NBSIR 79-1776 (R)

TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS

SYMPOSIUM ON

TEMPERATURE COMPENSATED

VOLUMES IN THE SALE OF

PETROLEUM PRODUCTS

Sponsored By:

The National Conference on Weights and Measures

Date: April 3-4, 1979

Place: National Bureau of Standards

Gaithersburg, Maryland

Official Reporters

NORTH AMERICAN REPORTING

General Reporting, Technical, Medical, Legal, Depositions, General Transcribing
FOREWORD

This symposium addressed selected aspects of the impact on the sale

of petroleum products by temperature compensated volumes. Speakers

discussed the technical and economic effects, available technology

and its performance capabilities, petroleum measurement tables, test

methods and equipment, and weights and measures laws and regulations.

The papers and discussions as transcribed have been edited for clarity

and conciseness.

The arrangements for the symposium program were made by Mr. Otto K.

Warnlof, Manager, Technical Services, Office of Weights and Measures,

National Bureau of Standards.
PROGRAM

Tuesday, April 3, 1979 Page

8:30 a.m. Registration at NBS

9:15 a.m. Session Chairman - Kendrick Simila,

Chairman NCWM

Welcoming Remarks - Albert Tholen, 1 Chief, OWM

Objectives - James Bird, Chairman, 2

NCWM S&T Committee

THE TEMPERATURE/VOLUME RELATIONSHIPS OF PETROLEUM PRODUCTS

Adin Hall 5

Shell Oil Company and American Petroleum Institute

James R. Whetstone 11

Fluid Engineering Division, NBS

TEMPERATURE - MEASUREMENT ASSURANCE AND ACCURACY

Jacquelyn Wise 19

Temperature Measurement Division, NBS

MARKETING IN THE PETROLEUM INDUSTRY

Richard Southers 27

American Petroleum Institute

UNIFORM NATIONAL STANDARDS FOR AN EQUITABLE AND EFFICIENT

MARKETPLACE

John G. Buckley 33

Northeast Petroleum Industries, Inc.

1:45 p.m.

DESIGN AND OPERATION OF MECHANICAL AUTOMATIC TEMPERATURE

COMPENSATORS

Emmett Wehmann 48

Neptune Measurement Company and

Meter Manufacturers Technical Committee

PERFORMANCE CHARACTERISTICS OF MECHANICAL AUTOMATIC

TEMPERATURE COMPENSATORS

Howard Siebold 53

Liquid Controls Corporation and

Meter Manufacturers Technical Committee

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES OF A RETAIL FUEL OIL MARKETER

Jay L. Dugan 61

Meenan Oil Company, Inc.

DISCUSSION OF OPTIONS AVAILABLE FOR RESOLVING COMPUTATION 70

LIMITATIONS OF MOTOR FUEL DISPENSERS

i
Wednesday, April 4, 1979

9:00 a.m.

EVENTUALLY - WHY NOT NOW?

George Mattimoe

Division of Weights and Measures, Hawaii

C. G. Bockus

Division of Weights and Measures, Hawaii

ANALYSIS OF TEMPERATURE EFFECTS ON GASOLINE MARKETING

OPERATIONS

Harold E. Harris

Exxon Corp. and American Petroleum Institute

AUTOMATIC TEMPERATURE COMPENSATION VOLUME OF LP-GAS

MEASUREMENT

LeRoy Lindbloom

Northern Propane Gas Company and

National LP-Gas Association

VIEWPOINTS FROM THE FIELD OF WEIGHTS AND MEASURES

Darrell A. Guensler, Assistant Chief

California Weights and Measures

Other Viewpoints

CONCLUSIONS

74

87

92

100

105

108

NCWM S&T Committee 121
PAGE 1 PROCEEDINGS

Albert D. Tholen* Chief of the Office of Weights and

Measures at the Bureau of Standards welcomed the participants

in the symposium and introduced Kendrick Simila* Chairman of

the National Conference on Weights and Measures and

Admin i s tra tor * Weightsand Measures Division* Department of

Agriculture* State of Oregon* as Chairman of the symposium.

Mr. Simila opened the symposium with remarks as follows:

I feel it is a distinct honor to be involved this year

with the National Conference on Weights and Measures as

Chairman* both of the coming conference in July and of this

symp os i urn.

I am sure there are many individuals here who will be

contributing s ignif icantly to the sessions of the symposium

the discussions* the questions that are going to be raised*

and some of the answers given. I look forward myself to

learning a lot here on the issues involved in temperature

compensation. From my own point of view* I would just like to

say that this subject is one that I feel has been lying there

dormant for some time. I think many of us have recognized

that there are some unanswered questions that need to be

addressed and I might just share with you what I believe are

some of these issues. I certainly hope to come away after the

next few days with some more insight into some of these.

What is it in terms of temperature compensation? We all

think we know what we are talking about but I am not sure we

are all looking at the subject with the same set of

definitions or starting points in mind. That is one question

I expect we will gain some insight into as we continue here

Is it feasible* economically and technically? This is

another issue to be dealt with here* to be raised* debated,

and answered* hopefully* in some areas.

How do we do it in terms of hardware and software if it

is economically and technically feasible? And finally, when

do we do it in terms of various products and marketing

levels'? Obviously* it already has happened in some areas and

marketing levels and in certain products. In certain types of

transac t i ons* temperature compensation has been with us for

some time.

So these are some of the issues that are on the agenda

of the symposium that have been laid out and the expertise

that is here will be sharing their views with us. I hope,

personally* that we can come to grips with some of these

things because the National Conference provides a good forum

for such an activity where government and industry interact
PAGE n

on a level where we are problem-solving in a non-threatening

environment. Too much of government/industry interaction in

other areas seems to be on an adversary basis.

At least it has been my experience in the time that I have been involved with the Conference that that is not the

basis we operate on. So I feel that during the next two days

you will have an opportunity to deal with some of these

issues in a problem-solving fashion and gain perspective and

insight into the subject. Hopefully/ we can then come forward

with some solutions in terms of recommendations that will

give us an improved position in the petroleum measurement

ar ea. At this time I would like to introduce the Chairman and

members of the Specifications and Tolerances Committee of the

National Conference which is the primary entity that is

seeking the guidance of the experts we have here. We have

four members of the Committee present this morning. Seated at

the table on my right are: Gary Delano from the State of

Montana/ Frank Nagele< State of Michigan/ and Lacy Degrange/

State of Maryland. We have one member of the Committee yet to

arrive# Mr. Darrell Guensler from California. It is a particular pleasure to introduce Mr. Jim Bird/ State of New

Jersey/ who is the Chairman of the S?«T Committee of the

National Conference for this coming year.

I often feel that out on the West Coast we have a somewhat simpler type of life. We are a little closer to the

frontier so that some of the big city problems and the

techniques of discrepancy formulation in measurement/ if you

will/ that are somet imesintroduced by less than

straigh tf orward individuals in making measurements have not

yet arrived in our area. However/ I often see Jim dealing

with and solving problems that we have yet to tackle. I look

to him as one of the people in the National Conference who

has a wide range of experience to share and is certainly

qualified to be involved in chairing a committee like the S&T

Committee. So at this time I would like to introduce Mr.

James Bird/ who will share with us his view of the objective

of the symposium.

Mr. Bird described the objectives of the symposium as

follows:

We hope to learn from many of you information that can

be coordinated and consolidated by the S&T Committee to make

proper reports or recommendations to the National Conference

on Weighjts and Measures and to guide us in the future. Many

times in the past the Conference and the various committees

have responded to problems as they arose. We are now trying

to turn this around and anticipate problems. We want to

determine what avenues and alternatives are open to us down

the road and which ones will be the best politically and

economically/ and as far as some of us are concerned/
PAGE 3

enforceable by weights and measures officials.

The 63rd Conference Report referenced the S«T

Committee's concern about the problem of temperature

compensation. Our tents tive^eport for this year will mention

that we are continuing to obtain information and data on the

subject. We know that the various technologies are here#

whether it is hardware; software/ or test methods.

There are also political and legal problems that must

be considered. Several states jf$ave contradictory opinions.

In one state the Attorney General or the judicial system said

that as long as it is not referenced (disallowed) in Handbook

44/ you can do it. Other states said that unless it is

referenced/ you can't do it.

Technology must be balanced with cost effectiveness. For

example/ in some areas an admin i strator would say that if you

have temperature compensation for a product/ everybody is

going to have to do it the same way. Is this really fair?

For example; if we require everybody to have automatic

temperature compensators on their measuring devices/ this may

not be the best way of doing it in all cases. You have; say;

a large fleet; perhaps 50 or 60 trucks, and it may be more

appropriate to take the temp erature of the product at the

last time that it is being delivered and make the temperature

c omp ensa tion by means of a computer in the office.

We also have to look at th£ test costs because if you

require automatic temperature compensators on measuring

devices, the length of the test is going to be extended,

consequently the cost. Those of you who are involved in

liquid petroleum testing realize that you have to take the

regular test with the ATC disconnected and then with it

connected run more tests to determine in fact if that device

is accurate. Really you are testing two devices, it takes

more time and it may take more equipment.

Then you have the political problem. In some areas of

the west, it doesn't matter whether one state has it or not

because the mer c hand i s ing system doesn't really cross the

state line. But in the northeast, for example. New Jersey

has to balance with Delaware; Delaware with Maryland,

Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Pennsylvania with New Jersey,

Delaware, Maryland, Ohio, West Virginia. New York with

Pennsy 1 vania, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and

Vermont, and so on. You have to determine the marketing

patterns and everybody has to agree on a regional basis.

Reiterating what Ken said about the definitions, we have

to define what the standards are. Quote, "What is a gross

gallon and when is it and what is it?" Those things have to

become standard. These are not only S&T problems, they are

L&R problems, they are state statutory problems, they are

also political problems because it also gets into the

merchandising area of how you are going to convince the
PAGE 4

customer that this is the proper way to go.

We have a detailed agenda for the next two dags. We have

weights and measures people in the audience/ we have industry

people/ we have marketing people/ we have people from Federal

ag enc i es.

I hope that/ when we are done tomorrow night and the

report is put together/ the S&T Committee and others that are

involved will have a much better concept of what the total

problem is and what recommendations can be made to the

Conference.

We hope here to hear all points and to balance the

factors of technology/ legality, cost effectiveness/ and any

additional considerations that may arise.

Once the report is prepared from this meeting/ then it

will also be redigested by the people that are affected.

Ken also mentioned that a great deal of this information

is already known. Through my experiences on the S&T

Committee. I realize that many people in the meter industry

are very well-versed in their aspect. The people in the scale

industry are well-versed in their aspect. Similarly, with

people in other areas. But seldom do all of us comprehend the

whole problem of specifications and requirements fof all

equipment at any one time except a body of weights and

measures people that deal with such problems.

It is our hope that maybe this meeting might be like

Certo making jelly; you can't make the jelly without

combining ingredients. If, as a result of this meeting,

everybody better understands and comprehends the technical

problems, the legal problems, the political problems, the

cost problems, the enforcement problems, and all the other

problems that are related, further down the road we are all

going to be better off. Thank you.
PAGE 5

THE TEMPERATURE/VOLUME RELATIONSHIPS

OF PETROLEUM PRODUCTS

Adin Hall

Shell Oil Company

and

American Petroleum Institute

My presentation this morning; in cooperation with Dr.

James Whetstone; is to give you a revieww of the technical

aspects of t he -fhermai coefficient of expansion of

petroleum. It is primarily an extract from a 9th World

Petroleum Congress paper entitled; "Investigations of

Densities and Thermal Expansion Coefficients Applicable to

Petroleum Measurement". Co-au th orui t h me on this paper were;

James R. Whetstone; National Bureau of Standards; and John A. Simpson; National Bureau of Standards. If you should desire a copy of the complete paper; I believe that Otto Warnlof can supply it.

The vast majority of bulk liquid petroleum is sold on

the basis of volumes determined by meter or by measurement in

calibrated tanks. The gross volume obtained is corrected for

impurities; if necessary; and because liquid petroleum has a relatively large change in volume with change in

temperature; bulk volumes are usually stated at a standard

temperature of 60 degrees Fahrenheit; or in some cases; 15

degrees; centigrade.

It is my under s tand ing that 60 degrees Fahrenheit was

chosen in the United States because it is very nearly the

average ambien^emperature throughout the U. S. during the

period of one year.

Measurements at standard temperature are seldom

possible, so it is necessary t o convert volume at an

observed temperature to volume at standard temperature. Since

measurements of density and temperature are readily obtained

under field or laboratory conditions; volume reduction

factors or coefficients of expansion are correlated with

density and temperature. Precise knowledge of the density ana

coefficient of expansion of petroleum liquids with change in

temperature is therefore required. Quantities of petroleum

are sometimes expressed in weight units; but this is usually

the result of a conversion from a volume measurement.

Petroleum crude oils and finished products do not all

have the same thermal expansion coefficients. To be
PAGE 6

technically correct/ therefore/ each batch of material

shouldd have its ou>n table for correcting volumes from

observed temp^ature to standard temperature. To provide such

a table for each batch of petroleum material involved in

commercial transactions would obviously be impossible. From a practical standpoint/ therefore/ data are secured for a range

of petroleum materials and average values established. These

average values can then be expressed as equations which may

be used for the preparation of tables. The ASTMIP Petroleum

Measurement Tables are the most widely used tables for

reduction of volumes to standard conditions.

Obviously/ a correction factor for temperatures above 60

degrees Fahrenheit will be a number less than one while

correction factors for temperatures below 60 degrees will be

greater than one.

This morning we are concerned with the basic work

associated with density and thermal expansion of petroleum

from which volume correction tables can be prepared. The

investigations/ which are the basic data for the API-ASTM-IP

Petroleum Measurement Tables generally used are the

following.

1. Density anbd Thermal Expansion of American Petroleum

Oils — National Bureau of Standards Technologic Paper

77-1916.

Based on this investigation/ two tables were published;

United States Standard Tables for Petroleum Oils/ National

Bureau of Standards Circular 57-1916 and National Standard

Petroleum Oil Tables — National Bureau of Standards Circular

154-1924.

Cir. 154 differs frcjm Cir. 57 in the range of density

and temperature c over e dT^inc 1 ud es API gravity rather than

Baume. Circular 154 was approved by the American Petroleum

Institute and the Bureau of Mines as well as the National

Bureau of Standards.

2.

(a) Thermal Expansion of Petroleum Oils in the range 0

degrees Centigrade to 300 degrees Centigrade —National Bureau

of Standards RP244-1930.

(b) Thermal Expansion of Gasolines from 0 degrees

Centigrade to 30 degrees Centigrade—National Bureau of

Standards RP393-1931.

Following these investigations/ National Standard

Petroleum Oil Tables/ National Bureau of Standards Circular

410 was publishedin 1936. Financial assistance for these

investigations was provided through the American Petroleum

Institute. The tables were approved by the API/ Bureau of

Mines and the American Society for Testing and Materials

(ASTM) as well as the National Bureau of Standards (NBS).

3. Expansion of Crude Petroleum/ Petroleum Products and

Allied Substances — Report of Institute of Petroleum

Sub-Committee J— Sampling and Measurement — 1941.
PAGE 7

The results of an investigation which compared a common

factor calculated for approx imately 200 oils in addition to

those considered in Technologic Paper 77 are reported.

Although not a laboratory work/ it was an important

contribution in affirming the data base of Circular 410.

Following this report/ Tables for Measurement of Oil was

published by the Institute of Petroleum in 1945. 4. The

Density of the Liquified Petroleum Gas Hy drocarbons/ Their

Mixtures/ and Three Natural Gasolines —Natural Gas

Processor^Assoc iat ion —1942.

This investigation provided coefficient of expansion

data for light hydrocarbons. It was a part of the

thermodynamic work sponsored by the Gas Processors

Association (formerly NGPA) on a continuing basis and

provided the latest test results incorporated into the data

base for the Petroleum Measurement Tables published in 1952.

APPLICATION OF PETROLEUM

MEASUREMENT TABLES

The calculation of a net volume of petroleum involves

the accuracy of volume determination equipment such as

meters or tanks/ temperature measuring devices such as

thermometers or thermistors/ and specific gravity instruments

such as hydrometers.

Perhaps the most important factor is the ability and

carefulness of the person securing the data. Tables for

converting observed volumes to volumes at standard

temperature are therefore only one step in the measurement

chain. Such tables are not PVT data in the usual sense needed

in process design but are tables needed for everyday

commerce. This is not to imply that the tables should not be

as accurate as possible/ but to emphasize their application.

The Petroleum Measurement Tables have served well

although individual cases have arisen wherein the coefficient

of expansion of a particular oil has not followed the

Petroleum Measurement Tables. In April of 1967/ API's LP Gas

Metering Subcommittee reported/ as one of their projects, the

preparation of standardised tables of meter adjustment

factors fo^/propane and normal butane to be based on Table 24

and revised compressibility data. Early in 196S, IP/ ASTIi,

and API were studying a means of computer programming so that

equivalence would be given to quantities calculated manually

from the Tables. A survey/ completed in February 1968/ of

API's Committee on Petroleum Measurement revealed that the

members favored a revision of the Petroleum Measurement

Tables so they would be more applicable to computer usage

In October 1968/ Serridge and Linsell attributed a possible

loss of 0.2 percent of the Bill of Lading cargo quantity to

errors in the Petroleum Measurement Tables. Mr. P. Dribbell/
PAGE 8

Chairman. IP Panel ST-A6 Measurement Calculations and Tables

Panel answered in January 1969. that it was possible for

differences in aromatic content, naphthene content and

possibly sulfur content to cause errors in corrected volume

equivalent to those attributed to volume correction tables by

Berridge and Linsell. The letter concludes with a request

that any information on thermal properties of crude oil would

be welcomed.

A similar request for additional data from industry was

made by the Chairman, API Committee on Manual Measurement to

the Committee on Petroleum Measurement in April 1969. During

1969-1972, considerable effort was devoted by the API

Committee on Petroleum Measurement's Working Group on

Physical Property Data in connection with computer

programming of certain tables. During this period contacts

were maintained with representatives of IP and ASTM to ensure

uniformity of application. A subroutine for Table 6, Volume

Reduction to 60 degrees Fahrenheit, was made available by API

on June 26, 1973.

In early 1972, Messrs. L. Downer and F. A. Inkley carried

out an experimetal program to measure the thermal expansion

coefficient f crude oils and finished products having a wide

range of specific gravities. Their findings were reported to

the API Committee on Static Measurement in May, 1972 and were

published in the Oil ?< Gas Journal, June 19, 1972. It was

their conclusion that the Petroleum Measurement Tables were

satisfactory for finished products but that new tables were

needed specifically for crude oils. It was also their opinion

that if additional work was necessary "the required manpower

and expensq^ieed not be too great".

In view of the various questions which had arisen

concerning petroleum physical properties, Mr. T. L. Hillburn,

Vice-Chairman of the Committee on Static Measurement and

Chairman of its Working Group on Physical Property Data

recommended to the Committee on Petroleum Measurement on September 14, 1972 that "API turn to the National Bureau of

Standards and request that they review original physical

property data for both thermal expansion and liquid

compressibility within the ranges generally of interest to

the industry. It should not be assumed that the current

tables are necessarily wrong, only that data originally

supplied by NBS has not been reviewed for 55 years and that

during that time we have new and different crudes and

products and improved techniques for testing them.

The recommendation was favorably accepted by the

Committee on Petroleum Measurement and contact was

established with the National Bureau of Standards. Following

discussions between representatives of API and NBS, a report

was made to members of API Physical Properties Working Group

on July 23, 1973. The conclusions were as follows:
PAGE 9

1. The Petroleum Measurement Tables data base may not

be representative of modern crudes.

2. The values determined by Bearce and Peffer accurately

represent the crudes available to them.

3. T he values determined by Downer and Inkley

accurately represent the crudes available to them.

4. The dominant variance in the data represents the

actual variation in the samples of petroleum tested.

5. Only minor improvements in the accuracy of density

measurements can be expected. Since it is the sample

variation which is the dominant variable* no sizable

improvement in overall curve fit to existing data can be

expected.

AMERICAN PETROLEUM INSTITUTE

NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS

PROJECT

On April 24* 1973* the Committee on Petroleum

Measurement authorized continuation of discussions with the

NBS. In view of the conclusions in the report to the Physical

Properties Working Group* and the fact that the data base

consisted of work by several different researchers* it was

concluded that an entirely new data base should be generated

using present day technology. Accordingly, funds for the

project were approved by the API and a formal agreement

between API and NBS was signed on 14 May 1974.

The agreement contained the following provision:

"In accordance with the terms and conditions of this

Agreement* NBS agrees to undertake a program of research

(herein called the Program) to establish expanded physical

property data for Table 6* 'Volume Reduction Factors' (API

Stand. 2540, ASTM D 1250, IP 200, ANSI Z11.8, ISO R91 ) which

will be based on a modern uniform data base and modern

understanding of physics of petroleum* and which will reflect

current and anticipated economically important sources of

hydrocarbon raw materials and finished products. Further* NBS

and API agree that the Program will be documented in

accordance with generally accepted scientific standards. " It was further agreed that samples would be tested in a liquid state at atmospheric pressure. Temperature range would

be from 0 degrees to 70 degrees Centigrade but tests would be

discontinued when vapor pressure exceeded atmospheric

pressure or when the/^ample under test approached a non-liquid

state. It is believed that these conditions most nearly

represent the state in which raw materials and finished

products are tested for commercial transac t i on s

.

With the signing of the contract* the work was turned

over to the Bureau of Standards. Dr. Whetstone* who was
PAGE 10

responsible for their work will pick it up from here.
PAGE 11

THE TEMPERATURE/VOLUME RELATIONSHIPS

OF PETROLEUM PRODUCTS

Dr. James R. Whetstone

Fluid Engineering Division, NBS

Before discussing the data/ I would like to give sort of

a review of some of the mathematical background related to

the thermal expansion

properties of some petroleums^

I say some in that/ of course/ it is impossible to test

all available petroleums/ but what we have been successful in

doing is running tests on approx imately 120 or so crude oils

and about 250 refined products.

These products/ as you will see when I show some of the

data/ are pretty closely grouped into three types. The first

are fu.el_oi.Ls/ g^nerallyy #2 fuel oils either f or the

purposes of home heating or in the form of #2 diesel fuel;

the second

are various types of jet fuels/ mostly commercial grade

jet fuel; and the thirc^&ra gasolines. The latter included

most types of gasolines/ and one or two gasoline blending

stocks.

One defines th ermod ynami ca 1 1 y the thermal expansion

coefficient/ alpha/ as the fractional change in volume/ V/

or density/ rho» with change in temperature/ T;

cC = t/v ciV/JT ' - '/(? do /al T

It is interesting to note that one can measure the

thermal expansion coefficient in one of two ways/ either by

observing the change in volume with temperature or the change

in density with temp erature/ the only difference being in the

sign.

We chose to measure density change as a function of

temperature. These data were collected and were fitted to the

following representation/ that is that the density at some

temperature of measurement/ t, is equated to the density at

15.56 degreesCjWh ich of course is 60 degrees F. plus an

expansion coefficient A times whatever the temperature

difference is/ and an expansion coefficient 3 times the

difference in temperature squared. » _ _ _ v 2- Pt ' (?//. rt r ^ CL ~ /j: si) "

j

/J

' ,

, , r _ The vo 1 ume/tempera ture relationship used is V£ : Hj'U T av

T here are others which do not vary sub s tan t i a 1 1 y » and
PAGE 12

I don't want to give the impression that there is only one. There may be several) all of which in certain cases may

be equivalent.

Here alpha is the linear expansion coefficient# that

coefficient which gives the greatest change in volume with

tempera— ture change# and then beta is a quadratic volume

expansion coefficient# which gives a somewhat smaller change

in volume with temperature although as one gets further away

from 60 degrees or whatever the reference temperature may be

# in this case I have used 60# then that becomes more

important.

What is commonly referred to as volume reduction factor#

VR# is derived from the previous relationship# the volume

-temperature relationship# in a very s tra i g h t f orwar d manner.

It is the ratio of the volume at the reference temperature#

60 degrees/^ or 15.56 degrees C. to the measured volume.

VR=-VM/Vt X' These values are tabulated in the tables that Adin Hall

was referring to. They are tabulated in this way because all

that is required to compute the equivalent volume at 60

degrees F. is measured volume at a particular temperature#

enter the tables by knowing the measured temperature and

measured density# and come out with a volume reduction

factor. Multiplication of that factor by the measured

volum^then gives you the equivalent volume at the reference

temperature.

So the problem becomes one of determining values for the

coefficients alpha and beta.

As Adin Hall indicated earlier# Bearce and Peffer

published data in 1916 which we have no reason to disbelieve#

and that data is plotted here. This is a representation of

the data that they published in NBS Technical Note 77.

The thermal expansion coefficient is expressed in units

of per degrees of Fahrenheit and the density expressed in

units of API gravity.

There are more products than crude oils. The central

curve is a least squares fit through, these points that

represents an average curve which can be quantified. There

are unique values for alpha. From those values one can make

any kind of table that is desired.
A.P.

GRAVIT Y

PAGE 12A

COEFF. ExPAUSIQNi f/° F

)

w* t* 0* -4 o o o o o

3

^02>Y3<g
PAGE 13

I have drawn in the two dashed curves to illustrate the

fact that all petroleums aren't the same even if they have

the same density.

As you can see* the scatter is rather significant. In

the higher density region it is on the order of 10 percent or

somewhat more. They didn't have very many gasolines up around

.7; they had three or four gasolines. Those four points a little bit heavier than ,6* represent pentane samples. So one

has a curve like this. One has also* as Mr. Hall said* some

lower density data on natural gasolines and some LP gases

were added to this data base to generate the presently used

table of volume reduction factors. Now one comes to the

results of the API/NBS physical property. This plot is very

similar to the Bearce and Peffer data.
API.

GRAVITY

PAGE 13A

COEFF. OF THERMAL EXPANSION (A f)

8 .
PAGE 14

Once again/ I have drawn through the data an average curve.

There are two scatter bounds associated with it. As I said

earlier* you can see a grouping of the data. At around 60

degrees API Gravity you see a clump of data which almost

totally constitutes data on gasolines of various types. This

includes all of the commercially available types of gasoline*

that is no-lead* premium* and regular, plus one or two

blending stocks which generally are not available on a retail

basis. Further down* at about 36 to 40 degrees API, there

begins another clum)* which is rather extensive and extends

down to about 20 degrees API. In this extended clump are* on

the higher end* the jet fuels and on the lower end, #2

heating fuel primarily* along with #2 diesel. Of course* we

have crude oil plotted on this particular plot too* and as I said previously* w'e had about 250 products and only

approx imately 110 or 120 crude oil. The bulk of all the data

then is product data which is* of course* of more interest

here than is crude oil. The next question is how do all these

compare. The Bearce and Peffer curve, which is closely

related to any sort of tables or factors which are used for

volume reduction purposes* lies sy s tema t i ca 1 1 y below the

product curve that we have gotten and I would emphasize

again, as Adin has already said* that we feel that the reason

it lies below is the fact that the samples of petroleum that

have been measured and which generally constitute that curve

may vary rather widely and certainly in 55 years the crude

oils and products which were refined at the Bureau from those

crude oils are not of commercial significance. So I don't

find it particularly surprising at all that these new data

lie somewhat above old data* in particulaiysince refining

techniques have vastly improved in the last 50 years and one

is able to obtain somewhat more controlled mixtures of

substances which might be generically called gasoline. So the

question now becomes* given the fact that we can get values

for the expansion coefficients* then what does that mean when

you plug those back into the volume/temperature relationship

relative to measured volumes and volumes at reference

temperatures? What I am trying to show in the following table

is the magnitude of the correction that should be made for

fuel oils and gasolines over a temperature range which is

normally encountered, that is 20 to 100 degrees F. You can

see in the case of fuel oils which have a somewhat smaller

expansion coefficient than gasoline* that at 20 or 100

degrees one is approaching a discrepancy of about two

percent* and in the case of gasoline it is about three

percent. Of course* as one goes lower in temperature that

is below 60 degrees F. * then the volume deliverd in the

transaction is greater than the volume at 60.. and whenever

you are above 60* of course* the volume delivered is less

than 60. This gives some order of magnitude as to the amount
PAGE 15

of discrepancy. If there are any questions, I would be happy

to entertain them.

VOLUMETRIC EXPANSION AND CONTRACTION OF HEATING OIL AND GASOLINES

* Temperature Volumetric change (%)

Heating Oil Gasoline

20 -1.8 -2.7

30 -1.4 -2.0

40 - .9 -1.4

50 - .5 - .7

60 0 .0

70 + .5 + .7

80 + .9 + 1.4

90 + 1.4 +2.0

100 +1.8 +2.7

* Positive values indicate expansion.
PAGE 16

MR. THOLEN: Jimi it might be well to add that the data

that have been produced here at the Bureau are now being

examined by API and ASTM people. It is possible that there

may be a number of curves or sets of data/ so at the present

time we simply do not know what form that will take.

