only contain a specific maximum amount of moisture at any one temperature. The amount of moisture decreases as the temperature is lowered. For example, a fuel could contain 100 ppm(100 mg/kg or 0.010 percent) of water in solution at 18°C (65°F). This same fuel can possibly hold only 30 ppm(30 ppm or 0.003 percent) at 4°C (40°F).After the fuel has absorbed the maximum amount of water, the additional water will be free and dispersed. Free and dispersed moisture is fine droplets of water that is suspended in the fuel. Since the water is heavier than the fuel, the water will slowly become free and settled at the bottom of the tank. In the above example, when the fuel temperature was lowered from 18°C (65°F) to 4°C (40°F), 70 ppm(mg/kg) of water became free and dispersed in the fuel.The small drops of water cause a cloudy appearance in the fuel. If the change in temperature is slow, the small drops of water can settle to the bottom of the tank. When the fuel temperature is lowered rapidly to freezing temperature, the moisture that comes out-of-solution changes to very fine particles of ice instead of small drops of water.The particles of ice are lighter than the fuel, and the particles of ice will not settle to the bottom of the tank. When this type of moisture is mixed in the fuel, this moisture will fill the fuel filters. The ice crystals will plug the fuel filters in the same way as wax plugs the fuel filters.If a filter is plugged and fuel flow is stopped, perform the following procedure to determine the cause:
Remove the fuel filters.
Cut the fuel filters open.
Inspect the fuel filter before the filter warms. This inspection will show that the filter is filled with particles of either ice or wax.The moisture which is free and settled at the bottom of the tank can become mixed with the fuel. The force of any pumping action will mix the moisture with the fuel whenever fuel is transferred. This moisture then becomes free and dispersed water. This moisture can cause ice in the filters. This moisture can cause other problems with filters at any temperature. Generally, the same force that mixes the water into the fuel will also mix dirt and rust from the bottom of the tank with the water. The result is a dirty mixture of fuel and water which can also fill the filters and stop fuel flow.Specific Gravity / API Gravity
The specific gravity of diesel fuel is the