TWO SCIENTISTS at Northern Caribbean University (NCU) have suggested the use of diesel fuel for domestic purposes, claiming that it is safer and three times cheaper than kerosene ­ the 'poor man's fuel'.

The retail price of kerosene, which is normally sold in the region of $90 per litre, rose dramatically in the aftermath of Hurricane Ivan. The price of diesel, on the other hand, is about $32 per litre. In the early 1990's the Government reduced the subsidy on kerosene. This, in addition to the removal of price controls and successive devaluation of the local currency, resulted over time in significant increases in the price of kerosene.

It is against this background that environmental scientist, Dr. Mark Harris and biochemist, Dr. Samson Omoregie, believe their laboratory findings about the properties of diesel fuel, compared to kerosene, can be of tremendous help to low income consumers.

The scientists say diesel is safer than kerosene because, of the two fuels, diesel ignites slower or is less flammable. "When brought repeatedly into contact with a naked flame, a diesel soaked wick did not ignite until 1.5 to 3 seconds later, whereas kerosene wicks ignited immediately on contact," the NCU researchers noted in their findings which they released to The Gleaner. "Our studies show that diesel is less flammable, and therefore, may be considerably safer to use than kerosene," they reasoned.

MORE VALUE FOR MONEY

Drs. Harris and Omoregie also found from their experiments that diesel burnt, on average, 20 per cent longer than the same quantity of kerosene. This means that consumers will get more value for money when using diesel. The scientists argue that "the slower combustion rate of diesel compared to kerosene means that diesel lamps would require less frequent adjustments than their kerosene counterparts (because) the flame diminishes less quickly in diesel lamps".

However, they concede kerosene gives off a marginally brighter light than diesel lighting which is 'almost as bright' as kerosene at normal temperatures. They caution that medical experts do not recommend prolonged reading by light from either fuel, and when reading is done, the reading material must be held as close to the light source as possible.

The NCU researches say, environmentally, "diesel performs just as well as kerosene", adding that their studies show "no appreciable difference of soot production from diesel or kerosene lamps." This result, they note, recommend use of diesel-based cooking stoves.

Harris and Omoregie also make the important point that the availability of affordable fuel, such as diesel, to low income earners could result in a decrease of the cutting down of trees to produce charcoal to use as fuel. In fact the six-month long research entitled Low Temperature Combustion and Atmospheric Effects of two Hydrocarbon Fuels in a Tropical Climate was prompted by concerns about environmental degradation from the burning of wood for charcoal, particularly in western Jamaica.