MR. HINE: On the equations that you were presenting/ we

had a representation on the V at 15. $6 times a quantity/ then

you went to VR equations. What is the exponent?

MR. WHETSTONE: I think the question you are dealing with

is the volume reduction factor and that is going to be equal

to the inverse of the brackets. Is that your question? Is

that the answer to your question?

MR. HINE: Yes/ the slide showed VR being V at 15.56 over

Vt.

MR. WHETSTONE: Whenever you divide by Vt and bring it to

the other side/ then you get an inverse.

QUESTION: Jim/ you had a curve up there of coefficient

of thermal expansion and density.

MR. WHETSTONE: YES.

QUESTION: What was the magnitude of the scatter of

points at any one density? You mentioned 10 percent. Is it

plus or minus 10 percent as the whole scatter?

MR. WHETSTONE: Plus or minus 10 percent. That is on the

thermal expansion coefficient.

QUESTION: Right.

MR. WHETSTONE: So that doesn't mean that there is a scatter of 10 percent in the volume reduction factor.

QUESTION: How big were your samples for each type of

product?

MR. WHETSTONE: Typically/ the submitters were requested

to send in two/ one-quart samples.

QUESTION: One quart representing a lot/ say a billion

gallons/ of crude/ or it didn't matter what size?

MR. WHETSTONE: The only guideline that was given

relative to what kind of product that would be submitted was

those products had the greatest volume. It was "please send

us three products. 11 What happened was# as I said/ we got fuel

oil/ jet fuel/ and gasoline. That was almost universally

true. Before that request went out/ we had two companies send

in a broad spectrum of all their products/ which included

various kinds of lubricating oils and that is where some of

the blend stocks came in.

QUESTION: Were there any crude in the samples?

MR. WHETSTONE: Oh/ sure. As I said we had values on 120

or 130 crude oils. We got about 220 or 230 crude oils but we

were unable to make measurements on all of them generally

because they were dither so gasey that we couldn't get a reproducible measurement at atmospheric pressure, or they

were on the other end of the spectrum in which they were so
PAGE 17

viscous that we could not introduce the material into the

densimeter in such a wag that we could believe the results.

QUESTION: I could give you a sample like that. Let's say

you and I went out to take a sample and we had a 10/000

barrel tank we had to take the sample from. Let's say you

took a quart of sample from that tank. Is it generally known

that the product is homogeneous enough? W#4i we get a representative physical sampling?

MR. WHETSTONE: The answer is no. I don't think generally

whether it is in the field of petroleum or any field in which

you are trying to sample bulk material/ that is a question

that you can always ask and argue about and you can continue

to argue about forever without coming up with a very

satisfactory answer.

QUESTION: I would appreciate your opinion.

MR.. WHETSTONE: My opinion is that the samples were

collected in a way which was consisatent with the practice

within the industry. That is to say that we generated a sampling document and we sent it out to people along with a request for samples. I have no information about whether or

not that document was followed. The document itself was in

the most part derived from standardized procedures that are

used within the petroleum industry. I believe API has a sampling standard That was drawn upon heavily. I think there

were some additions to that in detail but not in substance.

QUESTION: What kind of a variance in the volume

reduction factor results from the 10 percent scatter?

MR. WHETSTONE: Well, of course, that is

temperature-dependent, so at about, say 100 degrees, it gets

big enough that it matters, you begin to look at a few tenths

of a percent, that is for a 95 percent type of scatter

boundry. That is not to say that the distribution is normal

or anything else, just if it is assumed to be normal, then it

$S a few tenths of a percent at 95 percent confidence.

QUESTION: When you said fuel oil, do you mean distillate

heating oil as opposed to residual oil?

MR. WHETSTONE: The way that samples came in was that

somebody would send in a sample and it was labelled,

generally something like "furnace oil" or "auto diesel," "#2

fuel oil," things of that type. So generally they were the

light fuel oils, es s en t ia l$j#2 fuel oil, they were not the

heavy residuals although we did have some. Down in the lower

end when you look at that graph at lower API gravities, you

will find some points down there that are #6 oil anc^things of

that type.

QUESTION: Are these volume correction tables generally

an industry standard?

MR. WHETSTONE: I think Mr. Hall should answer that.

QUESTION: Which leads me to ask then if it is an

industry standard, is there an^r prohibition against anyone
PAGE 18

else using them?

MR. WHETSTONE: I would think not. That would depend on

whether they wanted to use them. That would be a decision

that they should make.

MR. HALL: The standard as generally used has five logo's

as I recall. One is the Institute of Petroleum in England;

American Socity for Testing and Materials; Internat ional

Standards Organi zation; API; and ANSI. So these tables are

available to anybody's use. QUESTION: That is what I am getting to* they are

voluntary standards then?

MR. WHETSTONE: Yes, I think that is true.

QUESTION: In other words, I couldn't go, say, to buy oil

from Arabia and say, "Wait a minute, I have got a different

set of tables, let's use mine instead. " MR. WHETSTONE: If you can make a contract with the

Saudi's to do that, that is up to you. Godiiluck.

QUESTION: But generally it wouldn't be done.

MR. WHETSTONE: I really don't know how the commercial

transactions are set up.

QUESTION: I just wondered if, for instance, I went into

a wholesaler and bought 1,000 gallons of API gasoline and I wanted him to volume correct it, would I be referred to a certain table?

MR. WHETSTONE: That would probably be the case but it

doesn't have to be.

QUESTION: I don't think there are any other volume

correction tables floating around the country.

MR. WHETSTONE: True, I think you are right. Your first

point was that anybody could use them. That is true, anybody

can. By the same token, anybody can use anything they want

to.

QUESTION: Jim, as I understand it the decision has not

been made yet to use the NBS research as a basis for new

tables that would be adopted by API/COPM.

MR. WHETSTONE: As it stands right now, the data have

been released to the API Committee on Petroleum Measurement

and anyone else who would like it. As far as I know, and I am

certainly not speaking for the API/COPM, they have not come

to a decision although they recently had a meeeting and the

upshot of that may shed some light on the decision or it may

not.
PAGE 19

TEMPERATURE—MEASUREMENT ASSURANCE AND ACCURACY

Jacquelyn Wise

Temperature Measurement Division# NBS

If you choose to sell petroleum products by temperature

compensating volumes# you are going to need an accurate

temperature measuring device.

There are many such devices on the market today. Many of

them consist of a probe containing a resistance element# a thermocouple# a thermistor# or a quartz crystal. These probes

are attached with electrical wire to some type of an

electronic device. Many times the device has a digital

display making it very easy to read. You simply put the probe

in a container and take a reading. These digital thermometers

can be rather costly and# in some cases# especially in the

field# they could be inconvenient to use.

We have not done a great deal of work with digital type

thermometers at the National Bureau of Standards. We have

seen a few of them# mostly the clinical type used to measure

body temperature. We have seen in some of these digital

thermometers the readings becoming incorrect as the batteries

weaken. Also# electronic components can age and cause errors.

So a digital type thermometer# an electronic thermometer,

should be recalibrated often.

The thermometer that you would probably choose to use as

a standard for temperature measur ermen t in a laboratory or

even in the field would be the liquid-in-glass thermometer.

It is rather inexpensive# extremely easy to use# and very

easy to recalibrate. Their behavior is quite predictable. We

have a great amount of history on 1 i qu i d-in-g 1 a s

s

thermometers and the calibrations will last a lifetime. The

correction curves will tend to shift# either up or down#

reflecting a change in the bulb volumes# but once

thermometers have been calibrated ice point checks are all

that is necessary to determine this shift# producing useful

current cal ibrations.

There are many different types of 1 iquid-in-g lass

thermometers# but they all are included in three categories.

These categories are determined by the way the thermometers

are to be used.

The first way a liquid-in-glass thermomter can be used

is at complete immersion, complete immersion we mean the

entire thermometer is submerged in the liquid or medium oeing

measured. If you are going to use a thermometer in this way#

there are two requirements that must be met. tou must have a container with a window# enabling you to see in '0 the fluid
PAGE 20

where the thermometer is placet^and secondly* the fluid must

be clear so t-h at -you- can look through it and read^the

thermometer. In the petroleum industry, this is probably not

possible; therefore, you would nut use a liquid-in-glass

thermometer at complete immersion. Also, they are simply not

made in this country to be used in this way. A very, very

small percentage of thermometers, if any at all, are made by

manufacturers for use at complete immersion; therefore, we

will rule out this type of thermometer.

Perhaps 50 percent of thermometers manufactured are for

use at total immersion. By total immersion we mean the bulb,

which is at the bottom of the^ thermometer containing the

mercury,

and the portion of the stem containing the mercury are placed

in the medium or bath whose temperature we are trying to

measure. Consequently, with the total immersion thermomter,

as the temperature increases you will have to continually

push the thermometer down in order to keep it at total

immersion. Therefore, the vessel must be deep enough to hold

the mercury column when you are reading the temperature at

the upper end of the scale.

The other 50 percent of thermometers manufactured are

for use at partial immersion. By partial immersion we mean

the bulb and only a specified portion of the stem is immersed

in the liquid. With a partial immersion thermometer there is

usually an immersion line or ring etched or placed around the

bottom of the thermometer or the depth of immersion is marked

on the back (example 76 mm). With the partial immersion

thermometer the rest of the stem, including a portion

containing mercury, is at ambient temperature or the

temperature prevailing above the medium being measured.

Because the temperature above that medium can vary, you will

get slight differences in the readings on a partial immersion

thermometer. This is not true with a total immersion

thermometer because the stem is immersed in the medium and is

at the same temperature as the bulb. Therefore, a total

immersion thermometer is more accurate than a partial immersion

thermometer.

It is very important that you use a liquid-in-glass

thermomter the way it was intended to be used. If it is a total immersion thermomter, it must be used at total

immersion. It it is a partial immersion thermometer, it must

be used at partial immersion. Otherwise, you could get a large error in the reading. This error will depend on the

thermometer length in the incorrect temperature environment

and the temperature difference.

In order to emphasize this point, I would like to

discuss an example. I am going to break an N3S rule and

speak, as other speakers hav.^, in degrees Fahrenheit and not

degrees Celsius. The thermometers used in the example is one
PAGE

with a range of 32 to 212 degrees F. This is a total

immersion thermontter which will be used to measure a temperature at 200 degrees F. The thermometer, being total

immersion, should be immersed near the 200 degree mark, with

appr o x ima te 1 y 12 mm out of the bath so that the thermometer

can be read. Let us say that this thermometer is only

immersed to the 32 degree mark. Therefore, there will be 168

degrees (200 degrees F-02. degrees F)emergent from the bath

and at, let us say, 80 degrees instead of 200 degees F. If you

insert these values into an appropriate equation, you wiU.

find that the error introduced by using this thermometer

incorrectly would be ap pr o x ima t e 1 y 1.8 degrees F. Because you

are using a thermometer incorrectly, you have introduced

appr o x imate 1 y a two degree error. Therefore, it is very

important to use total immersion thermometers at total

immersion and partial immersion thermometers at partial

immer s i on. Most thermometers contain mercury as the liquid.

Mercury, if you will, is a dry liquid and when it retreats

into the bulb nothing is left behind on the wall of the

cap i 1 lary

.

You can also buy thermometers filled with organic

liquid. This liquid can be pentane, toluene, or alcohol, and

usually contains a dye, which is generally red, making the

thermometer easier to read. One problem associated with

organic filled thermometers is that the liquid tends to wet

the surface of the capillary. Therefore, adequate time must

be given for the liquid to drain down into the lower portion

of the thermometer when it is used to measure lower

temperatures. This can take as long as 15 minutes to an hour

for complete drainage. For this reason, thermometers having

mercury as a liquid are more accurate than organic filled

thermometers.

What is the accuracy of a liquid-in-glass thermometer?

First of all, I want to define the accuracy as being the

ability of a liquid-in-glass thermometer to reproduce

temperature accurately when all factors are taken into

account. In other words, all of the mercury is reunited, the

thermometer has never been abused, it has never been heated

beyond its top temperature, and you have a current set of

corrections. When you use that thermometer and apply the

correction, how good is that temperature determination? How

accurate is that reading?

Here again we are going to discuss a thermometer with a range of 32 to 212 degrees F. Let us begin by seeing how

accurate a total immersion thermometer can be. The accuracy

will depend on the graduation interval. Let us say you have a total immersion thermometer graduated in intervals of 0. 2 or

0. 1 degrees F. These are rather finely graduated thermomters

If the thermometer is graduated in two-tenths there are five

intervals for each degree, and if it is graduated in
PAGE 20

one-tenth there are ten intervals for each degree. A

thermometer of this type/ which is the most accurate

liquid-in-glass thermometer for absolute temperature

measurement in the Fahrenheit range/ is capable of

reproducing temperatures accurately within 0.02 to 0.05

degrees F. On another total immersion thermometer having the

same range but graduated in intervals of 0.5 or one degree F#

the accuracy will decrease to 0. 1 to 0. 2 degrees F. For a total immersion thermometer of the same range graduated in

intervals of two degrees F an accuracy of 0. 2 to 0. 5 degrees

F will be realized.

A partial immersion thermometer having a range of 32 to

212 degrees F and graduated in two degrees F/ one degree F#

or anything finer# is not improved by having finer

graduations# it is capable of measuring temperatures with an

accuracy of 0. 2 to 0. 5 degrees F.

An organic filled total immersion thermometer of the

same range# graduated in intervals of two degrees F# one

degree F or less# is accurate within 0.3 to 0.5 degrees F. The least accurate thermometer would be one that is organic

filled# partial immersion# and graduated in intervals of two

degrees F# one degree F or less# it would have an accuracy of

only 0. 8 to two degrees F. Thus accuracy is going to depend on the type of liquid#

mercury being more accurate than organic liquid# on the

immersion# total immersion being more accurate than partial

immersion# on the range# and on the graduation interval. The

accuracy will decrease as the range and the value of the

interval increase.

You may see liquid-in-glass thermometers that are

graduated in intervals of 0.05 or 0.02 degrees F. Thermometers graduated in intervals finer than 0. 1 degrees F

are not recommended for absolute temperature measurement. The

capillary is very small and the mercury will tend to cling to

the wall. It will not move freely within the capillary and

the meniscus could appear to move erratically. Considerable

care must be taken when using this type of thermometer. A

slight tap on the thermometer will help settle the meniscus

at the correct position.

The choice of thermometer is going to be yours. Probably

the biggest factor affecting the type of thermometer you

choose is going to be the accuracy needed for the test. You

must then determine if you can use a total immersion

thermometer or whether you have to use a partial immersion

thermometer. If your vessels or baths are deep enough# then

you would certainly want to use a total immersion thermometer

because it is more accurate. However# if you have a shallow

vessel# you would be compelled to use a partial immersion

thermometer. Do you want one thermometer that covers the

entire range of temperature measurement or should you select
PAGE 23

several thermometers each covering a shorter temperature

range? If you have a shallow vessel, perhaps you could select

three or four short total immersion thermometers. This would

enable you to immerse the thermometer properly and have the

higher accuracy of a total immersion thermometer. The

graduation interval is another aspect to consider. The best

accuracy is achieved if the thermometer is graduated in

intervals of 0.2 degrees F or 0. 1 degrees F. However, as the

interval gets smaller, a thermometer of the same range is

going to get longer. Once you decide the accuracy range,

interval, and actual physical dimensions required, you can

then discuss the availability of such a thermometer with a manuf ac tur er. Most reputable manufac tur er s in this country

are listed in the Thomas Register. They may have in stock a thermometer you can use or they may be willing to design one

if nothing is available to suit your purpose.

Whatever your choice of thermometer, you should never

take it immediately from the mailing container and use it.

You should examine it. At NBS we examine all thermometers

under a 20-power microscope, looking for foreign material,

mercury separation, and gas in the bulb. Mercury separation

will occur in perhaps 60 percent of the thermometers you will

receive because of rough handling in shipping. Most of the

time you can see it with the eye unaided. All of the mercury

must be reunited. Occasi ona lly droplets of mercury will

collect at the top of the thermometer. These droplets can

form because of mercury vapor i ration, even though the

manuf ac tur ers insert a dry, inert gas under pressure above

the mercury column. A microscope is used to detect the

droplets, since you may not be able to see them with the eye

una ided. These mercury droplets must also be reunited with

the main column. Many times, because of rough handling during

shipping, gas bubbles can form in the bulb. These gas bubbles

must be removed. All of the mercury must be reunited and all

of the gas must be removed from the bulb. If you don't do

this, you could get an error of a degree or more.

Liquid-in-glass thermometers can be calibrated in two

ways. The method used at NBS, and the one that will probably

be used in your testing laboratories, would be to place the

thermometer, making sure that/all the mercury is joined, all

the gas is removed, and no foreign material such as a glass

chip, is in the capillary, in a calibration bath with a standard thermometer of some type. We use a standard platinum

resistance thermometer at NBS. You may wa nt to use an NB fa calibrated liquid-in-glass thermometer or one that is

traceable to NBS as your standard. Determine the temperature

of the bath medium when the thermometers being calibrated are

read and find corrections at various temperatures. When you

use a thermometer that has been calibrated, the correction

must be applied to the thermometer reading to obtain an
PAGE 24

accurate temperature measurement within certain limits.

Some people we talk with who attend our seminars state

that they cannot give a man in the field a liquid-in-glass

thermometer with a set of corrections. Many times he either

doesn't know what to do with the corrections/ or he may apply

them with the opposite sign and double the error. Therefore/

the second method of calibration is used. The thermometers

are placed in the calibration bath and compared with a standard. An accuracy needed when using the thermometers is

established and we will assume it to be 0.5 degrees F. All

those that fall within that 0.5 degrees F tolerance are given

to the men in the field/ and all those that fall beyond that

tolerance/ that have corrections that exceed 0.5 degrees Fz

are rejected. The thermometers can now be used without

applying any corrections and the people in the laboratories

know that the temperature measurements will be within the

tolerance that is required.

Liquid-in-glass thermometers are very easy to

recalibrate. Once you have generated a calibration curve/ all

that is necessary is to check one of the calibration points

and reposition the curve accordingly. Changes will occur in

the bulb volume because of time and use. There is no way to

prevent it.

The point that has been selected as the reference point

on the liquid-in-glass thermometer is the ice point at 32

degrees F. This point should be plainly marked on any

thermometer that you are thinking of purchasing or one that

you might have designed. If a thermometer has been calibrated

at several points/ the ice point being one of them/ and you

have a set of corrections/ all that is necessary for

r eca 1 i bra t i on is to check the ice point in an ice bath. An

ice point calibration bath consists of a flask filled with

ice made from distilled water/ which has been shaved into

small chips measuring 2 to 5 mm/ and distilled water. Pack

the thermometer firmly in that ice bath/ remove any excess

water from the top of the ice/ and take a reading. Any change

you see in the ice point will be reflected in all of the

other calibration points by the same amount and in the same

direction. Therefore/ in a period of three to five minutes

you can recalibrate any liquid-in-glass thermometer that has

an ice point calibration.

The ice point can also be used to determine if there is

any mercury separation or gas in the bulb. If you observe an

ice point correction that exceeds one scale division/ it

could be an indication that all the mercury is not joined or that gas is in the bulb. The ice point check should not be

used as a replacement for examining the thermometer under the

microscope/ but does offer an easy method for determining the

inaccuracy of a thermometer reading due to rough handling in

the field.
PAGE 25

If you are going to use liquid-in-glass thermometers in

the laboratory# you will certainly want to read them with

some type of telescope or magnifier. At NBS we use a 10-power

telescope. This technique may not be necessary for reading

thermometers used in the field. You can probably estimate to

a half or even a quarter of a scale division with the eye

unaided# but with an eyepiece the thermometer could probably

be read unaided# but with an eyepiece the thermometer could

probably be read to the nearest 0. 1 of an interval. If an

eyepiece is used it should be placejperpendicular to the

thermometer to avoid any error due to paralfex.

What I have tried to do in this short talk is to make

you aware of the precautions that must be followed when

making a temperature determination# especially if the

instrument being used is a 1 i quid^-in-g lass thermometer. If

you need any help in any way on ^temperature measurement#

feel free to contact the people here at NBS# especially the

Temperature Measurements and Standards Division. We present

an instr uc t i ona 1 temperature seminar twice a year in which we

discuss in detail platinum resistance thermometry#

liquid-in-glass thermometry and thermocouple thermometry.

Does anyone have any questions? Yes# sir?

QUESTION: Have you done any temperature measurements on

liquid petroleum?

MS. WISE: No# none at all.

QUESTION: Any other particular medium other than liquid

petroleum?

MS. WISE: No# what I do is calibrate thermometers under

ideal conditions in calibration baths# comparing them to a standard. I have rarely used or seen thermometers used or seen thermometers used in the field.

QUESTION: The reason I asked is that there are problems

in the field about where# when# and how many temperature

readings to take.

MS. WISE: We usually tell people they have to establish

their own criteria. How many readings do you think are

necessary?

QUESTION: What is the average frequency you have to have

them calibrated? If I understand correctly# a thermometer

that is used at lower temperatures# not exceeding the boiling

point# does not present as much of a problem as a thermometer

that is used at higher temperatures. Is that correct?

MS. WISE: That is true. The higher the temperature- the

more change you will see in the volume or the bulb. However,

the bulb volume will change also while the thermometer sits

on the shelf# and will change more rapidly when the

thermometer is new than it will after it has been in use for

several years.

Many people ask what the r eca 1 i brat l on interval is for

their thermometer. I tell them to recalibrate often when the
PAGE 26

thermometer is new. Since it is so easy to do* an ice point

check can be made perhaps every other week. Once you see the

ice point beginning to stablize* you could extend that

calibration interval. I would probably recalibrate my

standard a minimum of twice a year* even if a change in bulb

volume is not suspected.

QUESTION: Must liquid-in-glass thermometers be used

vertical ly?

MS. WISE: They should be used vertically. You can

calibrate them horizontally* however* giving you corrections

for thermometers used in the horizontal position. We do not

calibrate horizontally at NBS.

QUESTION: What do you recommend to correct mercury

separat ion?

MS. WISE: There are four ways to reunite the mercury

column. This is one of the things that we discuss at length

during the temperature seminar and I cannot discuss it in

detail here.

The easiest way is to place half of the thermometer bulb

in dry ice* causing all of the mercury* including the

separated portion* to be drawn into the bulb. A slight tap on

something soft like a rubber stopper will cause the separated

portion to fall and reunite with the main column. You have to

be very careful when doing this because the dry ice will

freeze the mercury. If you freeze it solid and the bottom

portion thaws before the top portion* the expanding mercury

will cause the bulb to break.

QUESTION: After experiencing mercury separation* is it

absolutely necessary to calibrate the thermometer again?

MS. WISE: No.

QUESTION: Do yu have a problem with stratification when

you submerge the bulb at different depths?

MS. WISE: It is neg 1 i g i b lV^€Sl i bra t i on equipment for

measurements to 300 degrees F because of rapid bath

c irculation, When we calibrate above 300 degrees F we have to

correct for the error introduced because of a variation in

temperature at the top of the oil bath.

QUESTION: You are probably working with a very small

samp ling.

MS. WISE: Yes. There is another question often asked

concerning the gradients in the calibration bath. I know that

they are in my calibration baths and what the error is in my

calibration equipment. You have to determine what it is in

yours. It if is large* then you have to correct it; if it is

sma 11, forget it.
PAGE 27

MARKETING IN THE PETROLEUM INDUSTRY

Richard Soothers

American Petroleum Institute

The purpose of my presentation will be to provide an

insight into the workings of the marketing segment of the

petroleum industry. The industry is generally considered to

consist of five major components: Exploration, production,

refining, transp orta t i on, and marketing.

The American Petroleum Institute is the largest trade

association in the petroleum industry and the only one

representing all the different segments. We have departments

with assigned responsibilities in each of the previously

mentioned areas. I am a member of the Marketing Department.

More specifically, I am concerned with the facilities

utilized by marketers such as terminals, bulk plants, and

service stations.

The chart which I have here is a graphic representation

of the industry's marketing inter-relationships. You will

note that there are two basic sources of supply for

marketers; Major Refiner/Supplier and Independent

Refiner/Supplier.

The middle men or wholesalers are known as: Branded

Jobbers — Independent businesses selling branded products,

Commission Agent — Company employee selling branded

products, and Pr ivate-Branded Jobber — Independent

businesses selling pr i vate-branded products.

In some instances the jobber function is by-passed and

the products flow directly to retail outlets from the

refiner/supplier.

Terminals are the primary distribution point and may De

located adjacent to or some distance from a refinery. They

received their products by pipeline, ship or barge. Storage

capacities at terminals vary considerably, depending on the

market area to be served and the number of days storage

needed for the area. Marine terminals are generally the

largest from the standpoint of tank capacity.

Ref iner/sup p 1 i er-owned terminals with salaried personnel

are the predominant mode of operations. Some terminals are

independently owned and are not affiliated with any refiners

Most of these are oriented primarily in the fuel oils

Bulk plants are smaller than terminals and receive tneir

products by railroad tank car, or more frequently by truck

transports. They store the product in bulk for distribution

to service stations, commercial accounts, farms and fuel oil

accounts.
'

.
Gasoline

Marketing

Wholesale

Distribution

104—

03 QC

03

<oo

; o

. JC5

*

NOTE:

Imports

of

finished

product

not

shown.

Private-branded,

non-branded,

and

unbranded

are

interchangeable

terms.

Private-branded

Jealer

outlets

include

Independent

retailers.
PAGE 28

Trucks transporting supplies to bulk plants may be owned

by the supplier* the plant operator or a common carrier.

Trucks hauling out of the bulk plant are usually referred to

as tank wagons and are owned by the plant operator.

Typically* the jobber supplies name-branded or

pr iva te-branded lessee or contract service stations in

addition to any farm* home and/or commercial accounts.

However* some jobbers are also engaged in the direct

operation of service stations either by salaried personnel or

by various contractua/ relationships.

Another type of bulk plant operator is the one who

distributes products for a r e f iner /sup p 1 i er and who receives

a commission on each gallon sold. He is known as a commission

agent. Commission agents do not take title to the products

they distribute and generally operate from facilities which

are owned by their suppliers. They may own and supply their

own stations and generally operate like small jobbers.

Refiner suppliers may also directly operate bulk plants*

particularly in urban and high volume areas.

From the foregoing discussion* one can see that supplies

flow from the refinery to the retail level through several

different channels. Gasoline ends up at seven different

categories of service stations in addition to other places of

business such as convenience stores and car washes. This

multiplicity of interests and channels of distribution is the

reason for the varying viewpoints of the parties involved

that precludes an<|( "industry position" on the subject of this

symposium. In today's language* "It all dependSflh where you're

coming from.

In addition to the complexities of the industry's

methods of doing business* one also ha£ to take into account

the effects of Government regulations and the supply

situation which exists today. Because of all of this* when

considering the ponderables of temperature compensation* the

conference and individual states must be alert so that we do

not become parties to creating a solution to a questionable

need

.

Temperature compensation or the adjustment of volumes

due to the effects of temperature* has been used for many

years in many areas of the petroleum industry. Where used* it

has always been with an und er stand ing between the parties

involved* sometimes c ontrac t uw.1

1

y and sometimes as accepted

practice. The primary reason for its use has been for

ac c oun tab i 1 i ty

.

Petroleum* whether in the form of crude oil or finished

product* normally makes several trips before it Olds up at

the retail level. It goes from the well to a gathering system — to a refinery — to a terminal — to a bulk plant — to a service station or consuming account. Some of these trips are

as long as half-way around the world. Practically all of them
PAGE 29

will involve different temperature zones. Without the use of

temperature compensation it would be possible to have large

differences, gallonage wise, between what was shipped and

what was delivered. As an example, a tanker with a million

gallons of gasoline aboard traveling through waters which

produce a 5-degree F change in the product temperature would

have a volume change of 3,000 gallons. Percentage-wise that

is only three-tenths of a percent. If it were a one million

barrel tanker, the change wuld be 126,000 gallons. There are

42 gallons to the barrel. It's still only three-tenths of a percent but it is 63,000 dollars at fifty cents per gallon

wholesale. That same change would come to thirty-six

thousandths of a gallon on a typical twelve gallon fill at

the service station or amount to 1.8 cents to the dealer

Dependent upon the dealers particular situation, it could be

plus or minus. The retail customer receives exactly the

volume indicated on the dispenser.

Temperature adjustment is also used for inventory

control purposes at terminals and some bulk plants. Once

again the factors remain the same but the multipliers get to

be awfully big. So what can be a relatively insignificant

loss factor can turn out to be a significant dollar amount.

