When we fill up our boats with fuel (petrol, not diesel!), we sometimes use jerrycans to transport the fuel from the petrol station to the harbour. We know the basic precautions to avoid a disaster: no lit cigarettes, no mobile phone in use and no visible source of ignition (ignition). But have you thought about dielectric physics? We forget it all too easily when we fill up our petrol cans.
Creating an electrical charge
The principle is elementary. When a fluid meets and flows in contact with a solid, an electric charge is created at the point of contact between these two elements. This is known as flow electrification.
The figure above illustrates this phenomenon. In the upper left corner, the pump gun is grounded. Bottom right, the jerry can with the fluid (petrol in our case) in "neutral".
Risk of electric arcing during creation
As the path of the electricity leakage is always the shortest, it will use the dispensing gun to reach the ground. It is therefore precisely when the operator approaches the dispensing gun to the jerrycan that an electric arc, a spark, can occur. To avoid it, it is imperative that the jerrycan be placed on the ground.
Let's add that in our case, the fluid involved is gasoline, Super. It has the peculiarity of being easily flammable and its vapours are explosive. As we sail more often in the summer, we usually fill up these jerrycans when the weather is nice and hot, increasing the volatility of the gasoline.
Precautions of use to be respected
Here are the precautions to take when filling your jerry can at the gas station:
- Never use a metal jerry can
- Place the canister(s) on the ground (not in the trunk of the car where gasoline vapours will accumulate)
- Keep the cans away from each other
- Use canisters according to EN13341 standard
- Limit the quantity transported to a maximum of 60 litres
- Touching a metal surface before handling the dispensing gun
- Place the jerrycans on the ground, on the cement of the petrol station directly (without cardboard, wood, tarpaulin ... on the ground)
- Immediately alert station personnel of even the slightest spill on the ground
- Avoid filling the jerry cans when it is very hot