I hope that from what I have said today you will have a better understanding of the petroleum industry and

particularly the marketing segment. I also hope that you will

see that the considerations of this symposium are entirely

different from those which brought about the practice of

temperature compensation within the industry. Thanks to

Weights and Measures laws and regulations, ac c oun tab i 1 l ty

already exists at the retail level. Why, how, and when volume

correction should be made or allowed in the market place is a most complex subject — one which should be better understood

by the end of this symposium. To illustrate the complexity,

the following list of factors to be considered was presented

to the S and T Committee during the interim meeting of the

National Conference on Weights and Measures.
PAGE 30

FACTORS TO BE CONSIDERED

IN TEMPERATURE ADJUSTED

SALES OF PETROLEUM PRODUCTS

1. Criteria for determining mandatory or optional

adjustment of sales

<a). Mandatory —Which products; Wholesale; Retail

(b). Optional — Buyer or Se 1 1 er ; Wh o 1 esa 1 e ; Retail

2. Equipment Specifications

(a). Type approval

3. Testing Equipment

(a) . Procedure —Equipment required

(b) . Tolerance —Total test; Temperature Sensor

4. Manual Adjustment

(a). Determination of temperature

5. User Requirements

(a) . Notice to Consumer

(b) . Necessity for gross and/or net indications

6. Taxes

(a). Federal and state agreement

7. Equipment Availability and Cost

(a) . Loading Rack

( b

)

. True k Meter

<c). Service Station Pump

8. Economic Impact

(a) . Industry

(b) Consumer

QUESTION: Where does the consignee fit into your

marketing arrangement? Is that the equivalent of the

commission agent?

MR. SOUTHERS: Yes. A consignee is kind of a hybrid.

Usually a consignee is an independent; he is not a company

employee* but he is handling a company product that he does

not take title to until he sells it. The company owns the

product in the bulk plant. He pays for it when he sells it.

This enables a man to get into business with not as much

capital as it would take if he was handling his own supply.

There are other factors. When you look at the different

lines that go from on^4ource to the other, it looks like a tangled ball of twine. Wherever there has been a need,

someone has tried to device a means of supplying that need

and they have come up with new and different kinds of

arrangements for doing this. But the consignee is one who

does not own the product in storage; he pays for it as it is

sold. There had been some of that at the service station

level in recent years. I don't know how much of it still
PAGE 31

exists. There mas a surge of this at one time where even the

product was carried clear to the service station and then the

dealer paid for it as it was sold.

QUESTION: In terms of c omparab i 1 i ty in inventory

control/ what level of agreement or disagreement would exist

through/ say a chain from the refiners to the jobber and then

the next step to the retail level?

MR. SOUTHERS: It exists in some form all the way

through. It is not a pattern type of thing. Generally

speaking/ the service station has not been receiving a product on an adjusted basis.

Several of the companies have arrangements whereby the

dealer can buy on an adjusted basis if he so desires/ but he

has to sign a one-year contract if he does it. Experience

with this has been that many of these people at the end of

the year say they came out about even and it wasn't worth the

hassle of going through it so they don't renew the contract.

It is a matter of the contractual relationship. If the

person wants it, he can bargain for it in his purchase

contract/ but it is not generally practiced at this level

here. It is not even uniformly practiced after receipts to

bulk plants/ which you might think would be even more likely

to get it but it is not uniformly practiced there either.

Part of this is because when the practices within the

industry grew up/ the product was much cheaper than it is

today; operating losses could be absorbed because the product

was so cheap. The product that was 10 cents a gallon 20 years

ago may be 50 cents a gallon today. This is why people are

saying/ "What I used to do is not good enough today. I have

got to change. I can't stand that kind of losses.

Percentage-wise they still remain the same/ but dollar-wise

they have become much larger so people are saying that they

have got to do something about it to recover their losses.

QUESTION: I agree with you wholeheartedly on this

ac c oun tab i 1 i ty . If I understand it/ there is accountab i i i ty

at the well-head/ at the gathering system/ at the refinery/

and when it gets to the bulk plant/ but thereafter it might

not be down to the retail service agent/ if what I understand

you to say is correct. It seems to me that accountability is

equally important all the way through the chain. You can't

suddenly stop in the middle of the ball game and/ for

example/ use-a different method of measuring when you get

from the liulk plant to the motorist..

Let me- give- you an example of a problem. This was up, in

Vermont. Th e g h a p wa s buying his g as o 1 i n e and he wondered

where it was all going to in his underground tanks. For some

reason it was sh-rinking. One night he stuck his thermometer

in and it read 50 degrees that night; he paid his taxes on

the product; he dropped it into his underground tank It sat

there for days/ and he measured the temperature It had
PAGE 32

cooled 40 degrees. There was no wag that he could resell the

same volume that he bought. Even if it was temperature

corrected from the truck/ he certainly had no temperature

correction going out of the pump/ now he had a little

problem. He couldn't resell what he bought. He couldn't

recollect the proper taxes upon what he bought/ and he

figured that he was paying out $500 a year just because he

could not account for his product resale. So I think you have

got two problems here.

Another example of why I think ac c oun tab i 1 i ty is

important for resale. You and I drive into a station in LA/

it is 80-degree product there. We buy 20 gallons of 58-degree

API product. We have itj/in the car. We really don't get 20

gallons when you temperature correct it; we get about 19 3/4

gallons. At 80 cents a gallon/ we have lost 20 cents each

time we tank up for gasoline. Multiply that by millions.

I think that is a real problem and I think it could be

solved. I agree with you on ac c ountab i 1 i t y / but I think it

ought to go from the wellhead to the end.

MR. SQUTHERS: Let me go back to the ac c oun tab i 1 i t y part

of your question and answer that. A driller drills a well and

then somebody operates the well and pumps it. You have

several wells in an area so somebody creates a collection

system/ a gathering system that feeds into a pipeline. The

crude is then picked up by a truck and moved out. We have/

then/ the pumper/ the person who gathers and stores and then

the person who transports to the refinery. All of the people

are concerned with acc ountab i 1 i ty

.

Maybe I could better illustrate my point. I was at a pipeline meeting one time when the subject of how accurate

the pipe- liners had to account for their product was

discussed. One pipeliner says/ "In the area that I serve/ the

way my pipeline flows/ if they just let me have the

difference/ I would operate the pipeline for nothing. " That

is where we need the accountab i 1 ity.

For example/ the Federal Government buys F. Q. B. They may

have somebody haul a product for them. When they get it, they

want to be able to determine whether the amount delivered

agreed with the amount picked up at the refinery/ whether it

came by pipeline/ ship/ truck, whatever. That is what I am

referring to as accountab i 1 ity

.

It is a little bit different from accounting for why my

inventory changed while I had it in storage.
PAGE 33

UNIFORM NATIONAL STANDARDS FOR AN

EQUITABLE AND EFFICIENT MARKETPLACE

John G. Buckley

Northeast Petroleum Industries, Inc.

I am here today as a marketer and I recognize some of

the marketing problems that action or lack of action by the

Conference or by the states can have and is having.

I am going to be an advocate of temperature compensation

for home heating fuels, basically home heating oil or #2 fuel

and kerosene or #1 fuel; sometimes the two are mixed in the

colder climates to get the right pour. I am not going to be

an advocate for temperature compensation on gasoline because,

very frankly, I think the cost of that kind of move would

outweigh any possible benefits that could accrue to the

person that counts, and that is the consumer.

Our company buys gasoline by the tanker load and by the

barge load, temperature corrected, from both major refiners

and independent refiners. We resell that gasoline as

wholesalers to independent, private brand retailers and

retail it ourselves through our own private brand chain of

stations.

We operate in the six New England states and that is

certainly well within the frost belt, an area where you might

consider that there is a need for temperature compensation on

gasoline because it is colc^jp there in the wintertime. Yet we

find that it is virtually a "wash" even though we buy

temperature compensated and we do not temperature compensate

when we sell. Our gains or losses are very minimal over the

whole 12 months of the year. That is in Vermont, New

Hampshire, Massachusetts, Maine, Connecticut, and Rhode

Island. I don't see a strong case for temperature

compensation if we come out ever^4nd I suspect that the

consumer in the area comes out even, too, or very, very close

to it. Certainly close enough to it, at least in the area of

the country that I am familiar with, so that the additional

cost of adding equipment on every truck that delivers

gasoline to the station (and you are talking about a million

and half pumps just for starters) would be warranted. The

investment by the petroleum industry in dispensing gasoline

on the retail level and wholesale level would be much too

large for the very minimal savings that might accrue to some

consumers in some parts of the country.

But I am not here to talk gasoline. I am here to talk

about heating oil becauseit is a product that has become
PAGE 34

affected very dramatically by the absence of a unified

standard of measuring and temperature correcting throughout

the system. Accordingly/ this seminar is important and this

issue is a very timely one.

In view of recent events here and abroad# I think there

has become a very strong# almost an urgent need to take

action to correct for temperatures throughout the system of

distribution of home heating oil. One of the most significant

problems that independent distributors or wh o 1 e sa 1 e fjjo f this

product have today is their inability to be competitive with

major integrated refiners in the sales of this product

because the major integrated company# in its system#

temperature compensates. When we buy from them or from the

independent refiner# the product is temperature compensated#

but when we resell in the colder climes# it is not

temperature compensated.

When oil wholesaled at 12 cents a gallon (in 1973# not

that long ago# that was the wholesale rack price) it wasn't

too significant an issue. You are talking about 6 or 7/100s

of a penny loss and that could be absorbed by an independent

terminal operator.

But today# when that wholesale price has gone up more

than fourfold in six short years# when you are talk about

6/10ths of a percent of the total product that is lost in

parts of the country like ours# which translates to 3/10ths

of a penny (and 3/lOths of a penny may not sound like much) I can tell you that in the distribution business at the

wholesale level 3/10ths of a penny loss two years out of

three is going to be more than your net profit on operations

in selling this product all year long. So it is a very

significant number.

I would like to expand a bit on the picture Southers

painted of marketing# but I would like to focus strictly on

home heating fuels# rather than gasoline# because a much

simpler distribution scheme is involved and the players are

more easily identifiable.

Before I do that# I would like to mention roughly where

the product is sold so you can get a feel for who uses it in

the country. It is only one of several home heating fuels.

You can heat your home e 1 ec tr i ca 1 1 y » you can heat it with

gas. you can heat it with propane# you can heat it with home

heating oil. Because of the geography and the way the

pipelines are developed for natural gas# which has seen under

price controls# as you know# for 25 years# there are areas

where most of the homes use one fuel or another.

For home heating oil# the six New England states#

Vermont# Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island#

and Connecticut# use among them about 20 percent of the oil

used in the country as home heating fuel. New York State uses

another 20 percent. If you add in New Jersey and
PAGE 35

Pennsylvania/ you are getting very close to 60 percent of all

the heating oil sold in the country. If you go down the rest

of the east coast to warmer* more moderate climates* you add

another 10 percent. So basically 70 percent of this product

is sold on the east coast* and 60 percent of it right in

those nine northeast states. The balance is spread across the

frost belt* through the midwest and even out to the State of

Washington. In most of those states it is a relatively minor

home heating fuel* accounting for 10 to 20 percent/of the

homes, compared to natural gas which will have most of the

balance. In certain regions it is the predominant fuel. In

New England it is used in about 75 percent of all the nomes

Now you know where it is sold. What kind of a structure

exists? You again have these three tiers of distribution. You

have the refiner* the integrated refiner* who will sell as a refiner in bulk to companies like ours* wholesalers* wno will

sell at a rack to retailers* who delivers directly to the

home.

First* the refiner. Unlike gasoline* the refiner while

he has 100 percent of the supply has probably only 70 percent

of the wholesale distribution system and less than 10 percent

of the retail business. So in a home heating fuel you are

looking at an independent wholesale function* a terminal

operator, who does nothing except buy home heating oil mostly

under annual contracts with independent and major integrated

companies* and sells it to independent retailers. The

independent wholesaler may market a bit on the retail level

himself, but most of these independent terminal operators*

and there are about 20 of them on the east coast* from Maine

to Florida and the Mississippi gulf are basically

wholesalers; 80 or 90 percent of all the oil they move* the

heating oil, is as a wholesale operation.

That leaves then the independent retailer with about EC- percent of the country. So 80 homes out of 100 that are

supplied with heating oil are supplied by the independent

sector; about 25 to 30 percent of all the wholesale heating

oil goes to the independent section, not alligned with a major oil company or not affiliated with a major oil company

That is the distribution system.

That independent wholesaler function* again* varies by

region. It is 25 to 30 percent on the east coast wher? ~C

percent of the oil is sold, but around New York Cicy ard Long

Xsland it is more like 40 percent. In New England it is

between 45 and 50 percent. So it is a very significant

marketing element* particularly in some of those norrhc-;;:

states where the bulk of the product is sold

The independent retailer will normally split his

business. He will buy from one or two independent wr o . e --a 1 s r- and he will also buy from one or two major reamers s- wholesale. They do this because it is a very price
PAGE 36

competitive product. You will have 16 or IS terminals in a harbor like Boston Harbor. So the independent retailer has a wide choice and if he buys from two or three/ then he can

swing his purchases if someone's price is a little high or

someone else 's is a little low* and take a little bit more of

his monthly total from the low priced guy. It gives him a little better feel for the price in the market if he deals

with several companies; they like that competitive edge they

have when they can price shop between two or three suppliers

that they have contracts with.

In addition# of course# we have built up storage. Those

20 independent terminal operators that I talked about on the

east coast have about 35 million barrels of storage for home

heating fuels# kerosene and #2 fuel. That is a vital piece of

hardware in the distribution system because it enables us to

buy about 25 percent of our total annual volume during the

summer months. Without that bulge when you go into winter#

ther? is no way you can keep up with demand. The demand far

outstrips U. S. refining capacity's ability to supply product

in the middle of winter. You must fill those inventories. In

addition# as part of the marketing strategy of the major

companaies# a number of them that had very minor roles in

some of the more remote areas of the country have in recent

years done what they call rationalize their marketing system.

They have withdrawn from areas where their penetration was

slight. It used to be important for them to market in all 50

states. Now they look at where they can market profitably and

where they are not marketing profitably they tend to pull

out. Exxon has pulled out of retail heating oil distribution#

for example# in the northeast in recent years. Shell has

announced with- drawal from the wholesale market in heating

oi 1 this spring.

So some of the major companies are pulling back# are

trying to rationalize# are trying to market only where they

can market profitably rather than everywhere# and the

independent terminal operator has filled in that gap and kept

the essential product moving and we have done it# obviously#

because we think we can market more efficiently than a major

company because our entire focus is on marketing# on the

storage of product# on the supply of product# at attractive

prices# and selling it at competi- tive prices. When you tend

to focus on one region and you tend to focus on one area# you

tend to get better at it. or you should.

The key point to recognize here is that the independent

terminal operatof in the absence of a policy is being hurt

competitively at today's price levels. When you buy product

at 45 cents a gallon# cargo contract, temperature corrected,

and you have to sell most of it in the wintertime not

temperature compensated, our company which operates in those

New England states sees a six-tenths of one percent
PAGE 37

shrinkage. That is three-tenths of a penny at today's prices.

If; by the absence of a policy# you put one of the

competitive sectors at a three-tenths of a penny

d i sad vantag e# you are hurting them# you are hurting their

competitive ability.

The integrated companies# get temperature compensation

somewhere in their system; either they temperature compensate

at the refinery level# or they can have an inter-af f i 1 iate

transfer accounting method# but one way or another they get

it. They are not losing and we are# and it is a major item.

So I think the single most important aspect or point I would

like to leave with you today is that the absence of a unified

standard on home heating fuels today gives an unfair

competitive edge to the integrated refining company in the

market distribution system.

If you believe that consumers benefit most when there is a fiercely competitive market serving them# then the

Government must^not be in a posture of giving one party to

the competition an edge. Rather# the Government should create

a neutral ground on which the competition takes place. But to

provide that neutral grountj^e need action from the Conference

and from the states because the continued lack of action is

having a negative competitive effect.

I think we need uniform standards on a mandatory basis.

I think we need them right through the system# right through

the wholesaler and the retailer.

The wholesaler# obviously# is going to find it

attractive. Our company would find it attractive. We will

make the investment. Industry-wide I would guess there

probably would be a need at the rack for some 3# 500 to 4# 000

temperature compensation devices# not an enormous number to

get rack business totally converted nationwide on a mandatory

basis in a timely way.

Again# if the retailer could only do this by installing

a device on a truck# there would be a need for somewhere

between 15# 000 and 20# 000 devices for trucks. However# I suspect that if this committee can come up with a table based

on the tables that are already available <e. g. # the ASTM

tables and others)# a simple table for a retailer to use,

then the smaller retailers won't bother installing devices on trucks. They can simply make a manual adjustment to the bill

for the temperature compensation by using the standard chart.

The larger retailers# obviously# ma y prefer to go the route

of having their trucks outfitted. You have a speaker later on

today who is going to talk about experience in that area of

running 25 trucks for several years now with meters. T he

other obvious alternate is building it into your computer

runs on billing. Most retailers do have computer assistance

on bijling today in order to get billings out in a timely way

because one of our biggest single problems right now witr. 60
PAGE 38

cent and 65 cent product is cash flow. When you lay that

product out in the consumer's tank/ you need to be paid as

quickly as possible because you have to pay for product when

you bring it in by tanker. The longer that lag/ the more

difficult it is for you. So it is important to get bills out

in a timely# day-by-day basis# and thus you could build up a coefficient into the com puter to have those bills

temperature corrected by simply inserting into the computer

the actual mean temperature of the day of delivery.

So there are at least three different ways you can do

this; by hand# by computer# or with a machine on a truck. It

doesn't seem to me to be a difficult task. The technology is

certainly there and I think should be used.

While I said I think the key here is competitive impact

that lack of action is having# there are a couple of other

rather compelling reasons right now why it is urgent to take

action in this area. One of those is certainly the issue of

storage. You can't have enough storage. The reason you build

storage is that you hope to buy a product that is used in the

winter in the summertime when you can get it at a little

better price# store it and then sell it hopefully in the

winter when the price has gone up because the demand is high.

You don't always succeed in making a profit on that storage

but that is the reason you have^it.

What you are doing by building in temperature correction

through the whole independent wholesale and retail business

is this: you are making it more attractive to build storage

because you now you can buy in July and August# have the

temperature compensation work for'you and not fear losing

three# four or five percent of that volume because you are

buying it in July and selling it in December. You don't have

those big swings between the maximum high temperature in the

summer and .the minimum low temperature in the winter. You in

effect can build storage and expect to get a return on that

investment if you hava normal# seasonal swing in product

prices. You are taking out of the business what is today a bit of a risk and promoting storage at these two levels#

wholesale and retail.

I mentioned that we have storage on the wholesale level

of about 25 percent of our annual volume. If it were easier

to justify the economics of building more storage# obviously

you would to take some of the seasonal swing out of this

product and by swing I mean price swing because you do get

rather dramatic swings in price for a product that has its

high demand peak for only two or three months# and then for

two or three other months have no demand at all. I think this

is very important from the standpoint of the consumer

If you go back to this last winter# in fact if you look

at the last seven winters# you will see that in four of those

seven there were shortages. There were tight supplies# there
PAGE 39

were cash run up in prices. The first one was the winter of

/ 72- / 73 when we ran out of natural gas and the midwest cities

had to shut their schools down/ our heating oil was in very

tight supply/ and President Nixon in January of that year had

to lift oil import quotas. Up until that time you couldn't

bring in foreign products/ we had a quota system. He lifted

those quotas and the foreign product poured in and we got

through the winter without running people out of oil.

The following winter/ '73-'74/ was the winter of the

embargo. There you had not only weather and refinery

constraints but decisions by political parties to not supply

oil to this country. Again/ a very difficult winter to get

through/ with a lot of foreign fuel coming in at a pretty

high price and a consequent very fast price run up.

Then two years ago we had another winter where December

and January throughout most of the frost belt was 25 percent

colder than normal and where the U. S. refining industry,

coupled with marine difficulties/ ships and barges frozen in

the harbors, was unable to meet that peak demand. There was

an emergency entitlement program for two months under which

if you brought in foreign heating oil, you got a five cent a gallon government subsidy offset entitlement payment in order

to bring the price down and to enable you to stay

competitive. During February and March of that year, the two

months that that program worked, 700,000 barrels a day of

heating oil came into this country.

Finally, we had the winter that we are just finishing

where we not only had the bitter unprecedented” cold weather

in February which created marine d i f f i c u Tt i e s, ’ b u t we also

had Iran going out of operation, Saudi Arabia placing limits

on crude, resulting in not enough crude to run our domestic

refineries, and a very difficult supply winter.

In each of those cases, the very dramatic seasonality of

the product hurt us. In each of those cases there was high

demand relative to storage. If the storage had been more

adequate, you would have seen less of a pri'fe swing and less

risk of run outs and shortage. Just to give you an idea of

what happened. In New York harbor, the price for cargo,

tanker load, of heating oil went up. The first of January it

was running eight or nine cents above cargo contract price,

the firm price you sign for a year with the refinery. And

then came February and that bitter weather and the spot

price, if you had to go out and fill in an extra cargo here or

there because someone was late in making a delivery to you or because demand was too high, the spot price in New York

harbor was 20 cents a gallon higher than cargo contract. Ue

went out and paid 55 and 58 cents a gallon for tanker loads

of oil when we were selling it at the rack for 44 cents.

So you get these enormous swings. And to the extent we

can take some of the seasonality out of this product by
PAGE 40

creating incentives to build storage at the wholesale level

and at the retail level through this kind of a temperature

compensation move* I think we are not only giving the consumer

some supply protection that they don't now have* but we are

also lessening the risk to the consumer of these wild

gyrations and high swings in price* and of course the high

swing always comes at a time of year when they need the

product more and are buying more at that high price. So there

is a legitimate consumer interest here in seeing more

storage.

I could even argue that as part of the Department of

Energy's program to try to promote conservation, homeowners

are being encouraged to put larger tanks in when they build a home today. The typical tank home size* as you know, is 275

gallons but no one said that is all it should ever be. I happen to have a 2*000 gallon tank in my house and I buy oil

in the summertime when the price is lower and I don't have to

worry about snowstorms or anything else. I can fly through

the winter and then buy again the next summer.

With temperature compensation coming to me* I am going

to benefit as a homeowner because I am going to get a little

more oil. It promotes that kind of activity at the home

level* at the consumer level. Obviously* if the wholesaler*

retailer* and consumer are adding storage* what you are doing

for the country is making us less vulnerable to political cut

offs* political action abroad which we have gone through

twice now in the last seven years* and I think that is a very

* very dramatic and important reason why this kind of action

should be looked at very seriously and with a stepped up

t imetab 1 e. If there is any one time of year when this country is

vulnerable to foreign supply cut offs* embargos* political

unrest* and Lord knows we are vulnerable* it is in the

wintertime. To the extent we can take some of the seasonality

out of that and build more storage and have the incentives in

the right direction to do that* as this move would do* I think that is a logical and integrated part of a sensible

national energy plan. What you would be doing in effect would

be blunting the swing of seasonality.

To be sure* we could do other things. For e xamp 1 e* we

could build more refineries in the country. As I said, the

refining industry went all out last year and still came up

short this winter, but there aren't incentives to build

refineries right now. There have been price regulations on

oil companies since 1971.

There is one subsidy for small refiners. . If you look at

the last six years* you will see that there have been 38

refineries built in the country* of which 37 average 10*000

barrels a day; highly inefficient* small teapots, but they

got a $2 a barrel subsidy. One big new one has been built. No
PAGE 41

large big ones are under construction today.

While Senator Johnson is going to start Senate hearing

in April with the Senate Energy Committee* I think we are a year away from a bill in that area. You have got at least a five year lag time to build a new plant today. We have got to

get through the next six years. Action in^the temperature

compensation area* even in the absence of^refinery incentive

program* will work more quickly to make us less vulnerable to

foreign cut offs.

Finally* I might mention another conservation item*

which results from the fact that many wholesalers are and

have been Consi dering heating the product as a way to get

their money back that they are losing. What do you do when

you heat the product?You yeat it to 60 degrees F. . the

temperature at which you bought it. So you are now selling

the same volume you bought. However* what do you do to heat?

You put in boilers and you burn heating oil. This would be a wasteful use of energy that is in tight supply. But again,

lack of action here in a more sensible direction will be

promoting that kind of thing. Then where is the

consumer? The retailer is buying cold product from one

supplier* he is buying hot product from another supplier* and

he is buying temperature corrected product from another

supplier. It is not fair to the retailer and it certainl^fiot

fair to the consumer who doesn't know what he is getting. You

really need ^tmified national standard.

With a unified national standard* the entire industry*

including the independent section that I belong to. will be

better able to withstand the sudden interruptions caused by

political decisions or sudden surges of demand in cold

weather* or* as we had in this past winter* both. Because

both trigger shortages and both caus^//ery rapid price run up*

to the extent that you can mute that* you are going to help

the independent section stay alive and viable and well* and

you are going to help the consumer.

I think that national and interna t i ona 1 events this last

six months have given a degree or urgency to this question

that even warrants Considering dropping your normal slow*

deliberative, due process procedure that would not result in

a unified national standard before January 1, 1981. That is

too long. You have a meeting here in July and ordinarily that

meeting would come to some conclusion* which wouldn't be

finally adopted until the following July, and then you would

set a date ahead six months from there. I would like to see

(and I think there is going to be some state urgency on this

matter too) the July meeting come to some firm conclusions

and recommendations and have the states do what they normally

do in the next six months and get this program on the road

January 1, 1980. I think it is too important for us to wait

Now on top of everything else* we have the Three Mile
PAGE 42

Island problem in Pennsy 1 vania. You have to know that with

that nuclear plant in trouble and with five others down for

earthquake inspection# the nuclear program over the next

decade is not going to lend the kind of help we expected it

to lend to our national energy picture. That throws the

burden for all our economic growth right squarely back on our

hydrocarbon# coal# natural gas. and oil. and a good chunk of

it is going to have to be oil. Half of our oil is imported

and it is growing.

Anything that we can do to promote conservation,

compensate for seasonal surges by building more storage and

keep a competitive industry# is going to be helpful in terms

of national policy in the situation that we are living in

today

.

I would strongly recommend that the Conference and the

states move on this program# move on it with a sense of

urgency and national purpose# try to achieve both the

competitive and national objectives that I have outlined# and

try to get it in place by Januarty 1# 1980. Thank you very

much.

QUESTION: I think you pointed out quite well the value

of an equitable measurement system. Is there anything now to

prevent you from using the uniform national standard that is

embodied in the tables that Jim Whetstone was talking about?

What stops you from using that as your national standard?

MR. 3UCKLEY; While this winter if you had decided to do

it you wouldn't have been hurt in the marketplace because

product was short and prices were rising# in a more normal

winter# if you are three or four-tenths of a penny above your

competitor , you notice it immediately in volume drop You

are putting yourself in a position# if you do it and no one

else does# of being in a very poor competitive posture in

terms of trying to build your business and develop your

sales. It needs to be across the board. If everybody plays by

the same rules, everybody is equal and starts equal from the

gate.

QUESTION: I think it is called equity.

MR. BUCKLEY: That is correct. That was in the title of

the speech# "equitable and efficient marketplace."

QUESTION: As a former fuel oil buyer in New England and

New Jersey# and I can remember I used to buy my oil at around

16 cents a gallon and I wasn't too concerned about it

However# if I were a buyer up there today and a dealer was

going to give me a manual adjustment on my bill for some

temperature and I had no way to know what it should be# how

could the consumer be protected on something like that -’ MR. BUCKLEY: It is obvious that this kind of a program

has to be announced with a certain amount of national

attention and through state energy offices and consumer

affairs offices in each state so that the consumer knous itfhat
PAGE 43

is happening. The consumer in effect is being converted like

industrial customers already are to buying BTUs, when and if

they buy in the summer they are going to have a plus

compensation/ one to their advantage. Without temperature

compensation/ the consumer should be informed that the

independent operator will be badly hurt competitively/ and if

that independent operator drops out and there is less

competition year by year/ the consumer at that j>oint is going

to be paying an awful lot higher prices Whenever you have an

absence of effective competition/ you pay high prices.

Whenever you have effective competition/ the consumer gets

the best deal. This is something that kind of guarantees the

consumer there is going to be a competitive marketplace/

competing for his business/ and that if he takes certain

actions/ he can even get some rewards/ and they happen to

relate to storage and summer buying and things of that sort

QUESTION: How much does temperature compensation mean to

the average consumer?

MR. BUCKLEY: In Massachusetts/ which is dead center in

New England/ what we are talking about/ as I said/ is

three-tenths of a penny a gallon. The average account now has

dropped over the last six years through various conservation

efforts such as new burners/ insulation/ burning wood/ et

cetera; the average account now burns only about l/OOO

gallons a year. At three-tenths of a penny/ that is $3. You

are talking about an incremental cost maybe of $4 in

Minnesota and Maine/ $3 in Massachusetts and Rhode Island,

and about $2 here in the District. That is the net additional

cost to the consumer of this kind of a program. That seems

like a very small price for a consumer to pay to know that he

is always getting a unified measurement, he is ouying on a standard basis, and he is going to be buying in a competitive

marketplace which might not^bth erwi se exist unless he does pay

that $3.

QUESTION: How do you keep the retail deliverer, I am

talking about the inclement fuel oil dealer, how do you keep

him honest on a manual adjustment basis?

MR. BUCKLEY: The only answer I can give you is to tell

you a little bit about the nature of the market in New

England and elsewhere. In New England you have about 2,000

independent home heating oil dealers that hit those 90

percent of the homes. The product i_s not controlled, there

are no price or allocation controls on home heating oil ana

there haven't been since 1976, there is nothing today to

prevent him from raising his price 10 cents if he wants to

(never mind three- tenths of a penny for temperature

correction), except the marketplace He is going tc lose nis

customer. People have become very price conscious One of the

things the embargo did was to let them learn that erases

don't mean anything. Heating oil is fungible product. No
PAGE 44

matter from whom you buy* you are getting the same thing. As

a result* you see today a lot of customer movement year by

year. We have seen it grow tenfold in our company. If we

price too high* we lose accounts* measurable* significant

number of accounts. So no one really can charge more than the

market will bear for very long without suffering. The dealer

is usually a person who lives in that town* he is usually on

the Rotary* and he is usually a well respected businessman.

Two thousand of them in that market i s£ lot of small

businesses* but they are important* and well known* and

recognized in their own hometown. The things that keep them

honest now will keep them honest then.

QUESTION: If everybody is doing the same thing* whether

it be temperature compensation or no temperature

compensation* what difference is there for the consumer?

Competition results in equity locally. What is the need for

having to standardize through the whole U. S.'? MR. BUCKLEY: In the absence of a national policy today

the integrated sector is getting the benefit and the

independent sector is not. That is where the competitive

problem exists.

QUESTION: You said you were't competing with the

integrated companies.

MR. BUCKLEY: Oh* yes on the u/holesale level. As

I say* in New England we have between 40 and 50 percent of the

market and they have the balance. We are almost even in New

England. On Long Island it is about 40 percent* and on the

entire east coast the independent terminal operator has 25

percent of the total wholesale volume and his competitor is a major integrated company. They have the advantage right now.

It was a very miniscule advantage five years ago* but it

suddenly loomed very important because* as I said* that

three-tenths of a penny can be as large as or larger than the

whole profit you make on selling heating oil all year long.

It is a big numb er

.

QUESTION: In your marketing area are any sales of middle

distillates being made on a temperature compensated basis to

reseller or retailers?

MR. BUCKLEY: Not that I know of* not in our market.

QUESTION: In your marketing area are any sales of middle

distillates to commercial accounts being made on a temperature compensated basis?

MR. BUCVKLEY: No* I don't think so. You will see BTU

contracts with industrial customers for residual fuel where

they don't care how many barrels they get, yet they want to

know what the BTU is. To commercial accounts, churches,

hospitals, schools* people of that sort, small commercial

accounts that use heating oil, we do not temperature

c omp ensa t e. QUESTION: Justification for temperature compensation in
PAGE 45

LPG u>as originally stock controls/ inventory controls# not

marketing. Since marketing was competitive anyway# everybody

had the same problem. Isn't fuel oil presently in the same

s i tua t i on?

MR. BUCKLEY: There is far less temperature compensation

needed in fuel oil. The swings aren't so great as they are in

the lighter products. Those swings are so dramatic in the

products you are talking about that they can't be absorbed.

But even though the percentage is small in heating oil# even

though we are talking about six-tenths of one percent even in

New England which is a pretty cold area# the price

escalation# very frankly# in the last five years, which we

expect to continue and which when added to that very small

fraction of six-tenths of one percent# suddenly becomes very

meaningful in terms of whether you are competitive or not#

whether you are viable or not# whether you continue in

business or not. So maybe the justification is different.

Quite frankly# I don't think I would even be here today if we

were still selling wholesale at 12 cents the way we were in

1973. But these changes have occurred# are occurring very

rapidly# are occurring both here and abroad# and I think have

leant a sense of urgency to it because we are being hurt by

it so we are coming to say "help.

QUESTION: But the point is that every marketer is hit

with the same situation.

MR. BUCKLEY: No# sir. The major integrated company is

not. They get temperature compensation in their company. We

do not. That is the difference. The integrated company# at

some point which they decide among themselves (they are all

affiliates# 100 percent owned) buys crude oil temperature

compensated# sells refinery products# heating oil#

temperature compensated. They have incorporated that in their

system. We buy temperature compensated and don't temperature

compensate when we sell. We lose it. So at the wholesale

level we are competing with homebody that has an advantage

now that is suddenly a significant and meaningful advantage

and that is an t

i -c omp e t i t i ve. The lack of government action

here# the lack of a unified standard# has created a situation

that is unequal between competitors. All we are asking for is

that everybody be treated alike and Aot have one group able to

do something and another group not able to do it*. QUESTION: Was consideration given at the consumer level

to the reaction particularly in the Northeast where they

would switch to natural gas heat rather than have this

c omp 1 i cat i on. MR. BUCKLEY: We are talking about 3/lQths of a penny on

a $.62 item so it is not the kind of a thing that is going to

precipitate anybody doing anything very dramatic. At the

wholesale level it is a crucial element in the competitive

posture.
PAGE 46

QUESTION: But just the reactions put on top of enormous

price hikes might just conceivably be the "last straw.

MR. BUCKLEY: I guess it is fair to say that in our

region of the country# anyway# we are losing some accounts to

natural gas# have been for the last few years because it has

been price controlled but if you do it on a BTU basis# even

today natural gas is no great bargain vis-a-vis heating oil.

Just a couple cents a gallon because of the long pipeline it

takes to get it up that far and the high transmission cost of

getting it up that far. In other parts of the country where

natural gas is closer# they have already taken the market. At

the same time we have been losing accounts to natural gas we

have been picking them up from electricity because electric

utilities# of course, burn residual fuel and that is 420 a barrel plus now. They have big transmission losses so their

costs are higher in New England than gas or oil. So# as of

now# we are still getting a good share of the new home market

for oil heat. We are losing some conversions to natural gas#

but don't forget# it was only two years ago when we had

natural gas shortages and run outs. That hasn't really

changed. All that has happened is that some of the rules have

changed and some of the intra-state gas is now available on

the interstate market so we have a few years of so-called

"bubble. " But# longer term# unless we find some new gas

and/or some new oil# the marginal source of gas is going to

be importing LNG. Then you are up to 430 a barrel oil

equivalent. That is a high cost gas# and that is going to be

the marginal source. We think we can handle the gas

competition and that this 3/10ths of a penny is not going to

be a meaningful consumer item in a 4.62 to 4.70 market.

QUESTION: Will you comment on your feeling as to the

lack of uniformity where in your region perhaps only some of

the states might go for temperature compensation while others

would not.

MR. BUCKLEY: I think it would be far better to have a uniform national standard because an awful lot of companies

operate in a lot of states. If you have to go it one way in

one state — for example# you take that little state of

Massachusetts# the western parts gets supplied out of Albany.

Suppose New York allows it and Connecticut doesn't.

Springfield and Holyoke# Massac h use t ts » get supplied out of

New Haven. Worcester gets supplied out of Providence. Cape

Cod gets supplied out of Tiverton in Narragansett Bay in

Rhode Island. Amesbury gets supplied out of Portsmouth# New

Hampshire. Similarly# stuff coming into Boston goes to Nashua

or Manchester# New Hampshire. I could see a real problem at a rack level with oil going into several different states from

the same central terminal if the states have different

standards. I think it is important to havea unified standard.

QUESTION: I believe you said we import half of our oil
PAGE 47

needs.

MR. BUCKLEY: That is correct.

QUESTION: Do you know how much we export.

MR. BUCKLEY: Of oil? The only oil that we can export is

oil that we may get an export license for and it is mostly

specialty lubricants. I would guess no more than 50/000 of

60/ OOCybarrels a day out of 20 million that we use. QUESTION: You are not exporting any crude.

MR. BUCKLEY: Not that I know of. There may be a specialty crude with 50 percent waft yield or something of

that sort that goe^out in dribs and drabs but not that I know

of.

QUESTION: You mentioned that some dealers are heating

their metal disk plates. What controls are on those and is it

conceivable that some of them are heating beyond 60 degrees

F. ?

MR. BUCKLEY: I guess the only control is the cost of

buying a boiler and burning up the fuel. That is a significant operating cost. I don't think you can control

temperature in a large tank to 60 degrees F. ; it is going to

vary from day-to-day with windchill and so forth. So it is an

imprecise way of doing it but as long as you do it over the

whole winter and come out somewh er ^fnear 60 degrees F. you are

an awful lot better off than if you don't do it at all in

terms of your own poc k etbook . But/ in t erm/of using energy

wastefully and ^inefficiently/ I certainly wouldn't

recommend it as a national policy.
PAGE 48

DESIGN AND OPERATION OF

MECHANICAL AUTOMATIC TEMPERATURE COMPENSATORS

Emmett Uehmann

Assistant Chief Engineer

Neptune Measurement Company

and

Manufacturers Technical Committee

On behalf of the meter manufacturer 's technical

committee and the company I represent* permit me to express

our appreciation for the opportunity to offer our

contribution to this symposium.

As many of you may realize* the meter manufacturer's

technical committee was organized and informally exists for

the one purpose of working together with the petroleum

industry and weights measures on all technical aspects of

liquid metering involving our mutual interest.

p Today our particular topic is "Temperature Com^nsated

Volumes in the Sale of Petroleum Products". The overall

concept of modifying volumes of petroleum products certainly

is not a new one. The development and use of the petroleum

tables for volume ^correction* as published by the American

Societyfof’ Testing^aterials* also dates back to more years

than I care to remember.

My specific topic will cover "The Design and Operation

of Mechanical Automatic Temperature Compensators" as they are

currently produced for use on terminal and vehicle tank

meters.

The other speakers in all probab i 1 i ty vill men t i on why

measurements are corrected to volumes at 60 degrees F. I trust you will excuse the likelihood of slight repetition* or overlap* in this presentation.

I would like to approach this phase of the topic with

the question* what is temperature compensation as applied to

the metering of liquid fuels? In answering this question, it

must first be realized that petroleum products, like other

liquids, increase in volume as the liquid temperature

increases. The reverse is true when the product temperature

decreases. As we are all aware, liquid fuels are

predominantly measured by volume: the barrel, the gallon, the

liter and the cubic meter.

The petroleum industry developed "volume reduction"

tables which list multiplying factors for modifying the

volume of a given liquid* at an observed temperature, to the

volume it would have at 60 degrees F. This calculated 60

degree volume is referred to as a "corrected" volume.
PAGE 49

With A. T. C. metering/ this modification in volume is

being accomplished during the measurement process. The 60

degree volume indicates/ and often recorded/ is already

compensated for the deviation between 60 degrees and the

actual product temperature.

I prefer to refer to the 60 degree metered volume as

"temperature compensated". The term "temperature corrected"/

in this case/ implies that uncompensated metered volumes are

incorrect and this is certainly not intended.

Stated more directly/ when the liquid volumes/ at

prevailing product temperatures/ are automat ical ly indicated

by a meter in terms of 60 degree volume/ the conversion is

called "temperature compensation". The device on the meter/

which au tomat i ca 1 1 y provides this volume compensation/ is

defined as an "automatic temperature compensator" or A. T. C. METHODS OF ACHIEVING 60 DEGREE F VOLUMES

There are fundamentally two methods by which converstion

to a 60 degree volume may be accomplished.

The first method is to convert by using simple

arithmetic. If we have 5/000 gallons of No. 2 fuel oil at 75

degrees Fz we can find/ by referring to Table 6 of the

petroleum tables/ a volume reduction factor of 0.9933 (35

degrees API). Multiplying the 5/000 gallons by 0.9 9^33 results

in a 60 degree F volume of 4/966.5 gallons.

The second method is to use the automatic temperature

compensator. Please note the word "automatic". This method

employs the use of a liquid meter equipped with a device

which au t oma t i ca 1 1 y accomplishes the conversion during the

measurement process.

There are two fundamental engineering techniques applied

to achieve automatic compensation/ namely: mechanical and

electronic. Both means of acquiring automatic compensation

involve two functions: 1) temperature measurement and 2)

conversion of the actual/ metered volume/ to the 60 degree

volume.

We will consider here the mechanical A. T. C. as applied

to LP-Gas and other liquid fuel meters used on vehicle tank

trucks.

As many of you are already aware/ the positive

displacement meter produces a rotational/ mechanical drive to

the meter read-out. This read-out is also referred to as t "register" or "counter". The A. T. C. is a component which is

installed between the present measuring unit and the

read-out. The A. T. C. consists of three major components: 1)

the temperature sensing unit of* system/ 2) the mechanical

computer or ratio Change mechanism and 3> the coefficient

setting mechanism.
PAGE 50

THE TEMPERATURE SENSOR

The temp era turf of the liquid being metered is measured

by either of two types of sensing units. The one unit* called

a thermostat, consists of a metal bellows built into a sealed, liquid-filled bulb. This thermostat usually is

assembled in direct contact with the metered liquid. The

second type of sensing unit consists of a small bore

(capillary) tubing with a bulb at one end and a metal bellows

at the other. This assembly is also liquid-filled and sealed.

The sealed liquid in both units has a high rate of expansion

to achieve a linear movement of the bellows; in the order of

several thousandths of an inch per degree Fahrenheit.

With the bulb and capillary tube design, the bulb is

assembled in a thermometer-type well. Also with this type of

sensor, a second thermostat is assembled in the A. T. C.

package to offset the ambient temperature effect on the

liquid in the capillary tubing.

THE COMPUTER OR MECHANICAL RATIO' CHANGE MECHANISM

The mechanical computer is capable of au tomat i ca 1 1

y

applying the proper conversion factor or drive ratio for the

prevailing temperature in the metering system. The ratio

being applied by the mechanism is determined and controlled

by the temperature sensor. Simply stated, this unit modifies

the drive ratio between the meter and its read-out.

THE COEFFICIENT SETTING UNIT

In order for the computer to apply the proper

compensation factor at any given temperature, the appropriate

coefficient of expansion value must be set on this unit With

a coefficient of 0.0016 (propane) setting, this unit would

increase the movement, per degree Fahrenheit, of the

calculator to almost four times what it would be if the

setting were 0.00045 (35 degrees API).

With the aid of several slides, we will be able to

achieve a first-hand impression of what an A. T. C. looks like

on truck type petroleum meters. For each manufacturer 's design you will observe essentially the same meter without

and with A. T. C. component in the assembly. In all cases the

component is installed between the standard meter and its

read-out unit.

With the use of another slide, you will be better able

to observe how the volumes of two different petroleum

products vary with temperature. The one product

volume/temperature curve is for propane and the other is

taken for a 35 degree API product (No. 2 fuel oil).

With the remaining slides, we hope to convey at least an
PAGE 50A
)3)
PAGE 51

impression of the mechanical principle of each of several

computers and their associated temperature sensing units.

No. 1 The first schematic indicates use of the sensing

bulb/ capillary tube and bellows system. Use is made of an

opposing ambient bellows for reasons mentioned earlier. The

"gravity selector"/ another term used for the API or

coefficient setting/ is shown on the left. Adjustment moves

the pivot up or down/ altering the lever ratio to the

computer. The change inratio of the computer is accomplished

by changing the shaft angle of the rollers which provide the

drive between the lower cone and the upper cone. A

"disconnect knob" shown at the bottom is used to deactivate

the control of the temperature sensor.

No. 2 The second schematic indicates/ at the lower

portion/ a thermostat type sensor which directly couples

through a rod to the lower end of a lever assembly. This

lever pivots about an adjustable point for change of

coefficient. The upper end of the lever varies the position

of a friction roller on a rotating platform. When the roller

is closer to the center of the platform the rotation of the

roller decreases and vice versa. The planetary gearing system

allows for the major portion of the drive to go from input to

output and the remaining portion of the drive to be

controlled by the friction roller mechanism.

No. 3 The third schematic/ at the lower portion/

indicates again a thermostat type sensor which is directly

coupled^to a lever system for control of the computer. The

coeffici^ setting is accomplished by movement of an

adjustment which raises or lowers the pivot point. This, in

turn/ affects the ratio to the computer mechanism. The ratio

mechanism of the computer is varied by changing the distance

between two points (A) and (B). As center (B) moves away from

(A), through a ratchet and pawl mechanism/ the output angle

is increased over that of the input. In both the No. 2 and

No. 3 schematics by withdrawing a pin. the computer is

disengaged from the sensor.

A fourth mechanism embraces elements covered in the

above schematics with one exception. The computer in this

design/ while making use of the planetary gearing approach,

the ratio change input to the planet system is provided by

two over-riding friction clutches. The stroke of these two

cam-operated clutches is varied by the temperature sensor and

the coefficient setting. The temperature sensor is again of

the bulb, capillary tube and bellows type with compensating

ambient thermostat. With this design the sensor is not

disengaged from the computer. In the deactivation mode the

meter drive is by— passed from the planet drive to directly

couple the re ad - out.

PAGE 5 1 B
PAGE 52

THE DEACTIVATE OR LOCK-OUT FEATURE

Products delivered by vehicle tank meters are furnished

with a single read-outi whether equipped with an A. T. C. or

not. In order to test and calibrate an A. T. C. meter# a means

must be provided to "deac t iva te" or "lock-out" the computer

function. As already mentioned# in several designs# the

temperature sensor is disengaged and the computer is

by-passed by direct gearing. In any case# the computer action

is nullified for testing and calibration purposes of the

meter only. After the meter is routinely tested, an A. T. C. meter test is made with the temperature sensor and computer

units engaged. All A. T. C. 's are designed with an adjustment

feature included# to permit bringing the compensated reading

as close as possible to the calculated 60 degree F volume.

All A. T. C. 's are designed so that adjustable settings#

including the coefficient setting# are sealable by the

weights and measures inspector.

Again allow me to express our appreciation for being

able to be with you and to participate.
PAGE 53

PERFORMANCE CHARACTERISTICS OF

MECHANICAL AUTOMATIC TEMPERATURE

COMPENSATORS

Howard Siebold

Liquid Controls Corporation and

Meter Manufacturers Technical Committee

This discussion is not intended to advocate or to oppose

the use of automatic temperature compensation with fuel oil

truck meters. We hope to cover one aspect of the subject that

might otherwise be ignored. Most of these comments will apply

as well to other truck meters measuring other petroleum-based

liquids.

Many weights and measures officials are familiar with

the Automa

t

ic Temperature Compensator# or ATC, particularly

those involved with the testing of LPG truck meters that are so

equipped.

The two fields of application are different# however# in

one important respect. The LPG Measuring Device Code was set

up at a time when many LPG truck meters were fitted with

temperature compensators. The tolerances allowed were ample

to cover a tolerance for the LPG meter and a tolerance for

the ATC. It has seemed to be a workable arrangement.

Now we have a situation where the Liquid Measuring

Devices Code has a tolerance established for the meter# and

we are considering the addition of a temperature measuring

device to it. The tolerance for the meter cannot possibly be

expected to include the automatic temperature compensator.

Testing a fuel oil truck meter with ATC is really

testing two separate devices with two different standards of

comparison. For one# the meter# a known volume prover or test

measure. For the other# an accurate temperature indicating

device.

As mentioned by others# the ATC is a measuring device.

It measures the temperature of the liquid in the meter and

changes the ratio of the drive between the meter and the

indicating and/or recording element so that the amount

displayed is the volume at 60 degrees Fahrenheit of the

amount delivered.

Any temperature measuring device must have a tolerance

or a factor of uncertainty. We will discuss some of the

sources of error that should be given consideration in

analyzing this problem.
PAGE 54

Since the performance of the ATC is compared to volumes

calculated from the Petroleum Tables# the determination of

the actual liquid temperature in the meter is a vital

function. This is usually made with a mercury-in-glass

thermometer. This is a temperature measuring device that also

has a factor of uncertainty.

That uncertainty is a function of: (1) the readability

of the thermometer# (2) the time lag# (3) certification by

NBS# and (4)

whether it is being used as it was certified - that is#

totally immersed or partially immersed.

NBS Handbook 99 recommends that mercury-in-glass

thermometers with one degree Fahrenheit graduations be used.

Thermometers with better readability are available# but they

are difficult to find# they are fragile# and they are

expensive.

In testing an ATC# or a meter fitted with an ATC# some

human error is possible. The performance of the device is

compared to mathematical tables based on the reading of the

temperature of the liquid by an operator - or operators. The

variation of readings of the same quantity by various

operators - or by the same operator at different times was

well illustrated by part of the tests reported to the

National Conference on Weights and Measures on May 22# 1953

by W. J. Louden and Mac Jensen of NBS. No definite conclusions

were reached on this point# but it was established that

operator error can be a significant factor in testing a device.

My personal experience has been that it is very

difficult to read a thermometer with one degree Fahrenheit

graduations closer than one fourth of a degree Fahrenheit - and that a one fourth of a degree error is quite possible.

The tolerance for a temperature measuring device of this

kind could take a variety of forms. One method would be to

express the tolerance in degrees Fahrenheit. This would have

the advantage of varying the tolerance as the coefficient of

expansion of the liquid varies. In other words# the tolerance

would be greater for gasoline than it would be for #2 fuel

oil.

The Canadian weights and measures law recognizes that

the response curve for the device and the coefficient curve

for the liquid may not be a straight line. The tolerance

allowed increases as the temperature difference from 60

degrees increases. The formula for establishing the tolerance

is a bit complicated and is probably not suitable for field

use. The tolerance that is established could very well be

listed in a table showing temperatures and tolerances - especially for a limited range of liquids such as #1 and #2

fuel oils.
PAGE 55

A tolerance established for the ATC must be based on the

uncertainty of the temperature determination, the uncertainty

of the determination of the coefficient of expansion of the

liquid, and an allowance for the mechanical device.

The actual testing of a fuel oil truck meter equipped

with the ATC would follow the procedure outlinec(in EPO No. 23

in NBS Handbook 112. The basic meter accuracy would be

determined first with the ATC " deac t i va ted " . This instruction

should be added to the “Pre-Test Determinat i on “ of EPO No.

23. This is a good example of a situation where it would be

desirable to have the meter error - as close to zero error

as practicable". The error noted at the formal flow rate will

be the basis for computing the error of the ATC at 60 degrees

Fahrenheit or at the operating temperature.

The test is them repeated with the ATC "activated".

The temperature of the liquid in the meter is recorded

as 60 degrees Fahrenheit. The temperature of the liquid in

the prover is determined and recorded. That is the

temp erature that is used to calculate the vol ume of that

amount of liquid at 60 d egr ee^ahrenhe i t. The multiplying factor for the liquid at that

temperature can be located in table 24 of the Petroleum

Measurement Tables. Locate the column headed with specific

gravity of the liquid at 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Follow the

column to the temperature observed in the prover. This will

show the multiplying factor.

For example, #2 fuel oil with a specific gravity of .850

at 60 degrees would have a multiplying factor of 1.0000 if

the prover temperature of 60 degrees is observed. If the

temperature of the fuel oil in the prover is 40 degrees

Fahrenheit, the multiplying factor would be 1.0089. If the

volume in the prover is 100 gallons, that volume converted to

60 degree volume would be 100.89 gallons.

If the recorded temperature of the fuel oil in the

prover is 80 degrees Fahrenheit, the same column in table 24

would show a factor of .9911. This means that the meter

should register 99.11 gallons for 100 gallons in the prover.

Obviosuly, the coefficient of expansion used in the

calculations must be the same as the coefficient set on the

ATC. If it is not, the test results are sure to be in error

and the error will increase as the temperature differs from

60 degrees Fahrenheit.

In the example above, the #2 fuel oil has a volume

change of .89 gallons in the 100 gallons for a 20 degree

change in temperature. This figures out to be a coefficient

of expansion of .00045. It means that the volume of that fuel

oil will increase or decrease 0.045 percent for each degree

Fahrenhe l t. If tables are used to list tolerances, they could also
PAGE 56

list multiplying factors for fuel and kerosene as is done for

LPG in NBS Handbook 99.

The test procedure outlined above is copied from

Handbook 99. The instruction to record the temperature of the

liquid in the meter as 60 degrees Fahrenheit merits some

discussion. This is a valid recommendation only if the

temperature of the liquid does not change after it leaves the

meter and is determined in the prover. The example in H-99 of

testing the meter without ATC shows a change from 63.5

degrees to 65 degrees between the meter and the prover.

The meter with ATC will display the volume adjusted to

60 degrees from the temperature sensed in the meter or in the

line "immediately adjacent to it". If the temperature of the

liquid in the prover is different/ the volume in the prover

must be adjusted to the volume that it would occupy at the

meter temperature for calculating the ATC performance.

If our basic intent is to improve the accuracy of

measurement of petroleum products/ then we should not

overlook some of the sources of error that have not been

stressed in the past.

One example is failure to determine liquid temperatures

in the meter and the prover in ordinary meter proving that

does not involve temperature compensation.

Handbook 99 suggests reading the temperatures to the

nearest one-half of a degree Fahrenheit. On LPG this could

amount to an error of nearly one-tenth of one percent.

If these proceedings should lead to action by the

National Conference on Weights and Measures to permit the use

of Automatic Temperature Compensation/ the Meter

Manufacturers 7 Technical Committee offers its assistance in

working out Specifications and Tolerances that are fair and

equitable. Any state considering the passage of enabling

legislation should make sure that it does contain such

Specifications and Toleerances.

QUESTION: What is the state of the art in electronic

c omp ensa t i on?

MR. SIEBOLD: I am just going to say it can be done/ but

I don't know that any of the cost figures that you might be

hearing would apply at all because it would cost a great deal

more to have an electronic device to do the same thing.

QUESTION: Some question of reliability —

MR. SIEBOLD: We could have another meeting on eletronic

devices in this business. I really don't know. I don't think

anybody has enough experience on them in this application to

be able to tell you what the reliability might be. You should

get better/ more accurate results but first/ let us decide

whether we are going to need it.

QUESTION: Is it not possible to test at delivery

temperature compensated and test the delivery with the

temperature compensator^ nd gauge? In other words/ take the
PAGE 57

temperature of the product as it is delivered and deliver the

known quantity and then relate that to the registered volume?

MR. SIEBOLD: You mean do it mathematically. This is one

way of doing it. Importantly* and you mentioned it# you must

determine the temperature as you delivered it. You would have

some of the same problems I just covered. You could be in

error there# too.

QUESTION: Would that not then test the unit as a complete unit* a single unit* rather than breaking it into

two sections — a temperature pricing unit and a measuring

un i t ?

MR. SIEBOLD: If you were certain that your meter

basically was accurate that would be all right# but it might

not be. The reason the Handbook 44 specifies that you be able

to deactivate it is so that you can determine the basic meter

accuracy uncompensated but with the device being operated.

Once you establish the accuracy or adjust the meter to be

accurate# then you test it with it activated and you get a valid comparison. With your method you are presuming that the

delivery without the ATC would be accurate and you would have

to establish that anyway.

QUESTION: Don't you also make the presumption that when

you test the meter at one particular temperature and find it

correct# that it is correct at other temperatures?

MR. SIEBOLD: I didn't say you only needed to test at one

temperature. Most Weights and Measures officials test it at

whatever temperature happens to be on the truck. I don't know

that I blame them for that. However# under a pattern approval

plan I would presume as Canada does you would run it through

the range of temperatures that it is designed to cover.

QUESTION: What are the ranges of commercial equipment

available now?

MR. SIEBOLD: Most manuf ac turer s have a variety of

ranges. I would say the standard one is probably -30 to 120

degrees Fahrenheit# or maybe 0 to 150 degrees Fahrenheit. It

covers about a 150 degree Fahrenheit range# and you can get

one from 200 to 350 degrees Fahrenheit if you are handling

heated products. This is simply a matter of convenience.

QUESTION: Has the reliability of the equipment on trucks

been tested given the bouncing a truck takes?

MR. SIEBOLD: Yes* the LPG people have been using them

for 20 years* and they bounce just as much as any other

truck.

QUESTION: Would you care to express an opinion on the

two different methods that Mr. Wehmann detailed for

temperature response* or perhaps Mr. Wehmann could respond to

that?

MR. SIEBOLD: You will have to ask him because my answer

is no. Mr. Byrd reminded me of something* and it will only

take me a minute to comment* Mr. Wehmann reminded me that
PAGE 58

we were testing some heavy bunker fuel meters* and they were

heated. We were using scales as the standard of comparison*

and in order to establish the weight per gallon I was making

hydrometer measurements of the heated bunker fuel. The oil

plant man was looking over my shoulder* and he said* "Howard*

what would the result be if you misread the hydrometer?" I said* "Walter* nobody around here would be able to prove that

I was wrong. " MR. WEHMANN: That is true. I can remember our going

through some of that experience. When you have heavy fuels

and you watch the hydrometer* it takes a long time for the

hydrometer to make up its mind to sink, and after it stops

sinking into the product then the oil starts creeping up the

glass. So* you can never make up your mind which is which.

If I may try to reply to the question regarding

response. Essentially* I don't think there is a strong case

for either of the two sensing type systems that you are

talking about over the other. In the thermostat type* your

bellows* sealed liquid and container are all in one package*

that is directly exposed to the liquid. Therefore* it would

essentially have pretty good response. But this is not to

take away from the other type of sensing system where you

have a bulb* because^most of the design sphere is a material

put in the thermometer well to give it thermal conductivity

from the shell over to the bulb.

I think* even considering some of the discussion that

took place this morning on the speed of the response aspect

and some discussion about electronics* certainly with the

thermistor and the platinum type units which have rather low

response time* one has to consider that any unit itself has

to be put into the fluid and into some hardware which

immediately adds a certain lag.

In the practical application on equipment you must

consider the fact that in use (let us say we can either go to

the bulk rack meters or the truck meters)* most of your

equipment is essentially at some temperature level. In other

words* you hear laboratory examples of taking the product

from 90 degrees Fahrenheit and cooling it down to 30 degrees

Fahrenheit and see how long it takes to get there. Studies

were made by API several years ago on just checking out

testing procedure where temperature readings were taken in

the field at the meter and at the proven. We put a thermometer, a mercury and glass thermometer, right in the

strainer section of the meter on the truck and observed the

temperature change that would take place in a well with some

fluid in there to get a good thermal conductivity. It is true

that if you have left the pump running you might see the

temperature rise and then go back down on that thermometer.

But* keep in mind that if you were standing there watching

that thermometer and allowing for the fact that that
PAGE 59

thermometer had a relatively low inert iaj you wouldn't know

what to do with the data when you observed it. You would kind

of average it out over the whole delivery.

In LP gas the Bureau has decided and in H-99 it is

outlined that you take a temperature reading partly into the

delivery# and then about two— thirds the way through again to

get a pretty good average. But by the same token/ for the

temperature sensor in the meter/ its inertia can stand it in

good stead as an advantage rather than a disadvantage because

if you get a slight temperature rise/ it is then not going to

run up and change and then run back. It probably will average

out. Remember that the vehicle tank truck is out in the

weather; the piping is in the weather; and the delivery is of

longer duration than when we were talking about filling

station pumps. So actually/ inertia is not a handicap.

Certainly/ in the testing procedure at the time you test the

thermostat you have run your full flow test and maybe you

recheck the full flow/ you have wet the prover. You run the

low flow and then you engage the thermostat to check the ATC

reading. Certainly by that time the system has been run long

enough that everything is pretty well equalized so you are

getting a very fair representation of what the temperature is

in the system under test. It isn't very likely that a lag

would be an important factor in the testing technique.

QUESTION: One more question. I was told one time that

the meter was already temperature corrected. In other words,

it was inherently temperature corrected because of the

various metals which are used in the meter. Is that right?

MR. WEHMANN: No/ that is not correct. Meter materials

are not such that they would compensate for change in product

temperature. It is true that the meter would probably be

more efficient and tend to register a little higher on a very

viscous liquid as opposed to a very thin liquid. If one

assumes that a viscous liquid gets thin when it is heated,

that really is not temperature compensation. There is some

effect, but the effect that you get there is very slight, so

you would c er ta i n 1 (jfoo t say that changes in clearances or expansion of the metals in the meter would compensate for a liquid volume change. In other words, let us say roughly that

at 90 degrees Fahrenheit, the meter gives you a 231 cubic

inch gallon, and at 60 degrees Fahrenheit it will still give

you 231 cubic inch gallon. It might be slightly different

only because of the slight viscosity change if one wanted to

assume, you know, that that was a significant factor.

Certainly that is not really a significant factor.

QUESTION: Could you give an approximate cost per unit to

update existing meter and/or the rate of repair versus what

would be normal for a regular meter?

MR. WEHMANN: On cost. I can't.Mr, Dugan is in the

audience. You bought some, so you would probaoly know how
PAGE 60

much more a meter would cost with than without.

MR. DUGAN: The cost is approximately $400 to $500

depending on what kind of cabinet modification you have to

make in-house. I do it all in-house.

QUESTION: What about rate of your failures'? Is it any

d i f f erent ?

MR. DUGAN: With due respect to Emmetti after two years

of installation on my entire fleet* I have replaced two sets

of planetary release. That is on 50 truck users.

MR. WEHMANN: Thank you. We also have another gentleman

on the program following who will talk about his experience

with compensators. He probably has more firsthand experience.

Keep in mind that I am in product line engineering* and I don't usually get involved with prices* but if we get too

much maintenance* you know* we do hear about it.
PAGE 61

PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES OF A

RETAIL FUEL OIL MARKETER

Jag L. Dugan

Meenan Oil Co. i Inc

.

The proper place to begin is to identify Meenan Oil. We

are one of the largest independent retailers of Number 2

heating oil in the country/. We market on Long Island and

along the Hudson River in New York State# throughout the

state of New Jersey and in southeastern Pennsylvania.

I am responsible as General Manager of our Pennsylvania

retail division for a deep-water terminal in Tullytown,

Pennsylvania, which is just north of Philadelphia across the

river from Trenton from which we serve appro x imately 18,000

retail heating oil customers in lower Bucks County. Also, we

supply wholesale all or part of the No. 2 fuel oil needs of

well over a dozen of our retail competitors.

ur principal supplier of product is Mobil Oil who

classifies us as a cargo/barge buyer. It is and has been for

many years the practice of the major oil companies to sell

oil in barge and cargo quantities at a standard 60 degrees

F. . using Table 6 or the more abbreviated Table 7 of the

petroleum tables. This creates a problem^or us, however, when

we arrive at the retail sale of this product. Our storage

capacity at Tullytown includes approx imately 16 1/2 million

gallons of No. 2 heating oil , obviously all above ground.

For at least six months of each year this produci^in the tanks

is below 60 degrees F. and is thds contracted vo I ume tr i c a 1 1

y

from the base 60 degrees F. at which we must purchase it.

At Meenan Oil we found that our substantial product loss

was due to two unrelated factors. The first was the fact that

we purchased our oil from Mobil based on barge measurements

which, again, is normally standard in the industry. It is

known throughout the industry, however, that barge

measurements can be notoriously inaccurate as anyone who has

seen an empty barge going down the river can tell with the

dents in the side; remember they are only a single hull. On a 12-month basis this was costing us in excess of 100,000

gallons. To correct this problem we agreed with Mobil to use

our shore tank as the measurement point. This is an unusual

move in the industry but it is a function of Mobil having

recognized the inaccuracy of barges.

The second cause for product loss wa s ooviously

shrinkage due to temperature. He conducted daily studies

during a period of over two years taking into account che
PAGE 62

daily throughput at ouf loading racks and the daily

temperature measured by immersion thermometers at the loading

ratfks and comparing this with our purchases at 60 degress

which goes into book inventory. When we compared physical

versus book inventory the results showed that we were losing

on the average of 0.35 percent of all of our product due to

its reduced volume alone.

Many years ago retail fuel oil distributors recognized

this problem. I have to emphasize that there were very few

that took it seriously. They accepted it as a normal business

loss and the loss at the time wasn't very large since; as

John Buckley and others have said; product seven or eight

years ago was costing around $. 10 a gallon at wholesale. With

today's wholesale cost of over $. 47 per gallon. <1 had to

update that as I rewrote the speech every week because it

went up another cent or two. ) The monetary loss to the

d istr ibutor

who buys at 60 degress F is significant. We have heard

it suggested; not here but in many other places; that there

is an easy; no-cost solution to this problem. (When you say

"no-cost" I am all ears. ) The retail distributor should

simply increase the selling price by an amount necessary to

recapture this loss due to shrinkage. We recognize at Meenan

that increasing margin to compensate f or/oyoer a

t

i ng

inefficiencies is to sweep the inefficiencies under the rug.

This is unacceptable since it only tends to perpetuate an

identifiable problem.

We investigated three potential solutions to the p<ft>blem

which have already been spoken to here: installing

submersible heaters in our tanks was unacceptable because of

the cost involved in the initial capital construction; plus

the waste of the fuel oil needed to fire the boilers.

An additional possibility was installing line heaters;

which John had mentioned. Most companies; I think you will

find today; that do heat their number two are multi-product

terminals who can parallel their product lines with a number

six oil line and jointly wrap the two for insulation. There

is heat transfer which can raise the product termperature of

the number two; however it is slightly less controlable.

The obvious solution was the installation of automatic

temperature compensators on our loading racks and our retail

trucks. In this way we felt that we had the final solution to

controlling our inventory overage in the summer and shortage

in the winter; and equally important; establish an equitable

solution to a serious industry problem.

It has been charged by some opponents of automatic

temperature compensation for number two that the customer

loses and the oil company increases what are now rapacious

profits. A customer; and Meenan has many that are very much

like John Buckley; has a 1;000 or 2/000 gallon tank; and
PAGE 63

historically requests that this tank be filled in late summer

or early autumn. Automatic temperature compensation makes him

a winner since he is receiving more oil volumetr ical ly than

he is being billed for. The majority of our customers, to be

sure, have smaller tanks and receive most of their deliveries

during the winter months.

Since our average customer consumes l

v 100 gallons per

year, using ATC to eliminate the 0.35 percent shrinkage loss

means that each customer is being billed for less than four

additional gallons than he would have were Meenan not to use

ATC's. Is this a consumer rip-off? I don't think so. It is an

honest attempt on the part of Meenan to establish an orderly

and equitable procedure for passing along the true cost of

product to our customers. We could just as easily have

increased our margin to recoup this loss, but we chose not to

operate this way. Such a solution would compound the

inequities and perpetuate the fact that current metering

methods are inherently inaccurate. We first approached the

Pennsylvania Bureau of Standard Weights and Measures in 1976

with the request that we be allowed to install automatic

temperature compensators on our retail deliver trucks. On

June 15, 1976, Walter Junkins, then Director of the

Department of Standard Weights and Measures, approved the

installation of ATC's on ten of our delivery trucks, with the

proviso that they be tested for a period of six months and

that the test results conducted periodically over this time

demonstrate an acceptable level of reproducab i 1 i ty and

accuracy. The test period was later extended to twelve months

and during this time period representatives from the Bureau

of Standard Weights and Measures in Pennsy 1 van ia, the Neptul*^

Measurement Company, and Meenan Oil, continually monitored

ATC performance. And, after several false starts, as Emmett

will remember when he and I along with Ron Roof were fighting

about the proper way to set up test procedures, we finally

arrived at a standard procedure which we all agreed was

accurate and fair.

For its part, Meenan purchased the Cerifine 100 gallon

prover, custom built to show 450 cubic inches below zero, to

be able to prove and adjust the ATCs in the most extreme

product temperature environments.

We subject all trucks to a minimum of two tests per year

in addition to the test conducted by the state each summer.

After a public hearing held at Harrisburg on August 17, 1977, Type

Ip'proval for the Neptune Type One, Style Five, Automatic

Temperature Compensator was granted on October 27, 1977.

This, I stress, was not a permit specifically given to

Meenan Oil to use automatic temperature compensation. This

was the State of Pennsylvania saying that the Neptune Type

One, Style Five meets their standards as specified in the

Pennsylvania Weights and Measures Code, and can therefore be
PAGE 64

used by any retail distributor who so desires.

Meehan proceeded to install these units on our entire

delivery fleet in the Pennsylvania Retail Division/

consisting of 25 trucks/ with one exception/ and I will defer

to Mr. Byrd. We have one truck which about one day a week

goes into New Jersey. We have kept that truck at gross. We

have not converted it to temperature compensation. If that

truck breaks down and we have to make a delivery in Jersey/

we will remove the temperature compensator from another

truck/ make sure the meter is in calibration/ and make our

New Jersey deliveries.

Our experience to date has been quite satisfactory. The

total product loss through our terminal on a through-put

volume of over 60 million gallons had in the past run as high

as 300/000 gallons/ of which almost 200/000 can be attributed

to temperature/ and the balance to barge shortages as noted

Last year# and by that I mean the 1977-1978 heating

season# or the full 12 months (we are on a July through June

fiscal year)/ the first year in which automatic temperature

compensators were being utilized on our entire delivery fleet

total product shortage for a like through-put was 8/000

gallons. One must remember that by this time the barge

shortage problem had already been solved.

Several people have questioned the maintenance of the

ATC's and I stated earlier that we have replaced two sets of

planetary gears# which we felt was a cheap price to pay. For

comparision purposes# we use as our printing registers# the

Lockheed Computing Register Style 840. These have required an

average of four repairs per truck# per year.

Another objectitffc being voiced is that the retail

customer is unaware of the fact that his oil is being sold on

a different basis# and this today is true.

We. Meenan. have an agreement with the Pennsylvania

Bureau of Standard Weights and Measures that as soon as our

present stock of pre-printed delivery tickets have expired#

we will have new tickets printed specifying that it has

adjusted volume ^to 60 degrees F. We have too many of these

present t ic keti^ tfiree weeks we are going to have them

overprinted with a statement clearly stating, right above the

gallons printed# that this volume is adjusted to 60 degrees

F.

It is not# nor has it ever been our intention to mislead

our customers# and using this notification I hope to

demonstrate that we are adhering not only to the letter but

to the spirit of the agreement reached between Meenan Oil and

the Pennsylvania Bureau of Standard Weights and Measures.

Meenan recommends to the National Conference on Weights

and Measures that they propose to NBS that automatic

temperautre compensation for retail fuel oil distribution be

spoken to in Handbook 44 in the same fashion as the current
PAGE 65

approval for the use of ATC's on LP gas. that is, that

permission be granted for measuring number two fuel oil as a standard gallon, subject to the approval of the individual

states or municipalities, but only at the request of the

heating oil dealer, as it is now done with the LP industry.

Fair and consistent test procedures should be

established and adhered to rigorously. I recognize that the

major oil companies are concerned that if ATC for retail

number two is approved the next logical product would be

gasoline. Since virtually all gasoline stations store their

inventory underground, where it has an ambient temperature

not too different from 60 degrees F. , the advantage to the

motoring public would be insignificant. In most cases the

capital investment required of the major oil companies would

be staggering.

It is my understanding that Harold Harris, of Exxon,

will speak to this subject in more detail tomorrow.

In conclusion, I would like to state Meenan Oil's

position regarding the use of automatic temperature

compensation for the retail delivery of number two heating

oil;

Number one: We are opposed to making its use mandatory.

We believe mandating its use would work economic hardship on

small distributors whose storage is underground and whose

inventory in these underground storages rather quickly

reaches an ambient temperature not too different from 60

degrees F. Number two: We are opposed to its use, even on a vo 1 un tar y basis, by distributors who would use it for unjust

enrichment. Its use should be limited to those distributors

who purchase their oil on a temperature- corrected basis,

since this use would only be for recouping product loss due

to shrinkage.

Number three: Where the use of automatic temperature

compensators are approved they must be used twelve months a year. An economic advantage can be gained by disconnecting

the ATCs when the product temperature is above 60 degrees,

and that is the case at least five to six, sometimes seven

months a year. This would only tend to give another black eye

to an industry which God knows already has its share.

Hankbook 44 currently permits, and the operative word

here is "permits," the use of ATC for wholesale transac t i on s

.

The Liquid Measuring Device Code spec i f i cat i on S -2.6, states

that ATC may be used at wholesale racks, as long as it meets

certain design criteria, such as a lockout device.

The retail ATC units have such a lockout device.

Specification S-4. 3 requires tickets to be marked to show

that the transaction occurred at 60 degrees F. Equity would

demand that the Vehicle Tank Meter Code be brought into

conformity with the Liquid Measuring Device Code, and that it
PAGE 66

would permit the use of ATC.

Referring to a report issued by the Conference Committee

on Specifications and Tolerances# in 1977# we find the

following quote:

"NBS Handbook 44 'Sp ec i f i c a t i ons# Tolerances and Other

Technical Requirements for Commercial Weighing and Measuring

Devices 7 provides for the application and use of both the

unit gallon with respect to the design and performance of

some measuring devices in commerce# such as a gas pump# and

to a standard gallon with respect to other devices# such as

LPG liquid meter. State and local laws and regulations

dictate whether a unit or a standard gallon of measurement

will be applicable to a particular measuring device or

practice in the marketplace. " There is a basic inconsistency here which does not seem

to be in keeping with the aims of the National Bureau of

STandards# and we ask that this inconstency be corrected.

Thank you very much for your attention. If I can answer

any questions I will be more than happy to.

QUESTION: I would like to clarify one thing. In New

Jersey it is not that we object to ATC's because we have them

on all LPG meters; we have no problems but our law requires

that liquid fuel# that is heating fuel# at retail be sold at

the ambient temperature. That is a problem that we have.

I also have a question. You say# that it should not be

mandated that ATC 7 s be used# but in my own personal opinion#

if one group uses ATC or a temperature compensated gallon#

that could be a competitive factor over somebody else who

does not. In my opinion right now I think that if the agency

that has the business of telling people they can go with ATC

does so# everybody in that particular should do it so that

there is no competitive advantage. For example# do you get a payback after a certain length of time when the ATC's are

paid for# and do you have a competitive advantage on the

other marketers?

MR. DUGAN: Well# it depends on what you mean by

"competitive advantage. " I have a payback. There is no

question about that. I wouldn't make the capital investment#

which as I said was ap pr o x ima t e 1 y $550 installed# unless I can demonstrate an economic payback. After that point# after

the units are amortized# I am making net slightly more per

gallon# but what I am basically doing is recouping a historical loss. As John talked about earlier# the last

person in the product chain who buys at 60 degrees F. and

sells at a lower ambient is the loser in any product chain.

In the past we have been delivering oil to our customers in

smaller units than we have been paying for it. We are doing

no more now than passing the burden which has been passed to

us by the major oil companies down to the final consumer# so that they are now buying a standard gallon.
PAGE 67

Admittedly* someone who buys on this basis during the

summer gets a small advantage and someone who buys during the

winter gats slightly less* but* as I said it is less than

four gallons* and at today 's resell price it costs about

$2.00. We have a fairly decent margin. You can't compare the

margins of one oil company and another.

QUESTION: I take it you feel that it would cost the

consumer four gallons per year?

MR. DUGAN: Slightly less.

QUESTION: I figure out* for example* on average* 200

gallon deliveries.

MR. DUGAN: Yes.

QUESTION: If that was delivered at 20 of, which would

not be unusual. J

MR. DUGAN: That would be very unusual in my case.

QUESTION: 20 degrees?

MR. DUGAN: Yes* the coldest that I have recorded a temperature going out of my meters* is 28 degrees. That was

January of a year ago. But remember* I am talking about a 12

month basis. I am talking about 0.35 percent of the total

delivered in 12 months. Seven months of the year it is higher

than 60 degrees.

QUESTION: Well* he is using that factor of 20 degrees.

MR. DUGAN: I don't think that is a fair temperature to

use* because now you are down to about two percent shrinkage,

and we don't experience that in point of fact* or in

prac t ice.

QUESTION: I was just wondering* it may have come close

to 40.

MR. DUGAN: Yes* but again* we don't do it like that.

Number two: each of our customers gets on the average of six

deliveriea year* two of which happen at times when

temperatures are about 60 degrees. As a further example*

product was very tight in February. We were on top of Mobil

every single day to get every drop of product we could out of

them. One day they said. "Okay* we have a batch coming off

the still today. Do you want it?" We said "Put it on the

barge. " It went from the still to the barge* came up to our

terminal at 85 degrees* in the middle of February. It went in

one side of the tank and out the other. That is how short we

were of product

It is not at all unusual during summer Fill* where you

will find tempe rat ures coming up at 100 degrees- There is a very short distance between ourselves and the refinery. You

have to speak on a twelve month average.

QUESTION: Is there any consideration in the printing of

your tickets that instead of saying, which might be a little

confusin^/olume at 60 °F * say that the delivery was made in

terms of United States petroleum gallons?

MR. DUGAN: That is not the definition of United States
PAGE 68

petroleum gallons* though.

QUESTION: What is it?

MR. DUGAN: As I understand it* U. S. petroleum gallons

are not a function of temperature* at least in number two

heating oil.

QUESTION: Yes they are.

MR. DUGAN: It is at 60 degrees?

QUESTION: That is your definition.

MR. DUGAN: Okay* here we have a problem because NDS does

not recognize that the reason we came up with the wording

"adjusted to 60 °F " is that this is the wording that the

Pennsylvania Department of Standard Weights and Measures

suggested to us* and we will do exactly what they say.

QUESTION: I was just curious: when you implemented the

temperature ad j us tmenty6 i d you reduce the price to the

consumer a compensating amount?

MR DUGAN: No* but by the same token we haven't increased

our margin more than 20 points this past year. We have passed

it along cost for cost. We are just barely making up the

effect of increased union costs.

QUESTION: You wholesale at ATC also?

MR. DUGAN: That is correct.

QUESTION: Given any independent the desire to put an ATC

on his own vehicle* a one or two truck operation would

certainly show a loss.

MR. DUGAN: That is true. Three of our competitors whom

we supply have installed ATC's on their trucks.

Unfortunately* when they do it* it is no more than to recoup

the loss which all of a sudden we have shown them* or they

have shown themselves.

QUESTION: In other words, if it was mandatory that all

wholesalers went ATC* then it would follow that 90 percent of

the retailers would do it in self-defense?

MR. DUGAN: I would think over a period of years* yes.

You really have to look ahead in years. As John Buckley was

quoting number of vehicles on the road and numbers of racks

and* quite frankly* as the gentlemen from the hardware

industry who are here today would say* they could not

possibly handle that type of demand for immediate rack and

truck conversions.

QUESTION: What effect is the Pennsylvania moratorium on

the ATC units having?

MR. DUGAN: We are going along with the letter of the

law. Mjj company owns two subsidiaries in Pennsy 1 van la* one

of which had ATC's installed on about half of their fleet

before the moratorium* actually* more precisely* before the

winter started and we ran out of time. The other one only has

one ATC installed on a fleet o f fi ve trucks. We will wait

until the morator ium is lifted, and then continue.

QUESTION: Is tax applied in Pennsy lvania?
PAGE 69

MR. DUGAN: No it is not. There is no tax on Pennsylvania

fuel oil. Okey* if there are no other questions/ I thank you

very much.
PAGE 70

DISCUSSION OF OPTIONS AVAILABLE FOR RESOLVING COMPUTATION

LIMITATIONS OF MOTOR FUEL DISPENSERS

MR. SIMILA: We have covered the subjects that were

listed in the program for today. I don't want to cut short

any discussion. If anyone has any questions they would like

to address to any of the par t i c i pan ts» we would entertain

those at this time. If not/ we would entertain discussion on

the issue of retail motor fuel dispensers, and particularly

the issue of computation limitations imposted by the 99.9

unit price.

To introduce discussion on that subject, I think it

would be appropriate if the Chairman of the S ?< T Committee

might indicate the status of that issue before the S & T

Committee, since the Committee met in late January here at

the Bureau, and was aware of this, but perhaps not of the

rapidity with which it might be coming at us. However, it was

discussed. Jim, if you and your Committee might assemble up

in the front, and if you would care to describe what the

Committe has discussed, and get further information from

those in attendance, we would like to do that at this time.

Would the S & T Committee members join Jim up in front?

MR. BIRD: Thank you, Ken. At the interim meetings fo

the S St T Committee, we espoused a policy, as I indicated

this morning here, that we would try to project and offer

solutions to problems before they happen, or try to foresee

these things, and offer corrective procedures for them.

This is one of the things that we talked about at the

interim meeting, and here is what we have in our tentative

report for the National Conference, and I will read it to you

verba t im.

Code for liquid measuring devicef* Impact of rapidly

escalating petroleum product prices. The committee reviewed

the events which took place several years ago when the retail

price of gasoline exceeded 49.9 cents per gallon.

The interim measure recommendation was to set the

variator at the pricea per one-half gallon, require the price

per gallon to be separately posted, and to multiply the total

price by two. So indicate on the face of the dispensor. It

would have a label saying that.

At the time the 49.9 cents per gallon capability existed

on only 200,000 of the one and half million dispensors in the

United States. It is the Committee's view that this would not

be considered an appropriate solution when the price of

gasoline exceeds a dollar per gallon, if the industry does

not take immediate steps to prepare itself for this apparent

eventuality. The Committee recommends to the industry t.nat

all new pumps installed at this time should be equiped with a unit price capability greater than 99.9 cents per gallon, and

should also have convenient and immediate means to convert to
PAGE 71

metric.

The Committee recommends to weights and measures

officals that careful attention should be given to new

equipment being installed and to communicate to any

organization not following these guidelines. Based on that#

we in New Jersey put &

bulletin out to our local superintendents dated February

14th# on the subject of fuel measuring devices# NBSH-44,

GUR-1 1 suitability of equipment and liquid measuring devices

S-144 money value computations..

And we state: it is possible that the retail cost of

motor fuel and heating fuels may exceed a dollar per gallon.

The oil embargo several years ago caused sudden price changes

in the ~market that had not been foreseeable. Much of the

th en-e xTTt i ng equipment was not capable of calculating over

49.9 cents per gallon.

We now have warning of future prices exceeding a dollar

per gallon# and it is necessary to (1) survey existing

equipment for devices not capable of computing over a dollar

a gallon; and# (2) warn operators that theg- must either

replace these devices which cannot calculate at the expected

prices# or have existing units modified to do so. Since that

date I have had several phone calls from different

organi zat ions asking about feelings on metric marketing. In

weights and measures we follow what the laws say and what the

politicians tell us to do.

Many of our state laws demand that motor fuels and

heating fuels# as I indicated earlier# be sold on a gallonage

basis. That is the unit of measure. Now it is my

understanding that California recently had some work done on

this# and they found that there was a cost-benefit value to

go metric. Darrell Guensler could speak to that; I think he

arrived.

As I have indicated to some of the people who have

called in our office# what has to be done# not only in New

Jersey but other states# is to get the marketers involved# to

get the laws changed so that you can market on the liter

basis.

We can't go to the legislature and say "This is the way

to go# "because we are a small or gan i za t i on, as in many

states# and we really don't have the political clout to -ove

it and $ay "Well# this is the way it has to be done " We enforce the rules and laws that are laid down to us

to enforce. We hope to do it in a judicious manner. For the

benefit of all of those people here today and tomorrow# we

are having this ad hoc meeting to try to find ways and means

of arriving at a solution with this particular problem# as je

are with this temperature compensation problem

At this point I would like to introduce Da-re 11 Gue^sler

from California# and let him speak to the issue of
PAGE 72

cost-benefit based on their findings out there.

MR. GUENSLER: Maybe it would be most appropriate if I brought you up to date on where we are in California with

this par t i c u larjs i tua t i on< and what we are proposing at this

point. Last Friday we made a presentation to the California

Metric Council, which is the State of California's version of

the U. S. Metric Board, only with state responsibilities. We

pointed out to them the problem that we are all aware of: of

the computers not being able of going over 99.9 cents per

gallon and outlined some of the alternatives that may be

available, such as doing nothing, and half-pricing;

converting to $1.99 capability; going metric; dropping the

tenth of a cent and computing to the nearest dime; computing

in quarts; computing in half gallons.

There are a number of al ternat ives. It boiled down to

really only two that we feel are practical, and that is

either to convert to the $1.99 capability at a cost somewhere

around $200 per unit; we are estimating, and that is as close

as we can come with the information that has been supplied to

us by the manufacturer of that type of product. Or you could

convert to metric, at a cost of somewhere around $50. 00. we

are estimating. That is borne out fairly accurately with what

they found in Canada. I think it cost them $60.00 a unit

there.

Those are not set in concrete. There are variations to

t hat ca used by three-wheel computers that can't be converted.

and t h j p R_s._JH.kg__, that. It gives sort of an indication.

The Metric Council in California went on record as

stating that in the long run they felt that the least

confusing and also the least expensive method of handling the

problem is to convert to metric, and that if the industry

chooses to do that the Council would fulfill its obligation

to assist them in coordinating the conversion to metric.

In addition to that, we have sent telegrams to major oil

companies, service station representatives, assoc iations. oil

and gas marketers, etc., requesting them to attend a meeting

in Sacramento April 10th to discuss this situation, with the

goal of comin^out of that meeting with a decision as to what

is going to be done in Californi^&t least: to convert either

to the $1.99 or to the metric.

That is where we are right now. We figure that the

difference in total cost to the California marketers would be

about $15 million; i.e.» between converting to metric, which

we estimate at around $5 million, and converting to $ 1.99 per

gallon, which we estimate at around $20 million.
PAGE 73

In the discussion that followed these points were

developed:

(1) Concerting dispensers to 7T\etf*C at retail would not

necessarily introduce change at the wholesale level.

(2) Public education would be a prerequisite for public

acceptance of metric.

(3) Conversion to liters should preferably be on a nationwide basis or at least^in a statewide basis.

(4) Lack of availability of conversion equipment and of

manpower to install it makes infeasible early enough

conversion to meet the $1.00 plus price per gallon.

(5) A short-range plan for coping with the problem is to

sell by half-gallons with appropriate information posted at

gas stations.

(6) Any solution to the problem will involve dealing

with certain state laws that do not allow the solution.

(Whereupon* the first day of the symposium concluded. )
PAGE 74

EVENTUALLY — WHY NOT NOW?

George Mattimoe

Division of Weights and Measures

State of Hawaii

Chairman Simila* Chief Tholen, and all of you very

important people who have taken your valuable time to

participate in this symposium:

Let me say that in all honesty* I have mixed emotions

about being here* and contrary to accepted format* I plan to

defer the expression of my feelings until such time as I see

some positive action taken as a result of the symposium.

That is not to be construed asprecluding the expression

of my viewpoint in the absence of such action. However* it

seems illogical that this symposium would ever have been

called in the first place if remedial action as relates to

the inequities and discriminatory inconsistencies in the

liquid measuring device and vehicle tank meter codes were not

up for considered correction.

Don't mi sunders tand me. The renewing of old friendships

and the establishing of some new ones is always a worthwhile

endeavoi/and that accomplishment is always enjoyed by me —

and I trust by you.

I merely take this opportunity to express the point

that* if a "preconceived concept to do nothing about that

which is causin^nore and more concern prevails"* then this

symposium will go down in history as a tantalus — to both

those of us who recognize the need and to the open-minded

progressive leaders and members of the National Conference on

Weights and Measures who reject* or should reject* the

pragmatic concept that if it wasn't included before* then it

shouldn't be included now in Handbook 44.

The implied perspicacity in such a concept clearly

indicates that there would be no longer any need for this

conference; that is* the National Conference on Weights and

Measures.

I* for one* reject that concept. To the contrary, I believe that we need more involvement with and from this

conference* including the regional election and designation

of the members of the Standing Committees* the Vice Chairmen*

and the creation of four Regional Executive Sec reta ries who , while resi din g in t heir respective regions*

would meet with the National Executive

Secretary at least four times a year* to assure adequate

regional dialogue at the national level* which dialogue would
PAGE 75

be r epresen ta t i ve of the national interest; and a restructuring of the voting to allow those/ who will be

regulated/ a vote in the formulation of such regulations.

That/ however/ while a major contributory factor to our being

here today/ is a subject for a different time and place.

I also reject the concept that our predecessors in the

National Conference on Weights and Measures/ and the Office

of Weights and Measures, were omnipotent and all

knowledgeable; thus their concepts and publications

represented technological finality — irreproachab le and

unrefinable. That is pure bunk!

At the 14th National Conference on Weights and Measures,

held in 1921 or 58 years ago. the present-day. existing

tolerance, or limits of acceptable inaccuracy was established

for retail gasoline dispensers. This sacrosanct

"spec if icat ion" has survi vec^ever y rewrite of the

Specifications Handbook and the LMD code since that time. It

is nothing short of hypocrisy to contend tha t^Dur present-day

technology cannot improve upon a tolerance of 102 cubic

inches per 100 gallons delivered at retail.

Through Pono Industries. Inc or p ora t ed ' s ^ECOM Mark IV

unit, we have been consistently in the plus^l 5 Vub i c inch

range on 100-gallon deliveries in Hawaii, and that is with

the temperature compensator both connected and disconnected.

In 1923. 56 years ago. at the 16th National Conference

on Weights and Meausres. a gentleman named Howard R. Estes.

Sealer of Weights and Measures. Flint. Michigan, cited what

may well become the basis of Secretary Sch lesinger 's Gasoline

Rationing Plan, when he identified the estimated gasoline

consumption per motorist at two gallons a day.

Of equal importance was that portion of Mr. Estes'

presentation devoted to temperature correction, wherein he

cited Circular 57. relating to the temperature compensation

of petroleum products, which was actually the first

compilation of the results of the experiments carried out by

the National Bureau of Standards between July 1912 and

December 1914. which was published as Technologic Paper 77 by

Doctors Beerce and Peffer. 26 August. 1916.

Circular 57. titled "United States Standard Tables for

Petroleum Oils", was published 11 May 1916. or some four

months before the supporting data in T-77 was published.

Mr. Estes quite succinctly stated.

"When a refiner sells a tank car of gasoline, it is the

custom to allow for the change of volume due to the variation

of temperature from the standard. This applies, at least, to

those shipments that have been investigated. It should be

stated that the specific gravity of gasoline is corrected to

60 degrees Fahrenheit. One concern bills a carload of

gasoline in this fashion: Shell Capacity. Gallons. 8050.

Temperature. Degrees* 73; Change. Gallons. 37 ; Net. Gallons.
PAGE 76

7963.

"This means that a car having an 8050 gallon capacity

was filled with gasoline having a temperature of 78 degrees

Fahrenheit. This was 18 degrees higher than the recognized

standard temperature for gasoline. Therefore/ because this

gasoline was expandedyBue to the higher temperature, we are

deducting 87 gallons from the total, because when the

gasoline gets to the temperature of 60 degrees Fahrenheit, it

will have shrunken by 87 gallons.

"Thus, you see the refiner recognizes the principle, and

the jobber takes these same figures. He. therefore,

recognizes it. The wholesaler who buys the gasoline accepts

the figures. Therefore, he recognizes it. And there it

stops. 11 "The specific gravity, a density measurement of

petroleum oils, among which is gasoline, is referred, as

mentioned before, to the standard temperature of 60 degrees

Fahrenheit, as stated in Circular No. 57 of the Bureau of

Standards. For conveni enc e. and in order to make it clearer,

let us say that one gallon oTgasoline occupies a space of

100 units. According to the table in Circular 57. 100 units

of petroleum oil at 80 degrees Fahrenheit, with an observed

specific gravity of 0.620. would, at 60 degrees Fahrenheit, a change of 20 degrees Fahrenheit, occupy a volume of only 98.2

units. With an oil of a specific gravity of 0. 750 • which

approximates ordinary present-day gasoline, the 100 units at

90 degrees Fahrenheit would shrink to 98.8 units at 60

degrees Fahrenheit.

"Now let's see the effect the above change in volume has

on ordinary commercial practice. The wholesaler, especially

if he iydoing only a nominal business, has two or more

storage tanks holding about 15,000 gallons each. These, you

will find, are ordinarily placed above the ground, probably

to detect any leaks which might occur, probably to use the

force of gravity in filling wagons, and possibly to conform

to local ordinances and laws. Many times you will see these

storage tanks painted blackfThe color black is the greatest

light absorbing color, and consequently the greatest heat

absorbing color. Therefore, in hot weather, it ought not to

surprise us to know that gasoline in such containers

frequently reaches the temperature of 85 degrees Fahrenheit.

In the case of tank-car shipments from the Oklahoma field, it

is doubtful if gasoline shipped to southern points ever

reaches a temperature much below 75 to 30 degrees Fahrenheit

m warm weather.

"Let us look now at the retailer or filling station

operator He is compelled through force of circumstances,

insurance regulations, state laws and city ordinances, to put

his gasoline storage tank at least four feet below the

surface of the gr ound^Wha t is the result? The temperature at
PAGE 77

which he sells his product is rarely over 70 degrees

Fahrenheit, and. from tests that have been mad«, averages

nearer 65 degrees Fahrenheit. For convenience, let us assume

there is a difference of 20 degrees between his buying

temperature and his selling temperature, the latter being the

lower, and let us base our example upon the product of 0 620

specific gravity (about 96.5 degrees API). This, it should be

explained, is probably a greater variation of temperature

than occurs ordinarily, and a lighter oil that is now common,

but the assumed conditions are used to make the illustratior

more clear. With such a temperature change there will oe a change of volume from 100 units to 98.2 units, or the filling

station operator could recover only 98.2 gallons out of eve^y

100 gallons which he bought under those c ond i 1 1 ons . Si mi 1 ar 1

y

, with a gasoline of 0.750 specific gravity (about 57 degrees

API), he would recover only 98.8 gallons..."

"It is up to us who stand for a square deal for all

concerned, to see that some definite data are ootamed which

will show us whether contraction and expansion play a part

important enough to be taken into consideration in tne sale

of gasoline."

"Let us consider this a minute in our own terms. ~^e

tolerance on 100 gallons of gasoline as adopted for pumps by

this body at the 14th annual conference is 102 cubic inches

The shortage due to a 20 degree fall in temperature (on the

0.620 specific gravity product) is 415.8 cubic inches, 'ore

than four times the tolerance,- or 277.2 cubic inches (on the

0.750 specific gravity product) almost three times the

tolerance, in the two examples given above. " (Notes in

parentheses added.

)

"It is easy to understand that only a small amount of

gasoline sold will have a variation in temperature as great

as 20 degrees, yet in the southern sections of the country

this would be the rule rather than the exception in warm

weather.

"The principle of volume change is as old as the hills

But its effect is going to be noticed more and more in the

gasoline business because of the increasing volume and o f the

eventful (sic) rise in price of the commodity. It is well

that we are beginning to investigate it.

So spoke an enlightened Mr. Howard Estes. Sealer of

Weights and Measures, Flint, Michigan, on May 23, 1^23, to

years ago

Mr. Estes' presentation, coming seven short years after

the publication of C — o7, represented c ommendas . ? foresight

and an honest desire to see the National Conference serve

everyone equitably. It does not detract from his presenteti or

when he cites that a change of 20 degrees Fahrenheit results

in a given change in volume, for that is factual.

There tends to be, however, an implied connotation that
PAGE 78

a change in product temperature must occur for an inequity to

prevail/ which/ of course/ is simply not true. There is

nothing equitable about buying 231 cubic inches at 80 degrees

Fahrenhetjas a gallon of petroleum/ even if this inequity is

compounded by selling those 231 cubic inches at 80 degrees

Fahrenheit as a gallon. Such a transaction simply will not

meet the test of either the existing tables or the proposed

modifications thereto.

Utilizing Estes' 57 degree API gasoline at 80 degrees

Fahrenheit would entail the delivery of 233.8 cubic inches at

80 degrees^ahrenheit to meet the definitions established by

the tables developed by the National Bureau of Standards# and

this is true irrespective of whether the transaction is at

retail/ wholesale# conducted by pipeline or put-up in

one-gallon containers.

In order to meet the test of Table Eight and Table Six#

either 231 cubic inches at 60 degrees Fahrenheit must be

delivered as a gallon# or the equivalent thereto at any other

temperature must be delivered. This means# very simply# that

if the temp era turadncr eases# the volume increases (the weight

remains constant)/ and# conversely# if the temperature

decreases# the volume decreases (the weight remains

constant )

.

I am sure that most of you are familiar with the

situation prevailing in Pennsy lvania# where the dealers are

buying at 60 degrees Fahrenheit and selling at 38 degrees

Fahrenheit# without any compensation allowed for contraction

of the product. Such a transaction simply fails to meet the

test of Table Six and Table Eight# and is therefore

inequitab le.

No one should suffer simply because a hydrocarbon

expands and contracts# particularly since the means exist to

automat ical ly prevent either party suffering.

Many of you# here# may remember the presentation made in

1974 by Mr. Harold Harris of Exxon to the 59th National

Conference on Weights and Measures# wherein he cited the fact

that# "This subject has arisen in the past# however#

primarily with regard to potential dealer losses relative to

amount delivered versus the amount sold to the consumer. " Let me point out that that is not a study relating to

temperature compensation but merely a throughput study.

Harold also cited one of the most prominent as being

that conducted in the State of Texas in 1954-55, wherein the

results were documented in the Congressional Record# and he

concluded that# "It was proven that the 60 degree Fahrenheit

bas<>was entirely equitable. "

I have# here# a copy of the report cited# and it is

indeed impressively titled"A Report on Losses of Gasoline at

Retail Service Stations Through Shrinkage# Evaporation and

Other Causes; Submitted to the^Ways and Means# U. S. House of
PAGE 79

Representatively the Department of the Treasury, July 1962. " The cover carries the following note:

"This document has been printed for information purposes

only. It has not been considered or approved by the Committee

or any^iember thereof. " Furthermore, the cited studies were not temperature

correction studies but, rather, throughput reconciliation

studies, and while I have no quarrel with Hal Harris 7 claim

that "It was proven that the 60 degree Fahrenheit base was

entirely equitable", the cited study did not accomplish that

fact.

We once again recognize the great insight that Mr. Estes

enjoyed of the petroleum marketing hierarchy. In his

i d en t i f i ca t i on of underground tank temperatures, 7 way back in

1923, which he indicated averaged 65 degrees Fahrenheit;

whereas, 53 years later, the Radian Corporation in their

report RC #200-127 titled, "Summary and Analysis of Data from

Gasoline Temperature Survey Conducted at Service Station by

American Petroleum Institute", indicated that Mr. Estes might

have been in error as relates to today's conditions, since

their data reflected an average dispensed product temperature

of 66.8 degrees Fahrenheit, or l.S degrees higher than Mr.

Estes 7 figure.

It is interesting to note that the Radian figure is 10.6

degrees higher than the figure cited by Hal Harris in his

1974 presentation; all of which indicates to this observer

that the only temperature of concern, aside from that

contained in the definition of a U. S. petroleum gallon, e g. 231 cubic inches at 60 degrees Fahrenheit, is the temperature

of the product at the time of quantity determination.

An interesting aspect of our present debacle, regarding

temperature correction at wholesale but not at retail, is the

fact that” all of these documents, excluding the original

"United States Standard Tables for Petroleum Oils", C-57, and

of course the supporting data contained in T-77, were

published after the original and currently existing

tolerances for gasoline dispensers were established, and, in

fact, after Mr. Howard R. Estes made his presentation to the

National Conference on Weights and Measures on May 23. 1923.

There can be no question that the leadership of the

National Conference on Weights and Measures, in harmony with

the Director of the Office of Weights and Measures, simply

chose to ignore the technical data being generated by a different arm of the very same National Bureau of Standards

Perhaps, at this point, it should be stated that <1) the

technology was lacking to temperature compensate at retail

and (2) the plentiful supply and low cost of gasoline did not

focus attention on the associated accuracies involved.

Further, there were those who, in spite of the

voluminous data to the contrary, became emotionally confused
PAGE 80

over the definition of a U. S. gallon of 231 cubic inches.

There should not have been any confusion for, indeed* 231

cubic inches is the definition of a U. S. gallon. However*

what has happened to the basic definition is that certain

temperatures have been appendec^to it to recognize the

physical phenomena introduced by temperature change* such as

in the case of alcohol* proof gallons* which is 60 degrees

Fahrenheit* and refrigerated products* which is 40 degrees

Fahrenheit* and frozen-state products* which is that the

temperature at which the product freezes* and for all other

liquids is 68 degrees Fahrenheit* excepting* of course*

petroleum* which is 60 degrees Fahrenheit.

There are many who argue that 60 degrees Fahrenheit* as

relates to petroleum* is applicable only to packaged consumer

commodities* while being totally cognizant that such

temperature is appended to the definition of petroleum

gallons in the National Bureau of Standards publication*

Handbook 44* relating to bulk of wholesale liquid measuring

devices.

Such definition is conspicuously absent as relates to

retail sales of petroleum to the consumer.

It hardly seems necessary to mention to this group that

every NBS document* herein contained* starting with 1-77 , C-57* C-154, C-154 supplement* C-154 revised supplement*

MP-97* RP-393* C-410* each carry the message that the

"standard unit used most extensively in this country for

determining quantities of gasoline and other petroleum

products in commerce is the gallon d ef ined as 231 cubic inches

of liquid at 60 degrees Fahrenheit." (Source: RP-393* P»1133>

And* "The weight per gallon of oil is the apparent

weight of a volume of 231 cubic inches of oil at 60 degrees

Fahrenheit when weighed in the air. " And* "Columns of

multipliers which are actually:

VOLUME a 60*F * M * "VOLUME a T (Source: C-154 Supplement, Revised Edition, P.l)

Thus, when the: VOLUIt a 60*F _ 231 CUBIC INCHES VOLUME a T "

231 CUBIC INCHES " 1,000

or we have the definition again confirmed that, for

petroleum* a gallon is 231 cubic inches at 60 degrees

Fahrenh e it.

To those who would attempt to convince others that any

temperature would have sufficed* and that there is nothing

magical about 60 degrees Fahrenheit* we couldn't agree more'

However* we did not select any other temperature. We selected

60 degrees Fahrenheit and all of the tables are predicated on

60 degrees Fahrenheit* including Table Eight, which remains

unaffected by either the recent NBS study or the API formula

manipulation just completed in San Diego.

Let's look at the bulk versus the packaged consumer
PAGE 81

commodities quart can of oil concept but# before we do#

like to go over the weight-volume relationship expressed

Table Eight, by the following formula:

DENSITY Of HtO a 60‘f IN 6/HL DENSITY Of AIR a 60‘F IN G/HL

JL .

pO. 9990405 1^^0012170)1 FACTOR FOR

v60 "

j_l - (0.0012y0-r 8.393185) J

F '

' d

i n

(0.0012170 -r 8. 393185)

DENSITY OF AIR a 60*F IN G/flL| DENSITY /OF BRASS a S0*F IN G/NL

v CONVERTING \S/BL TO GALLONS

3y observation# the only variable in the Formula is the

density of the product# the weight per unit volume of which

is being determined# and that density must by definition be

at 60 degrees Fahrenheit.

From Table Eight# we determine that a petroleum product

with an API gravity of 64 degrees weighs 6.025 pounds per

gallon# or per 231 cubic inches at 60 degrees Fahrenheit.

Let's determine if this is so*

0.0022046223 We determine that:

0.00026417762

8.345227;

141.5

‘API 131.5

Then# by manipulation of the above formula# we find

_M_ Ro. RO.9990' 9990405 M - 0.00121705 v

60 “Ll - ( 0 . 3

(0.0012170 5>J 4- 8.393185)_

= (0.9991854 ngj - 0.0012172) F — r 141.3847— _ 0 00121J g, 345227

V60 llAPI 131.5 J

141.3847

64 + 131.5 0.0012172J

*.345227

JL

V60

[

141 —3847

- 0.0012172 8.345227

.195.50 J

= [0.723195 - 0.0012172] 8.345227

= [0.721978] 8.345227

6.025072 POUNDS PER GALLON#

And this relationship is not altered by temperature

change. The 231 cubic inches will# of course, expand and

contract generally in accord with Table Six but- irrespective

of the volume occupied# the weight will remain constant.

The corresponding specific volume# that is the volume of

oil per unit weight# is the reciprocal of the weight per un#u

volume. To illustrate: ^ nnnnnn 0.165973

6.025072

And may be found under the heading "Gallons Per round

in Tab 1 e Ei gh t

.
PAGE 82

NoU( regarding that bul k-ver sus-quar t argument. From

u/hence came the National Standard Petroleum Oil Tables? And#

before that# the data from which the tables were generated?

Are we to assume that Bearce and Peffer had bulk

quantities of petroleum samples with which to experiment? Say

100# OOO gallons? Or even 1# 000? Or 10? Would you settle for a quart?

How about Dr. Jim Whetstone? Did he have bulk

quantities# say. of 1.000# 000 gallons? Or 100.000? Or 10? Or

even one with which to experiment and determine the amount of

expansion and contraction? Not according to the sampling

instructions containetyin Appendix One# page one section B of

the recently published NBS study# which called for:

"Sample - Definition

A sample shall consist of two (2) one-quart

samples taken so that they are sub s tant ia 1 1

y

equivalent. " This leads one to conclude that all data relating to the

thermal c ha rac ter i s

t

i c s of bulk petroleum products was

determined from one quart or one-half gallon samples — which

were not alone representative of themselves# but of the lot

from which they originated.

One could extend this logic one more step and conclude

that the definition of bulk ranges from one quart to

infinity.

Such as being the case# there appears no jus^if i cat i on

for not applying this expensive information from^end of the

spectrum to the other# thereby ending the existence of a double standard and the elimination of this discriminatory

prac t ice.

QUESTION: In terms of economics# what would be the

incremental costs for this pump?

MR. MATTIMOE: Would that I could answer that. I am

f undamen ta 1 1 y an engineer# not an economist. I turned the

unit over to a local organization known as Adtech back when

we were working on it# and their original projections were

less than *700. 00. This was four years ago. The analogy that

I would draw would be to compare the cost of your digital

watch, although the degree of complexity is certainly

different. My watch with liquid crystal displays cost about

$22.00. It originally came out under its Japanese name for

somewhere around $100.00. I would anticipate, particularly

dropping the 8080 and replacing it with an 8020 which is a single voltage chip requiring only five volts DC, I would

anticipate a considerable reduction in the cost of

manufacturing# mainly because we had a great heat sink. An

8080 requires three different DC voltages, as most of you

know. This required an input fan to dissipate the heat. All

of which was added to the cost. These are being taken out by

the people who are packaging it now. It is being put into
PAGE 83

what I would call an engineering prototype. It certainly is

not yet a production prototype. The first units that we put

together were merely proof of concept. Would it work? Would

it do the job? We feel that it did.

QUESTION: To your knowledge* are any others developing

such a device as this?

MR. MATTIMOE: We have no knowledge that anyone else is*

but certainly it is not a problem. The hardware exists. The

approach is relatively straightf orward. If we accept the

philosophy that we could tighten up* for instance* on

tolerances and derive a benefit from doing so, this unit may

be one way to do that. What I should do is go back and

rewrite the regulations and promulgate them into law and call

for something like a tolerance of plus or minus two cubic

inches* and this unit would meet that. I am sure there are

others that do or that would. I don't know anybody else that

is building one at this moment in time.

QUESTION: What possible economic benefit would using

this unit demonstrate? Who needs it primarily, the consumer

or the dealer? The dealer can justify a capital investment of

$2*500.00* let's say. It seems that the consumer would derive

very slight benefit.

MR. MATTIMOE: We looked at equity in metering; that was

the concept behind the development of the pump. If indeed 231

cubic inches at 60 degrees was what we wanted to deliver as a gallon, t hen we had to fi nd a means to get there. Getting

there has be^_ accomplishedl_ : » now reducing the cost so that it

becomes an acceptable or a marketable device is ahead of us. QUESTION: Do the dealers want this equipment?

MR. MATTIMOE: We have a very unique dealer association

in Hawaii. Their feeling is* "Get the thing out so that we

don't have to make this manual adjustment." The dealers do

feel that it is worthwhile. They also want to go metric. We

would like to do the two of them at one time* but that is

f ars i g h ted

.

QUESTION: I anticipate that the dealer would determine

the API gravity?

MR. MATTIMOE: No. You don't change your API gravity that

often. The API gravity is required by law to be listed on the

delivery slip. If you change it* you are delivering a product

that the retailer didn't buy. Besides* our gravities are

relatively close in Hawaii. I don't know whether that exists

elsewhere. But if it becomes a problem you could get yourself

a hydrometer and determine what the density is and go ahead

and set it for your input. It isn't that big a problem.

QUESTION: With this elaborate attempt to measure a product* is it delivered at a constant 60 degrees:

MR. MATTIMOE: I may have conveyed an improper

impression. The unit does not deliver at 60 degrees. It

displays 60-degree gallons* even if the product that is going
PAGE 84

into the prover is 80 degrees, 81, 82, 83 degrees. We are not

attempting to deliver 60-degree gallons. We merely tell you

the number of 60-degree gallons that have been delivered and

price them accordingly. I don't have a refrigeration unit in

the pump and don't attempt to control temperature.

QUESTION: What would the temperature range be?

MR. MATTIMOE: It was designed to meet a range of about

140 degrees.

QUESTION: I have a comment. It seems that we are trying

to separate absolute truths from economic truths. What is the

best percent? The problem is the economic cost to maintain

the precision at retail that we can have at a wholesale or

larger bulk. I want you to understand that we are doing the

best we can with what we have. All of us have many hats to

wear, and few, if any, of us can allocate time and research

staff as you have. We appreciate your contribution, but I know you won't feel slighted if we come out with different

decisions than you would expect us to.

MR. MATTIMOE: Since that was a comment, I suspect it

deserves a comment in return. The feelings that I expressed

for the first 13 pages of my presentations were those of Mr.

Estes who back in 1923 suggested we should look at this. 1923

until now is a good long period of time to be looking. I would think that if indeed temperature compensation is a permissible end at wholesale, it should be permissible at

retai 1. QUESTION: If I understand the type of equipment you

described, in test mode this d i sp enser; wh en the button you

described was pushed^might show a 92.5 degree Fahrenheit

temperature. The inspector, after delivering five gallons,

would be looking at 92.5 in the temperature indicator and

there would be an indication of the number of cubic inches,

1155 plus 20 or whatever cubic inches. Well, this gives plus

20 above the zero on the five gallon test meter. What

provision is there for verifying that temperature?

ANSWER: A thermometer calibrated exactly the way Jackie

described yesterday. I did get here in time to hear her

presentation. It was sort of a fascinating approach. I use a slush-ice bath and I use a tempertaure bath at the upper

range. I swizzled this platinum probe around in the vat and

also used the NBS calibrated quartz thermometer as our backup

standard, or as the standard against which we calibrated the

straight line device. It tracked quite well. It reads to a tenth of a degree, which is something I don't think is

necessary but might be. If the pump had stood idle for a period of time and you observed the temperature of the

product, you would be reading the temperature of the product

in the pump. You would want to get that out of there by

making a delivery, wetting your prover with that one and then

proceed in the same manner that you would test any other
PAGE 85

pump. Then you would take your calibration reading.

QUESTION: If the inspector is testing the device with

the assumption that it is going to continue to operate

accurately for a period of time# say a year/ it is reasonable

to assume that the temperature might vary quite a bit over

that year's time. Shouldn't he look at the dispenser at more

than one temperature? At wholesale we remove the probe and

put it into a simulated product.

ANSWER: Okay/ you set the input density to double zero

or triple zero on your API selector and you knock out the

temperature compensating capabilities and you have a regular

gasoline dispenser.

QUESTION: You test your compensator at one point without

putting it in an ice bath or something like that to look at

it at another point on the scale. My question is do you feel

it is important to test it in that manner and is it possible

to test it in that manner? Is the probe removable so it can

be put into a bath?

MR. MATTIMOE: Yes/ it is a consideration that we really

didn't pay a whale of a lot of attention to. It certainly is

not that difficult to do.

QUESTION: Would not the inspector have to determine

specific gravity and temperature?

MR. MATTIMOE: You have to know the density of the

product/ just like you have to know the temperature. All of

our people incidentally carry hydrometers/ so it doesn't

present a problem to us. QUESTION: Are any of the Hawaiian based oil companies

involved?

MR. MATTIMOE: No/ the Hawaiian based oil companies are

not yet involved with the unit. The unit actually belongs to

the Hawaiian Gasoline Retail Dealers Association and testing

is being done for them at this time. We have a peculiar mix

in Hawaii as to ownership of pumps. There are no units

installed except the one that has been installed on the pay

tank. It is the only operable one in existence/ in fact.

QUEESTION: George/ you indicated that this dispensor is

under control of the Association. I am confused because we

get communications from Kono, Inc. What is their involvement 7, MR. MATTIMOE: The State of Hawaii has an Ethics

Commission/ just like many states do. When an attempt was

made to purchase a certified compensated retail gasoline

dispenser/ it was an unsuccessful attempt. You may recall

that I made some comment facetiously that Hawaii should be

able to develop one of these things in time for the San Diego

National Conference on Weights and Measures which was a year

away/ and somebody suggested that if I was so damned smart/

why didn't I do it? To do this/ when I went home/ required an

arm's length arrangement/ and I went to the Ethics Commission

and inquired whether, in my present position, I could put
PAGE 86

together something that might be a commercial or commercially

available unit. They advised me the methodology would be to

form a corporation. That corporation. Kono. Inc., has caused

a lot of interesting comments. I doubt that you have received

any communications from me over a period of the last two

years on Kono stationary because I have not been affiliated

with them. You may read the name, liattimoe. on the bottom

line. That is my son who is President of Kono Corporation and

that is a very short arm's length arrangement, but.

nevertheless, it is the one that exists at this time. Kono

owns the packing rights on this device. The Hawaii Gasoline

Retail Dealers Association, as part of my commitment to them

when I developed this three or four years ago. has had

surrendered to it the rights from the State of Hawaii. That

is a little involved but that is the ethical understanding

that I made with the State, and. in fact, the State said that

I could even recouping investment. They were very optimistic.

QUESTION: Do they have calibration seals?

MR. MATTIMOE: We don't have calibration seals in Hawaii.

The Attorney General said that we can't require them, that to

cite ^han for adjusting his own pump to make it more accurate

is ridiculous, and so they are not there.

QUESTION: What about diesel fuel?

MR. MATTIMOE: Diesel fuel would be sold in a similar

manner.
PAGE e7

EVENTUALLY - WHY NOT NOW?

THE STORY OF THE U. S. PETROLEUM GALLON

- A FABLE -

C. G. Boc kus

Division of Weights and Measures

State of Hawaii

Once upon a time... possibly during the time the First

World War was fought* a standard of measure for liquid

petroleum products (including gasoline) was created. Its

godfathers were Drs 3earce and Peffer and it was named U.

3

Petroleum Gallon.

This was to d i f f er ent iate this gallon from gallons of

water* gallons of snake oil and gallons of milk.

Unlike these gallons* but similar to his alcoholic

cousins# this U. S. Petrumgallon contained 231 cu in of Volume

only at 60 °£• It couldn't help it; it was created that way. And for

good reason.

It seemed that the world of liquid petroleum measurement

needed an accurate and uniform method for measuring* and

thus accounting for* all liquid petroleum gallons be they

crude oil* fuel oil* automobile gasoline* diesel fuel* av

gas* jet fuel# or three in one oil.

It was plain to USPG's creators that because of the

different thermal volumetric reactions of the above listed

liquid petroleums that all of these gallons would be the 231

cu in size only at the 60 F base reference point but would

change size (volume) at different rates wheryfieated or cooled

to temperatures other than 60 F. However* it was noted that

any particular products* such as 58 degree API gasoline,

would not change its weight when heated or cooled from its 60

F definition point.

Thusly* godfathers Bearce & Peffer of the Bureau of

Standards* after delivering their baby* set about

constructing a set of tables for him so that no matter what

size USPG appeared to be (at temperatures other than 60 F) he

could always be recognized and properly and correctly

measured. These tables were known as the "Density and Thermal

Expansion of American Petroleum Oils*" or NBS Technologic

Paper NBR 77.

Truly, these volume correction tables* as they became

known* were absolute wo r k s o f art* admirable for their time

The USPG used themVherever it went so he and his billions

of brother USP gallons could always be accurately accounted
PAGE 88

for. In fact, it was quite self evident that the tables, and

their use. tended to assure all parties to a petroleum

product transaction, (measure) at all levels in the

distribution hierarchy, and particularly the ultimate

consumer, were dealing in and uniformly measuring the same

amount of product irrespective of apparent volume.

Use of the tables, in other words, helped to assure

equity of measurement. This was especially true of liquid

petroleum because except for a few places on the earth at

infrequent timesy the USPG could never find a place to stay,

be stored, be piped, be pumped or be measured at 60 F. Even

as a finished product as motor fuel, the USPG found himself

being dispensed in the continenta^Uni ted States at anywhere

from 49 F to 83 F as was found true by various API studies.

But I am getting ahead of my story. . Accordingly. USPG found himself being used synorPmously

with the term temperature correction or volume correction.

This was just peachy with USPG because he knew that because

of his thermal condition, fie could swell or shrink in volume

and cause all sorts of mistakes for the unknowing or those

uninitiated in the black/lost art of liquid

petroleu(T)fneasurement. He had unintentionally fooled many a weights and measures inspector when it was assumed that his

apparent 231 cubic inch size at 80 F or some temperature

other than his true 60 F def ini tioryfcoint. was a USPG.

Certainly, he had cause to wonder at the problems caused

in trade by those unwitting souls who tried to measure him

without consulting the TC tables. Not only were incorrect

taxes being collected by inept measuring of USPG. but related

government regulations such as FEA petroleum ceiling prices

and EPA mileage figures became somewhat meaningless when

temperature correction tables were not used.

This problem became quite apparent to a weights and

measures inspector from Michigan in 1923 when he advised the

NCWM of the causes of liquid petroleum measurement error The

cause, of course, being due to the thermal sensitivity of

liquid petroleum. The measurement error was due, basically,

because liquid petroleum dispensers of the day, used for

retail measurement, did not take this thermal sensitivity of

USPG into account.

To give you an idea of just how sensitive our USPG is,

when he is at an API gravity of 58 and at a temperature of 3C

degrees F, if metered through an existing non-temperature

correction "pump" not even 19 and three-fourths of him will

flow into the motorist's tank by the time 20 gallons is

displayed on that dispenser/

Well, 1923 came and went . . . and although the Weights

and Measures community had been forewarned and advised of the

inherent limitations of retail gasoline pumps . . the

cumulative errors began to add up, but only where Temperature
PAGE 89

Correction was not recognized or not used.

Therefore/ USPG didn't have many worries elsewhere* such

as at the Wellhead* at OPEC/ at the refinery* or at

Temperature Correction rack meters# or as Temperature

Corrected packaged products or in Hawaii or in California

when del ivered/measured to the Government# or to farmers# or

to purchasers of 5# OOO gallons or more# or in the pipeline or

when being exchanged or transferred amongst the Oil Industry*

or at US Customs points for that matter or with the airlines.

But he did cause enough problems when not Temperature

Corrected that the State of Virginia in 1961 and the Treasury

Department in 1962 attempted to figure out what caused the

unac c oun tab i 1 i t y of gasoline at service stations. Amazingly,

both governmental bodies either largely overlooked or forgot

about USPG's thermal sensitivities or the Temperature

Correction tables. If that wasn't amazing enough# the State

of Montana had the temerity to try to legally deny USPG's

sensitivity by passing a law forbidding the temperature

correcting of gasoline. This was akin to trying to repeal the

laws of nature

The chaos in liquid petroleum measurement at retail

pretty well went unnoticed# unrecognized or unsolved for year

after year after year. There were complaints such as at Dan

Whits Store in Vermont which noted that due to temperature

changes of its stored gasoline# it was losing thousands of

dollars in taxes and profits. 3ut the Weights and Measures

community didn't really appear concerned; no waves were made

All. perhaps because the means had not yet been invented to

economically and automatical ly temperature correct liquid

petroleum measurement.

This changed in 1973 when NBS was advised that not only

did the long standing problem of the inability to account for

liquid petroleum at retail exist# but that practical solution

was at hand.

In 1974, the problem and the solution was presented to

NCWM. At that time# the API# while admitting the correct

definition of the USPG* ie. 231 at 60 F* had the audacity to

claim# not only an annual over delivery of 223 million

gallons of motor fuel to the American motorist* but that

overages and underages all balanced out/

Not one peep of outrage was heard from the assemclec

Weights and Measures officials. Surely* some of them rust

have thought that if it all balanced out* then why were we

all spending millions of dollars annually in salaries and

equipment inspecting retail gasoline pumps, why indeed - n

d

if liquid petroleum measuring devices all balanced out* then

why not all scales* taxi meters and packaged product

quantities, too????

And if that were true, why have a national Weights aro

Measures program at all? But no one asked. No- seemed
PAGE 90

cone erned.

Later on* Hawaii asked the API the logical question

of what it was doing to correct the 22S million gallon

giveaway it had touted. Was it going to avail itself of the

latest in automatic Temperature Correction equipment? No

answer was received from the API. Hawaii* therefore* was

forced to conclude that someone was either equivocating or

did not know what he was talking about. About this time* the

then chief of Office of Weights and Measures denied any

knowledge of a problem having to do with retail measurement

of liquid petroleum products and continued to plead for

cooperation in adhering to National Conference codes. This

•person promised to continue to study the matter, but to

USPG's knowledge* nothing on Office of Weights and Measure's

part was done. It would have been simple for Office of

Weights and Measures to ask each state and local Weights and

Measures juridiction for 12 months of voluntary dispensed

fuel temperatures on which to base a valid study. Still

.seeking cooperation* Office of Weights and Measures refused

to publish in its Tech Memo 1976 a treatise on incomplete

testing of retail pumps.

However* in this same year* the Radian Corporation

correlated and completed the API study of retail fuel

temperatures. It showed* among other things* that not only

was 60 F fuel a rarity at retail* but that the dispensed fuel

temperatures for the 56 test stations scattered nationwide

averaged well over 60 F. In fact, the figure printed was 66.8

F. This figure* combined with the 1974 Exxon/API data showed

that out of the over 100 billion gallons of motor fuel

annually delivered at retail* the und er d e 1 i ver u * repeat*

underdel ivery of over 400 million gallons of motor fuel was

not only possible* it was probably! No wonder the USPG was

not wanted by the Oil Companies at retail! Heck, with a little deliberate heating of the fuel* even more gallons

could be "legally" underdelivered. No wonder the Oil

Companies do not see the cost benefit to themselves in being

required to, by definition* honestly and correctly measure

their fuel* not only throughout the entire distribution

hierarchy* but at retail stations as well

Therefore* we come to the final questions of this

matter

1. Why should there exist one standard of measure (tne

USPG) for industry but another standard for the consuming

motorist? Why* in effect* the condoning of a double standard?

2. Or* if the Temperature Correction tables are used to

assure uniformity and equity of liquid petroleum trade, why

are not the tables translated into ALL channels of industry

and trade???

3. Why mandate via Congress a National Uniform

Measurement system only to condone fifty or more local
PAGE 91

systems?

Thank you.

QUESTION: What is the average temperature in Hawaii?

MR. BOCKUS: Product temperature? Average; oh I could say

80 degrees Fahrenheit.

QUESTION: I wonder if you were experiencing the same

temperatures we have in Montana if you would be willing to

temperature compensate. The average temperature in Montana

over a three-year period averaged 43 degrees. It is pretty

hard to sell the 60 degree correction to consumers.

MR. BOCKUS: Yes» it definitely would be

SPEAKER: I would also like to state that whether we are

right or wrong# we are uniform.

MR. BOCKUS: Measuring is being done all the same. My

only answer to that is that it is being done uniformly

incorrectly. I recognize the fact that in many cases your

fuels do average less than 60 degrees FJ for instance# in the

Meenan oil case# the customers were receiving more because of

the colder than 60 degrees F product temperatures.

But in a transaction having to do with equity# somebody

loses somewhere. It has been stated to me somewhere along the

line that the dealers and the sellers are people# too. They

are public. I keep hearing the word equity. Certainly a person who gets more fuel than he pays for gets a great deal#

but I don't know how that would be reconciled with equity. It

would be something different for everyone# but it certainly

isn't equitable to buyer and seller.

QUESTION: I would like to bring up Kono Industries. We

have quite a few communications between us# and I have

noticed your name on carbon copies that are about the Kono.

Could you tell me what your relationship is with this?

MR. BOCKUS: I am a good friend of Craig Mattimoe. He is

copying me on these particular letters because I do want to

keep abreast of what he is doing and saying in representing

Kono and temperature correction simply to keep informed;. As

for the financial relationship# we don't have anything on

paper regarding my ownership or any proprietary ownership. I have simply donated my own time and energy and money to do

something that I feel is inherently correct to do. I did a study showing that in California# if your fuels were

averaging 75 degrees# your consumers aren't getting what they

paid for.

I just feel it is a worthwhile project. Again# on the

time and money to get here and back# I am on my own. I am on

vacation right now. I don't particularly represent the state

of Hawaii here at this symposium. I had to fly here via

Canada because of the strike# and that was $200.00 extra. I am on my own time and money on this.
PAGE 9

ANALYSIS of temperature effects on gasoline marketing operations

BY

AMERICAN PETROLEUM INSTITUTE WEIGHTS AND MEASURES TECHNICAL TASK FORCE

H.E. HARRIS, CHAIRMAN APRIL 4, 1979

o Today we would like to share with you what we have learned about temperature effects

on gasoline marketing operations.

o This presentation will cover work undertaken by API member companies and by Radian

Corporation, a consultant contracted to perform analytical studies.

o We will look at the subject in four parts: First, the background

concerning previous temperature studies; then proceed to explore

the API gasoline temperature survey, the consultant analysis of

survey data and finally, we will provide conclusions for your

consideration.

o In July, 1974 results of two gasoline temperature studies were presented to the 59th National Conference on Weights and Measures; one by the State of Hawaii and the other

by the American Petroleum Institute.

o Both had assumed that the average retail dispensed gasoline temperature was equivalent

to underground tank and in turn to average ambient temperature. The assumption was questioned; however, no viable alternative existed due to the limited technical data then available.

o In order to correct this technological deficiency, the API Initiated a one-year survey

to measure actual gasoline temperatures at a cross section of representative service

stations.

o Scope of the API survey was to gather and analyze various data at service

stations relevant to the temperature of motor gasoline and develop a data

base for study of temperature correction, both wholesale and retail.

o The survey was conducted at fifty-six service stations located throughout the continguous

United States as shown on this slide.

LOCATION OF 56 TEST STATIONS
0 *epres"tit,ve i1l“ < th. ,3 participating "

cpaaiaa ,ere „,p0„Ilble

°bta '",n9 - ,n!t4n, "? ' - —«. « „strTMnu„o„. t„,

se]ecU(i t0 repr3 Sent typical retail outlets, considering volume thruput. hours

o operation, location, and climatic conditions. The locations were chosen to insure complete coverage utilizing cities having National Weather Service data available to allow study of the ect of climatic conditions on gasoline temperatures.

• Characteristics or each test station as ph>„„, Stores ana pperatipna, procePores -ere reoperation • size and amount of cover for U r. tanvc -„,a a thru?ut

U ' G - tankS and plp<n9 * d1sP*"^ flow rate and station volum,

a tieteorological data -ere conpiiea far the cities -here participating scat, pas -ere iacatea aUa-in, various parameters to be included; maximum, minimum and daily average ambient temperatures - precipitat cloud conditions and average wind velocity.

. Gasoline teeperatares -ere „n,tprea ana data enacted a, t-o prtar, paints the service station

system, underground storage tank and gasoline dispensing unit.

o This slide. U.G. Tank Instrumentation, snows the location of the temperature themistor probe near the bottom of the tank which was placed in either the fill tube or gage pipe access port

ANNUAL UNOERGAOUNO TAN* TEMPERATURES

M- F

K *0. 9

« Mm? #0 -< a“ 30 ' N-

'am 'a. '*« wloci Uo» lou 1 Timc - month

Underground tank temperatures were collected by analog strip charts recorders which due to

the relatively slow variation in U.G. tank temperatures were run continuously.

An example of an U.G. tank temperature recording over a year's time is shown here. The "spikes" reflect gasoline deliveries to the station. Their magnitude varies In direct relation to the amount of product delivered and temperature differential of the U.G. tank and delivery tank truck.
PAGE 9h

o This slide shows the location of the thermistor probe in the dispenser just

upstream of the discharge hose.

o Dispensed gasoline temperatures were collected on strip chart recorders which

were energized only when the dispensing pump was activated.

o Here we see three typical fills under conditions where ambient temperatures are less than U.G. tank gasoline temperatures.

o The first filling operation Is shown on the left. The dispensed gasoline temperature starts at near ambient, i.e., the temperature of gasoline in the dispenser. It then rises toward that of the U.G. tank temperature, reflecting gasoline temperature in the U.G. line. End of fill is essentially at U.G. temperature.

o Fill ?2 as shown here is started quite soon after completion of the first fill, as shown by the time interval T Due to this short time lag between fills, the gasoline in the dispenser and U.G. piping did not have time to cool off significantly and was dispensed at a temperature almost equivalent to that of the U.G. tank temperature.

o Looking at still a different possibility; the configuration of fill »3 is a result of a much longer time lag, shown as T^, and is similar to fill #1; starting at near ambient and ending at about U.G. tank temp.

o Understanding of this complex interaction is of great Importance to the study of dispensed gasoline temperature.

o On the next cnart we will see typical cycle plots taken from the survey data.
o Again, each individual curve represents one vehic’e fill of gasoline.

o On the left we see temperature cycles during the winter season with ardent being less the- 0 . 6. tan. teroerature. A temperature spread of up to 15 0r is shown between start ar.o end of fill, :-e to fe

effect of ardent on the underground piping and the above ground dispenser.

o During surer we see the sane type of teroerature cycles except since ambient is new c-e 3 te r faunderground the dispensed temoerature at start of fill is wanner fan at tne end of fill, ’’.e., near ambient at start and near U.G. temperature at end.

o After collection of survey aata over a year's time, a consulting firm, Radian Corporation , «as con- tracted by API to create a data base ano perform statistical stucy. This slide provides ar Cjtli-e of the major work activities that were involved.

o Completeness 3 rd validity of the survey data was to ce verified.

o Relationships ariong gasoline temperatures, ambient temperatures and service station characteristics

needed to be determined.

o An estimate of the nationwide average dispensed gasoline temperature was to be -ede a rd fina'ly,

o Temperature adjustment parameters and costs were to oe provided.

o A poll of survey participants was uncertain by tne consultant in order to assess the validity if tre reporting data. Questions asked of the survey participants centered o- problems fey experienced -

obtaining the data and on their confidence in the data's validity. Specifications and operating ,- 2 -:es for all the equipment used during the survey were also examined.

o Survey data were determined to be adequate to provide a reliable rea-s of statistically develop ' nr a.e--

age temperatures for the parameters tested. Although all stations did not repft a" of the req-ested

data, it was judged that the survey provided an adequate geograonical and meteorological same'ing ;f t-e qontiguous United States.

o Data collected at fifty-six stations includec many hours of strip c.nart recordings/aoproxi=ateV. ' 53,000

hours of underground tank prodjet temperatures, and 105,000 hours of dispensed prcd-ct te-re-at.’-as.

o Due to the magnitude of data and tne number of variables involved it was betemfej that a computer

technique should be used to analyze the data.

o This slide outlines the relationship among gasoline temperatures, ambient temperatures arp station characteristics.

o Dispensed gasoline temperature was found to have the highest relationsrip factor .ipn rear; of all the variables identified. [Sore 355 of the variance in dispensed teroerature ca- oe exo'ai.-.ec f ; £ --

s of ambient temperature variation.]

o U.G. oank temperature has a lower but still very significant relationship to ano-ent. *.-e variance in dispensed temoerature can be explained in tents of „.G. temperature variation.

o Therefore the -elationship between dispensed and amcient s closer than the reiaticns-’P :et»ee- fspensed and undergreund.

vn
o Also, the relationship of service station characteristics -- such as weather exposure and U.G. tank cover

to gasoline temperature was found to be minimal.

o All of the various relationships were then used to assess the effect of the current practice of no tempera

ture adjustment at the service station.

o First, the data base was used to statistically determine the effect on the service station operator.

o Temperature variations do cause apparent gasoline inventory changes which can vary monthly by 0.55 among stations; however, it was found that any gain or loss tends to balance out overall on an annual

basis.

o An analysis was performed to investigate the effect on station inventory in geographical areas the site of large cities. It was indicated that the delivery to sale variation is very small among competing stations.

o A study of the effect on the retail gasoline consumer was then undertaken and this slide shows

the primary results that were obtained.

o 61 . 6°F was statistically calculated as the average annual nationwide volume weighted dispensed

gasoline temperature. Tnis average was derived by aggregating the average dispensed product

temperatures in over 3,030 counties and weighting by county gasoline consumption.

o However, it was found that individual dispensed fill cycle temperature precision can vary by as much

as plus or minus 15°F from the average.

o As a result of this rather significant temperature range for individual fills, a precision versus

cost study was performed analyzing different methods of temperature adjustment.

RETAIL CWS'JNEA TEWERATURE ADJUSTMENT

rrecisio* vs. cost

rRECISlon laiTiM. YARIAT10A COST TO KATIOi cyrowion wnros 1 i» - xmion)

use CASE

NO AOJJSTMEJIT 15.0 0

alternatives

due tii* meter 12.5 11

PUWTERLI i*TEA 9.0 420

ELECTRORIC COTESSATOR 1.0 875 -

RSECISIOA CONSIDERED IRSEAEWEKTLT V METEAIW IHACCURACIES

o This slide compares three alternative methods of retail consumer temperature adjustment to the

case case of no adjustment.

o As previously stated, a precision variation of up to t 15°F can occur during an Individual fill

cycle with no temperature adjustment - shown for the base case,

o A one time meter adjustment, i.e., change in meter calibration, provides a small average improvement to a variation of - 12.5°F, at an estimated initial cost of some $11 million.

o A quarterly meter adjustment would decrease the variation to 9.0°F with an initial cost of $A20

million.

o These two alternatives, one-time and quarterly adjustment have one discrepancy in ccmcn; wnile an

improvement Is noted, there is still a large variation in individual fill cycles,

o Let's look back briefly at the slide which shows dispensed gasoline temperature cycles.
- ?o°r

o Again, as we look at individual fill cycles evident that only sensing of each fill will precision.

, a cock) rex interaction can oe noted and it is provide highly accurate individual aeas-re^e-t

UTA& C9ISJCI TWcMTJK ACA3TXJT mens:* n. cost

naisia M1TTJL C£T r: w**:* orasATioi C. t .i • muiam

aAM CASX m C.'«.TPO

T

15.9 *

M.TOCWTirtS « r;x jctdi lt.S "

aunt*.* >cm f.Q

| aicmcMC arasm 1.0 JT5 - l .as ;

racciua C3erxi£7 :*s?nccn.T sr cra« c:rs

o Consequently, the electronic compensator with a t 1°F variation and initial cost of .? to $1.2 billion is the only alternative that was identified as being viable to accurately com- pensate on a fill by fill Basis.

o Also, it should Be noted that for all rethods studied precision was considered indepercent of metering inaccuracies.

o The data snown here as well as that previously discussed proviced a base for the study con- clusions we would like to present for your consideration.

o The study indicates that the service station operator buys and sells gasoli-e at essentially the same temperature.

o Total dispensed gasoline sales are currently equitable on a nationwide casis witn t'-e cve^a" te^cerature demonstrated to be very close to 60°F.

o The electronic compensator is tne only known method that would provide accurate te^ce'-at.-e corce sacio- for the Retail Consumer.

o Excessive cost of texcerature compensation outweighs any potential consumer ga-n; 51.2 c "ic* e*;e-citure without any overall benefit.

o In summary, tne study results identify that the cur-ent practice is the nost favorable alternative for both the service station operator and the consider.
PAGE 98

QUESTION: Mr. Harris, the costs that you quoted for the

various alternatives, do those include governmental costs for improving

vessels' electronic equipment, that additional decisions may be necessary

to improve the accuracy of it?

MR. HARRIS: No, sir, they did not. Those costs are strictly

the initial cost to provide the equipment. Just that, just the initial

investment. They are not an annualized cost, they do not include maintenance,

they do not include any administrative impact, any follow up costs.

Strictly the initial costs.

QUESTION: Those were estimated at $1.2 billion dollars? Has

there been an evaluation of the cost/benefit ratio?

MR. HARRIS: The only way you can really come up with a cost

benefit/cost loss analysis would be to take into account all of the

costs, including taking into account the cost of money over a period of

time to actually annualize it. It is hard to do on this particular

subject, harder than on what most of us are used to where there is some specific benefit that is gained. In this case, if you work it out for

the individual consumer, it is a gain for one versus a loss for the

other. That makes it rather difficult to come up with what we typically

know as a standard cost effectiveness.

QUESTION: Do you have any information on the reliability of

the computer that you are talking about, the BCT computers and data

electronics? I am looking at reliability and breakdown time, because

more sophistication many times results in more breakdown time when the

device cannot be used. Was that figured in, or do you have any information

on it?

MR. HARRIS: No, it was not figured in. Perhaps to answer your question, the best way would be to tell you how we arrived at the

electronic compensator concept, if you will, and also the cost of it.

Radian Corporation interviewed, I believe, something like 20

different companies that work in this field, in both electronic and

mechanical compensation as well as working in the area of producing

dispensers. They took all of that information, and all of the data they

could get relative to research that these companies had done, and estimated

what they felt would be a good cost per unit to go into this initially.

The reliability factor that you are talking about is again one

that should go into any cost benefit effective study. But there is

nothing in this study that would help in that area. QUESTION: Was consideration given to the response time of the

sensor?

MR. HARRIS: Response time of the sensor in an electronic unit

poses no problem. This was looked at: how quickly should you sense,

and how often should you sense? With electronic equipment and thermisterprobe that is no problem.

If you look at it from the view of a mechanical compensator, then

it becomes very important, and we found in this study that the only way we

could really do it with existing mechanical compensator techmology would be
PAGE 99

to limit flow rates to about three gallons per minute. As you know, we are dispensing eight, ten, twelve gallons per minute.

MR. SIMILA: One of the critical items here, of course, is the

economics. That is being spoken to, and whether you pick $1.2 billion

or whatever, and you are comparing that to a payback to the motorist or whoever, it depends on the difference of temperature from 60 °F.

The difference between 60 and 61.6 is substantially different

than between 60 and 66.8. I was wondering on that weighting, maybe you

or some individual with Radian could speak to it, how that weighting on throughput was done. There are many areas of the country, for example,

my state, I see there were no stations at all included. How was the

throughput in the counties and the stations that were used related to

get a good weighted average in terms of population and demographics or whatever. Also related to that, I think the data is now going on about

four years old. We have seen in the recent past quite a trend of

population shift toward the Sunbelt areas, which is obviously going to

increase the consumption in the higher-temperature side of the United

States. How was that weighted?

MR. HARRIS: I will answer the last part of your question

first. The shifting that you speak of was not taken into account, was not considered in this particular study. In a state such as Oregon

which did not have test stations in it (there were other states that did

not also), the weighting or the calculation of average dispensed gasoline

temperature in those particular states was done knowing the relationship

of ambient. It was done, as I mentioned before, on a county to county

basis, including the counties in states that we did not have test stations

in. But we did have the daily, monthly, yearly ambient temperatures.

We also had stations that could have been located in Oregon from a climatalogical and ambient temperature standpoint. So that was all

weighted in with 3,000 counties. We used the counties in that if we could not obtain a gasoline consumption figure in the county, then we used the population figure. We thought that by having 3,000 county

state points any random errors that might be in it would tend to balance

out because of the large sample.
PAGE 100

AUTOMATIC TEMPERATURE COMPENSATION VOLUME

OF LP-GAS MEASUREMENT

LeRoy Lindbloom

Northern Propane Gas Company and

National LP-Gas Association

I am pleased to present data and the experience of the

LP Gas industry with temperature compensation of liquefied

petroleum gases. The LP Gas industry has been using automatic

temperature compensators with LP Gas liquid meters and vapor

meters for over 20 years. Provisions for automatic

temperature compensators are contained in the Code for LPG

Liquid-Measuring Devices and Code for LPG Vap or-Measur ing

devices in National Bureau of Standards Handbook 44. These

provisions have been followed at the local level through

compliance with state codes based on Handbook 44.

In presenting this inf orma t iDU# I am representing my

company# the Northern Propane Gas Company h ead quar t er ed in

Omaha# Nebraska and the National Trade Association of the LP

Gas industry, the National LP Gas Association. The NLPGA

represents all segments of the liquefied petroleum gas

industry including retail marketers who distribute some 10

billion gallons of LP gas annually to consumers throughout

the U. S. that are equipped with automatic temperature

compensators.

Northern Propane Gas Company has 150 retail outlets

operating some 413 bulk delivery trucks in 22 states# all of

which are equipped with meters having automatic temperature

compensators.

Provisions in the LPG Liquid Meter Code in NBS Handbook

44 relating to automatic temperature compensators are as

foil ows

SECTION S. 2 DESIGN OF MEASURING ELEMENTS

S. 2. 6. Automatic Temperature Compensation - A device may

be equipped with an adjustable automatic means for adjusting

the indication and registration of the measured volume of

produce to the volume al^fjO degrees F.

S. 2. 6. 1. Provision for Deactivatin g - On a device

equipped with an automatic temperature ^compensating

mechanism that will indicate or record only in terms of

gallons compensated tcyfcO degrees F# provision shall be made

to facilitate the deactivation of the automatic temperature

compensating mechanism so that the meter may indicate# and

record if it is equipped to record# in terms of the
PAGE 10

1

uncompensated volume. (Amended 1972)

S. 2. 6. 2. Provision for Sea 1 ing -Pr ovi s i on shall be made

for applying security seals in such a manner that an

automatic temperature-compensating system cannot be

disconnected and that no adjustment may be made to the

system.

SECTION N. 4 TESTING PROCEDURES

N. 4. 1 Normal Tests — The “normal" test of a device shall

be made at the maximum discharge rate that may be antipated

under the conditions of installation. If the device is

equipped with an automatic temperature compensator/ this test

should be conducted with the compensator deactivated.

N. 4. 1. 1 Automatic. Temperature Compensation - If a device is equipped with an automatic temperature compensator/

the compensator shall be tested by comparing the volume

indicated or recorded by the device with the compensator

connected and operating/ with the actual delivered volume

corrected to 60 °F.

N. 5. Temperature Correction - Corrections shall be made

for any changes in volume resulting from the differences in

liquid temperatures between time of passage through the meter

and time of volumetric determination in the test measure

SECTION T. 1. TOLERANCE APPLICATION

T. 1. 1. To Underregistration and to Overregistration - The tolerances hereinafter prescribed shall be applied to

errors of underregistration and errors of overregistration/

whether or not a device is equipped with an automatic

temperature compensator.

SECTION UR. 2. 4. TEMPERATURE COMPENSATION

UR. 2. 4 Use of Automatic Temperature Compensators - If a device is equipped with an automatic temperature compensator/

this shall be connected/ operable/ and in use at all times.

Such automatic temperature compensator may not be removed/

nor may a compensated device be replaced with an

uncompensated device/ without the written approval of the

weights and measures authority having jurisdiction over the

d evi c e.UR. 2. 4. 2. Written Invoices - Any written invoice based

on a reading of a device that is equipped with an automatic

temperature compensator shall have shown thereon that the

volume delivered has been adjusted to the volume at oC wfr In summary/ these provisions as they relate to LP Gas

marketing operations provide the following:

1. "Permissive" and not "mandatory" use of temperature

compensators.

2. If ATC's are Used they must be used on a year around

basis.

3. Written invoices must show that the volume delivered

has been adjusted to the volume ay60 degrees F. Similar concepts appear in the Vapor Meter Code These
PAGE 10 2,.

provisions for liquid meters have been in Handbook 44 since

1965 and since 1972 for vapor meters. To my knowledge, these

codes have presented no difficulty to the consumer, the

weights and measures officials and the LP Gas industry. Also, there

have been no difficulties encountered in the testing of LP Gas liquid meters

with automatic temperature compensators. NBS Handbook 44 and

99 properly address the subject of LP Gas temperatuire

c omp ensa t i on. The compelling force to use automatic temperature

compensations with liquid measurement of LP Gas is attributed

to their c ompara t i ve 1 y high coefficient of expansion. Propane

has a 1. 6/C volumetric expansion per 10 o°F. This is almost

triple of gasoline and almost four times that of fuel oils.

We receive our product from the producers of LP Gas

compensated to ajbO degrees F basis. It is therefore necessary

to also compensate our sales to our customers on this same

basis, particularly in colder areas. Without temperature

compensation, the price to the customer would have to reflect

this loss, but in the latter case there would not be any

automatic way or means to do so. Quite naturally, in the

early days of our use of ATC's, the northern - tier of states'

either required or had no objection to the use of temperature

compensation. The following was the situation in 1960:

1. A majority of state weights and measures legislation

or regulations having to do with temperature compensation,

specified that automatic temperature compensation devices

must be used. Leg i s lat i or^j enera 1 1 y specifies that temperature

compensation may be used.

2. The following states by law or regulation required

liquid LP Gas temperature compensation: South Dakota, North

Dakota, Kansas, Nebraska, Wisconsin and Minnesota.

3. The States of Colorado and Nevada had gone on record

as saying that liquid LP Gas temperature compensation is not

legal.

4. The following states had indicated that they have no

objection to automatic temperature compensating devices:

Ohio, Kentucky > Arizona

CaliforniajMichigan^Wyoming

Missouri^New York, Texas

Iowa Oklahoma Tennessee

111 inois , Oregon

Today, practically all states recognize the use of

automatic temperature compensation in accordance with

Handbook 44 provisions. Approximately six have mandatory

requirements for temperature compensation.

Although there were some objections, at first in some of

the southern states, these objections have since been

resolved. The reasons for this are:

1. The most critical situation involved the heating load

in the northern states where volumes and temperature

differences are substantial.
PAGE 103__

2. Prices to consumers in the colder climates would have

to reflect any loss attributed to not compensating the volume

tojhO degrees F.

3. The most consistent and accurate method of

compensating for temperature is through the use of ATC's.

4. The heating load in the south is not as critical a factor and the ultimate cost to the consumer therefore does

not reflect any appreciable change in volume attributed to

temp eratur es. This averages out for the most part throughout

the year.

Since the advent of the automatic temperature

compensator with all the considerations involved two decades

ago# another very important factor has appeared on the scene

which emphasizes the need for ATC's; particularly in areas

where volumes and temperature differences are substantial.

This is the need for more precise inventory control. This

need_U attributed to costs per gallon at the wholesale

lev~eT~ which have escalated about 5 times what they were 20

years ago. Also. LP Gases are under price control and

allocation regulations of the Department of Energy. Thus. LP

Gas marketers have been forced tG utilize every means at

their disposal to maintain a good accounting of their

inventories. Automatic temperature compensation is a useful

tool in this respect.

The following is in response to some of the questions

posed in the report of the Committee on Specifications and

Tolerances during the 1978 National Conference on Weights and

Measures

1. Can anyone use temperature compensation for a given

product at his own pleasure?

Relating to the manner in which the question is phrased,

we concur with the Committee's reaction in stating this

should not be permitted. There are very definite controls

that should be placed on temperature compensation. These are

incorporated in the two LP Gas meter codes in Handbook 44,

namely, if used they should be used the year around and the

customer should be made aware that he is receiving a temperature compensated volume.

2. Should all companies within a given state be required

to use automatic compensators if they are recognized in the

code?

We feel the use of automatic temperature compensators

should not be made mandatory, but rather permissive. Unfair

competition and consumer misunderstanding has never resulted

with respect to the sale of LP Gas where temperature

compensation is used. As a matter of practice, most comoaries

in the northern climates do use ATC's.

Furthermore, the subject of mandatory use must be

decided upon at the individual state 1 eve ; rather “ h a ^ i~

Handbook 44. Handbook 44 should go jiV further than
PAGE 104

recognizing their use with appropriate controls.

We would be pleased to assist with providing any further

data needed for this study.

QUESTION: You said that you thought automatic

temperature compensators should be permitted/ yet the

question comes to my mind is that if it is not a problem/ why

not make it mandatory?

MR. LINDBLQOM: We believe the mandatory requirements

should be left up to the states/ and not make it mandatory in

Handbook 44. The states can then apply it on a mandatory

basis/ if they so desire.

QUESTION: You sell much more liquid/ as we heard

yesterday with fuel oil/ in the winter time than in the

warmer months? I suppose that would be true/ wouldn't it?

MR. LINDBLQOM: That would be true/ yes.

QUESTION: Consumers/ when they are charged for 100

gallons/ are getting a lot less than 100 gallons/ aren't they

at 1.6 percent expansion per 10 and with temperatures

down around 40 and 50 degrees?

MR. LINDBLOOM: They are getting a hundred 231 cubic inch

gallons compensated to 60 degrees F.
PAGE 105-

VIEWPOINTS FROM THE FIELD OF

WEIGHTS AND MEASURES

Darrell A. Guensler

Division of Measurement Standards

State of California

It is a pleasure to be here today to present the

viewpoint of the California Department of Food and

Agriculture on the subject of the "Temperature Compensation.

The Director of this Department is responsible for the

enforcement of weights and measures laws in California.

Our state> which has a population of ap pr o x ima t e 1 y 22

million people* experiences gasoline sales in the

neighborhood of a billion gallons a month. I think it is safe

to say that competition is as keen in California as it is

elsewhere.

First of all* I'd like to attempt to set the record

straight on a few points.

We do not question the contention that temperature

correction provides the most uniformly accurate gallon of

gasoline. The same is true for any liquid.

We also agree that there are inconsistencies in the

method of sale of petroleum products.

We do* however* question the motives of some of those

who so strongly advocate temperature correction at retail.

Be that as it may* we have attempted to evaluate the

topic in a purely scientific and economic manner as it

relates to what we believe our mission or role to be

We have attempted to define our role with the following

statement
PAGE 106

"To ‘ preserve and maintain the standards of measurement

essential in providing a basis of value comparison for

consumers and fair competition for industry. " Practically every technical decision u<e make is

evaluated with regard to this role statement.

On the general subject of temperature compensation/ we

have the following conditions present in California:

By law/ all sales of gasoline in quantities of 5000

gallons or more must be offered on a temperature compensated

basis.

All packaged liquid petroleum products must represent

their volumes at 60 degree^F.

There is no law against compensating for temperature

change at either wholesale or retail.

Specifications have been developed which recognize whole

deliveries of gasoline# diesel and LPG as well as LPG by

vehicle tank meters on a temperature compensated basis.

Temperature compensation actually takes place on many

sales of LPG and on most wholesale deliveries of gasoline.

Retail sales of fuel oil by vehicle tank meter is not a particularly significant business in California# at least

when compared to the northeast section of the nation. To my

knowledge# there is no temperature compensation taking place

on these types of sales.

Some Possible Problems in the areas just mentioned are:

On LPG sales by vehicle tank meter, there is a tendency

to temperature compensate in the northern part of the state

where the temperatures are generally below 60 degrees F. and

to not compensate in the southern part. Our requirements are

only that once started# compensation must continue throughout

the year. Possibly# there is a need to require all dealers in

a given marketing area ("Marketing Area" would have to be

defined) to either compensate or not. We believe that this

should be addressed in the "Model State Method of Sale of

Commodities Regulation".

On wholesale deliveries of gasoline (over 5000 gallons)

there are some practices such as temperature averaging which

are questionable from the standpoint of individual

accuracy and which are difficult to verify. Because of this # legislation has been introduced in California to provide more

accountab i 1 i ty on the part of the Seller.
PAGE 107

Specifically with regard to retail sales of gasoline*

the current situation in California is:

It is reasonable to assume that more gasoline is solo at

retail above 60 degrees F. than below. There is no

temperature compensation taking place now.

We have heard of only one supplier of retail temperature

compensation equipment. We have not evaluated such equipment

(Our Department did not participate in the tests mentioned

by George Mattimoe. )

We have received no complaints regarding temperature

compensation at retail except for those obviously generated

by the advocate group.

It is our understanding t hat at least one of the

strongest advocates of retail temperature compensation has at

least an arm's length financial interest in this equipment.

There seems to be no question that sales of gasoline at

retail would be more uniformly accurate if they were

temperature compensated.

The questions are:

Is it necessary to temperature compensate in order to

preserve and maintain the standards of measurement essential

in providing a basis of value comparison for consumers and

fair competition for industry?

Is mandatory temperature compensation worth the cost?

If we attempt to answer these questions with a simple

yes or no. we believe that the answer, in both cases, would

have to be no. However, such a simple answer does not really

do justice to such a complex subject.

In order for value comparison and fair competition to

function properly, it is necessary that:

The gallon be the same size throughout the competitive

marketing area, and

The quantity represented must be ve
PAGE 108

Even though it is fact that in the summer the gasoline

sold in the desert is warmer that* that sold in the high

mountains;

when a person attempts to value compare or a business

person attempts to compete* generally* the conditions are the

same within their particular area of interest. Provided

no one is artificially controlling the temperature of the

product* everyone gets a fair shot.

Obviously* if we were to require temperature

compensation at retail gasoline outlets* there would be costs

involved. Obviously* the ultimate consumers of the gasoline

would absorb such costs. Phasing in equipment on a normal

replacement cycle would minimize costs but would create a non-uniform* chaotic condition which could last in excess of

10 years. Since

that is not realistic* change would have to be

accelerated to some reasonable period which would then

require retro-fit or premature replacement resulting in high

costs. Maintenance and inspection costs would also increase.

If you assume a conservative cost of $500. 00 per

dispenser* the cost to the consumers in California alone

would be equal to $70 million. This does not include

maintenance and administrative costs.

In our opinion* the result is simply not worth the cost.

Our eyes and minds remain open.

Thank you.

VIEWPOINTS FROM THE FIELD OF

WEIGHTS AND MEASURES

MR. SIMILA: We have about 10 minutes before we need to

break for lunch. I would like to have the S?-tT Committee come

on up to the front and maybe we could open up a little

discussion for those who can't stay after the lunch period.

We will reconvene at 1:30 to discuss som e of the weights and

measures issues or get weights and measures viewpoints on

any or all of the subjects we have discussed here*

particularly the information developed here in the past day

and a half. This information is going to be fed into the

deliberations of the Specifications and Tolerances Committee

of the NCWM. It is that group that is going to have to

wrestle with* at least initially* any recommendations.

We have heard quite a bit now from representatives of

industry. We do have some Weights and Measures people here to
PAGE 109

be heard from. Jim Bird* would you want to lead off? The

Committee may have areas in which they would like to

challenge the people here to provide further information;

maybe you would open it up that way.

MR. BIRD: Ken. the only response that I can make at this

time is that in the past two days all of us have heard a great deal of^orma t i on which may have been available for a long period of time, but has not focused at one time and

place. We have a mountain of information that the Committee

is going to have to digest and make recommendations upon.

As I said in my opening remarks yesterday, there are

many impacts to the problem. It has long been established

that we want to maintain equity in the marketplace. It

involves all of this. It also involves other Committees in

the NCWM. It also involves everybody that attends the NCWM . Defining what "equity*? is. is our responsibility and

also whether a certain precision of measurement is

economically defensible. Even though everyone of us in the

room and in the conference, and on this Committee, have

certain personal biases, if we put things together, we hope

that the biases are balanced out so that when the Committee

makes its final r ec ommenda t in$. we have a good balance of

proper and equitable positions to offer the conference.

As I indicated yesterday morning, not only do

we have inequities in some states, we have regional

inequities. As Darrell mentioned this morning. California, in

a way. is unique. They have a population island in which they

can make decisions that are effective state-wide and that do

Hot impact upon other states in a tremendous manner; in the

Northeast, anything that Massachusetts decides affects New

York. Pennsylvania. New Jersey many times, and what we decide

affects them. In the 14 states in the Northeastern

Conference, what each one decides impacts on the others

because we have cross-overs. We are not unique; it is a large

marketing region, and this is one of the things that we have

to get together on so as to set a standard for the whole

area.

Dick here indicated this morning that as soon as a requirement, if I understand it correctly, appears in NBS

H-44. it automat ica 1 1 y becomes requires! in Maryland. That is

not quite the case in New Jersey because certain laws say

that you must sell in a certain way. In New Jersey all of the

LPG meters, no matter what they are for. whether it is for

industrial purposes or for retail, they all have temperature

compensators on them. If one has it ithey all have to have

it. so that they have a uniform basis of competition.

We have several states represented here who

have viewpoints to be brought forward and at this time.I

would like to invite those who have viewpoints from either

their state or region or other associations to give those. I
PAGE 110

believe Bob Probs t from Wisconsin will be the first.

MR. PROBSTr I think that the concensus of the Northwest

Weights and Measures Association was that they would not

favor temperature compensation of fuel oil. That would be my

observation of their position.

On some states I may not be speaking on too firm a ground but with regard to our friends in Minnesota/ I was

admonished to come down here and tell you that is the way

they feel f or s u r e

.

As Di rectorof Weights and Measures in Wisconsin/ I can

give you a little background as far as we are concerned. From

the gasoline side/ we have about 5900 gas stations and we

figure we have about 31 / 000 pumps. I will extend my

invitation to the Shell Oil Company to come and open up as

many metric stations as they want to in the State of

Wisconsin. The Speedway Company/ the consolidated Speedway/

opened and operated a metric station in the State of

Wisconsin for two years and I asked them why they quit

operating. They said they did not get any competition so they

went back to gallons.

In the State of Wisconsin/ the sale of retail gasoline

by the liter is legal/ the only requirement being a price

posting requirement which would quote the gallon and the

liter price in the approximate same size out on their street

signs. The liter price would show on the pumps without any

question.

We have about 1/500 bulk fuel dealers in the State of

Wisconsin. 1/500 of them and most of them are dealing in both — probably have two meters on their trucks. We figure that

our last count was around 4/400 BTMs in the State of

Wisconsin.

With regard to Handbook 44/ our state does accept

Handbook 44/ but in the case of temperature compensation of

fuel oil we have been advised by our Attorneys General that

we would have to have a law change. They cite the incident

where we had a change in our law to permit temperature

compensation of LP and I think that law has been on the books

since the early 60 / s and we are listed as one of the states

that have required temperature compensation for LP. So the

same logic would apply to temperature compensation of fuel

oil. It would have to be a legislative matter.

The Retail Gasoline Dealers Association came to the

Department at the beginning of the first energy crunch in

'73. They came to us and asked us of the possibility of

temperature compensation. They were just beginning to receive

shipments temperature compensated to their station. They came

and asked us for some relief and at that time we advised them

that it woul^robab ly be a legislative matter. They have not

been back to us since.

One large fuel oil dealer in the State of Wisconsin who
PAGE inwas represented at the Northwest Weights and Measures Meeting

last month in Madison# also petitioned us for temperature

compensation and the reason that they gave related to their

trying to balance their books and also to the matter of tax

collection. Tax collection in Wisconsin is done at the

terminal level. The tax auditors are terribly suspicious

during the heavy sale months if you have a one percent loss

of their taxes. That was their reason for trying to make the

books come out as well as possible.

Loojt at the consumer side. I guess we all like the idea

of getting 101 gallons of fuel oil when we only buy 100. I heat my house with fuel oil and to be honest with you\[ avoid

buying fuel oil in the summer even though there is a price

break.

Another area that I think should be mentioned is we are

probably premature as far as the research and development#

the avai lab i 1 i ty# the instal lat ion# the cost of maintenance

are concerned and it boils down to the question of who is

going to pay the cost. I think that we recognize a better

technology but I doubt that the conference can mandate this

better technology.

SPEAKER: Thank you Bob for those comments. I believe

there is at least one other jurisdiction that had a statement. Pennsy lvania?

SPEAKER: Thank you. My name is Ron Roof with the

Pennsylvania Bureau of Weights and Measures. I am one of the

lab men with the bureau there.

There is currently a very popular song that you hear on

the radio called "Stumbling In" and# when it comes to

automatic temperature compensators of fuel meters in

Pennsy 1 vania# we have really stumb led^nto it and we are about

up to our neck with it.

It all started back about March 5# 1976. We had a request from a major oil dealer in the suburban Philadelphia

area along with his equipment installer of petroleum type

measuring devices to install these automatic temperature

compensators on fuel meters. Nofhaving any experience with it

# we on the following month called a meeting in our

Director's office to meet with the representative of the fuel

company as well as a representative from the meter installer

as well as the meter compensator manuf ac tur er . At that time

when I was involved in it# I wanted to make sure we had a firm understanding and be sure my superiors had a thorough

understanding of what they were getting into. Basically# the

only criteria that we had to work with were the conference

statements of 1976 and 1977 by the S and T Committee giving

three reasons why you should not have aut oma tic compensators

on fuel meters# (1) there is 231 cubic inches to a gallon at

the prevailing temperature# (2) that it would be unfair

competition and (3) that the handbook does not address itself
PAGE 112

to compensators so therefore it should not be permitted.

We discussed in the meeting that we had a very serious

public relations problem if it would get out to the public

that these compensators were being installed and that we

could not make a commitment on these compensators because the

National Conference on Weights and Measures still had this

under consideration.

So# the head of the bureau# with the cooperation of the

companies » decided that we would run a test on a trial basis

for approx imately six months to a year on these devices and

they were installed in October of 1976 and we conducted tests

through February 1977. By that time# the company felt that

they had cooperated fully with the Bureau of Weights and

Measures on this and they wanted some type of decision made

on whether they could keep them on or put more on or what

they should do.

It was a great deal of expense to this company to

install these devices. I still did not think there was enough

information to the public on this so in August of 1977 we

formulated a public hearing which was held in the Department

of Agriculture Building in Harrisburg and we had

representatives of the major oil companies# independent oil

dealers# the device manufacturers# and Weights and Measures

personnel# including representatives from the National Bureau

of Standards. What happened there was about as much as what

we have covered here. The situation was still cloudy but

noboidy who attended the meeting could say that there wasn't

a full public hearing on this and that they did not

understand what was going on. During this whole time I was assured by quite a few

people that this was sort of a dead issue# that most of the

oil dealers would not want to put them on anyway because

thermal expansion of fuel was not that appreciable# and the

compensation was not that great. However # I have found that

this is not the case. From 1977 to 1978# we really did not

have much going on. We still had the compensator at the one

company. They had then installed a full 25 on their trucks.

In June of 1978# we had another company contact us# another

device manufacturer along with a fuel oil dealer in suburban

Philadelphia requesting that they be able to go through the

same testing procedure that the other company had gone

through. So# again we started to go through the procedure

with that company on about a six to eight month basis and

that started in November of 1978 and continued on into this

y ear. Dating back to November 15 of 1978# I started having

inquiries of the Bureau's Vehicle Tank Meter Inspector in

this area telling me that more of these automatic temperature

c omp ensa

t

or s had been installed at other places without our

knowledge. I did a survey and as of November 15# 1978, which
PAGE 113

was this past winter, we have now 11 companies that have

these compensators installed on their trucks with a total of

75 compensators in the Philadelphia area. I estimate that

each truck is delivering about 400,000 gallons throughout a year's period of time so you can see that is the amount of

oil that is being compensated right now.

There is a great problem on our hands. We issued a directive to the companies that they not put any more

compensators on the trucks until we had had some direction

from the National Conference on Weights and Measures of what

to do.

A couple of the problems that I encountered is that you

cannot get a uniform thermal expansion rate in which to test

the compensators. When we were testing them the company knew

every day what their fuel was and what the API number on it

was and you could make that correction when setting the

compensator and their API's were down around 36 or 37 . When

we went to the second company and dealt with another

manufacturer, they wanted to use an absolute API number of 44

which would give them the maximum amount of expansion

permitted or realized for number two fuel which would be

triple R5. I felt that they might be taking advantage of the

compensation because I did check with the major oil companies

in the area and most of their API numbers were down around 37

or 38 so this was a problem that you run into. I understand

there is a device now that you can check the API with right

there.

With 11 companies that have compensators in use now, we

have no statutory authority to require them to put a note on

their bill or their invoice that the temperature is

compensated to 60 degrees. If these devices stay in operation

there is going to have to be some type of regulation enacted

to make them put the statement on their bill or ticket.

Another interesting question is if a company is nfct

buying fuel temperature compensated would they have the right

to sell it temperature compensated? That is about where we

stand

.

SPEAKER: Ron, before -you get away, are those 75 meters

all one make now?

MR. ROOF: All but about 10 of them would be Neptune

Automatic Temperature Compensators and the other 10 are

Brooks. When we did this we required that the manufacturer be

involved in the testing process. So far, the only two that

have contacted us and have been able to line up fuel

companies to purchase them and put them on their trucks and

have the hassle of dealing with weights and measure^ on an

every two or three month basis has been Neptune and Brooks.

SPEAKER: Thank you. Jimmy Stewart.

MR. STEWART: Mr. Chairman. I come in two ways today.

First, I am the 1979 Chairman of the S2/.T Committee for the
page rrzr

Southern Weights and Measurers Association which is the

so-called sun belt. We go through Texas across the Gulf of

Mexico and up the Eastern Seaboard to Delaware. We have

already had our annual meeting and will not be able to give

you any assistance until conference time. If the issue is not

resolved to any degree in July, then the southern committee

will be very active in developing some additional data for

the 1980 conference.

Speaking as the representative from the Commonwealth of

Virginia, our position, and I have it discussed with Mr.

Lyles who is Director of Weights and Mea-Sures for the state,

is that if the conference permits the use of temperature

compensators on vehicle type meters and leaves it as

permissive, we can live with it. We are not for it or against

it.

We are in a position to say that we do not favor

automatic temperature compensators for retailed motor fuel

dispensors. There are several factors that we have looked at.

One is the cost to the industry. Another is the cost to the

state government due to the time involved in the inspections.

Manpower is just as meaningful to us in dollars as cubic

inches are to gasoline dealers. So, Virginia's position at

this time is as was stated yesterday. The percent of change

today is the same at 50 cents a gallon as it was at 12 cents a gallon. Dealers made a living then and they can make a living

now. So, we are not in favor of ATC at the retailed

dispensors. Thank you.

SPEAKER: Thank you. Are there any other weights and

measures jurisdictions that are represented here today that

would like to add their comments?

SPEAKER: Before you get away, Darrell, I would like to

ask you, what is the situation in California on propane? Is

that permissive compensation?

SPEAKER: Yes, for propane measurement, it is —the

requirement is that, once you start temperature compensating,

you must continue to do it for the entire year. You can't

ind i scr iminan t 1 y put it back and forth but there is no

requirement for or against temperature compensation. It is

permissive.

SPEAKER: Mr. Thompson?

MR. THOMPSON: Mr. Chairman, all of the things that we

have heard here the last day-and-a-ha 1 f , I think probably

down deep, many of us knew portions of that. I see some very

troublesome aspects and I think Darrell covered probably most

of what many of us feel.

One item that has not been touched on and it is not a technical item; it tends to be an emotional one at this stage

of the game and in this day and time when the cost of fuel

has gone quite high. I understand what some of the speakers

have said, that the increased cost has resulted in some
PAGE 115

difficult situations for them; where they could absorb losses

before# now they no longer feel they can afford these losses.

But# like it or not —and I am basing this comment on

complaints we have received and the tone of those complaints —we must consider the suspicions of the public. A reporter

recently said to me# "Now# tell me# Dick# where is it that

the gas stations are really ripping off the public?" He has

already made his mind up# he already believes that. I heard

on the news not long ago the Energy official for the State of

New Jersey say he does not believe that there is a fuel

shortage. There are other people that say that. Now# I think,

down deep# the American public right now# along with this

concern# has a deep-rooted suspicion that things are maybe

not what they appear to be.

With all of this in mind# when we say now# "Well# we

can't absorb the difference# " I wonder if the consumer# the

purchaser of the fuel in its final form# isn't going to turn

around and say# "Yeah# well# if it is so good now# why did

you not do it way back when it would have been insignificant

to me? Now# you are going to suggest to me that we are goi’ng

to compensate —" let's just talk about fuel oil for a moment —"going to compensate when# during the time frame of the

year# when I buy most of my fuel (because most people don't

have a thousand gallon tank# and I am not likely to put one

in) you are going to ask me to take less than I have been

accustomed to getting# with prices as high as they are now. "

I listened to Ron a moment ago when he talked aboutfhis

hearing he had —and I am not knocking the State of

Pennsylvania in this comment at all —I know how difficult it

is sometimes when you think you have covered all bets but you

find out you didn't. There was one group he did not mention

that attended that hearing and those were the people who buy

the fuel. I did not hear any mention of home economists or

consumer groups# or what have you. I wonder really if any of

us did notrely upon Handbook 44 right now and we went before

our respective legislators# our general assemblies, and said,

in effect# "We want to give less fuel#" what their reaction

would be. And# I can't argue with the intent and what we are

really striving to do# but I think we do have to keep in min#

this emotional consideration. This is really a new slant for

me because I don't often feel this way. I wonder# at this

time# if this is really the right thing to do? I am not

suggesting it is not. I am just suggesting that maybe the

problem is even bigger than we thought two days ago. Thank

you.

MR. CHAIRMAN: Any ofhter comments? From jurisdictions or

anyone else# for the benefit of the Committee

MR. STADQLNIK: I have some very brief comments. I would

just like to commend Darrell Guensler and Dick Thompson for

some very excellent observations.
PAGE JL16

I did submit to the Committee what I termed to be a comparison rough statistical breakdown relating to volume of

#2 fuel oil and gasoline on an uncompensated and compensated

basis in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

I will address myself specifically to #2 fuel oil which

is a rather significant fuel in Massac husett s. The statistics

that I presented are not based on any actual measurement of

product. I obtained actual monthly deliveries of #2 fuel oil

in the State of Massac h usetts for 1977 and 1978 and used a monthly mean temperature that we obtained from the US Weather

Bureau —we obtained only an approx imat i on of the degree of

change due to compensation to 60 degrees.

Now# on #2 fuel oil/ we found that in both 1977 and

1978/ on a compensated basis# the consumers would be charged

for an additional 17 million gallons# ap pr o x ima te 1 y . With the

present day market of roughly 60 cents a gallon for heating

oil in Massachusetts# you are talking about an added cost of

about $10 million on an annual basis.

Now# we talk about gasoline going up to $1 a gallon and

I think it is only fair to assume that the price of #2 fuel

oil will not be far behind# so that this cost factor will

continue to change.

I think there are several points that have to be

considered and I think Dick brought one of them out with

regard to# if such a concept was to be adopted in a particular jurisdiction or region# what would be the best

type of approach? I think merely by changing handbook 44, we

really are not going to solve very fundamental issues with

regard to temperature compensation. If we adopt our

regulation in Massachusetts now# not only are we entering

into an area of legislative review of regulation# but there

is also a significant interest in the economic impact of

changes by adoption of new regulations.

I think the comment was also made that there should be

some consideration by the L and R Comm i ttee__

t

oward s drawing

up a draft of a model regulation for the meth od o fsale of

commodities. To the best of my knowledge, I don't believe

that most of the states, or the great majority of states,

have adopted the method of sale in its total form. I know

many states have extracted certain portions of that

particular model and, have passed legislation.

Food and fuel^'the two most significant necessities of

life and there would be a great deal of legislative interest

in such a matter. I think that the .CjOjjrse for those that seek

temperature compensation to foil ou^inilial ly legislative

remedy and if that was approved then# through the technology

adopted in handbook 44, address the technical aspects of it.

Thank you very much.

SPEAKER: In your comment you suggested that if

legislative people approve such an approach# then we should
PAGE II 7

have the appropriate requirements in handbook 44. I guess me

are back to that chicken and egg dilemma of what needs to be

done first. Is there need for some changes to the handbook so

that it can guide legislative policy or should we wait till

there is legislation on the books before the committee needs

to propose what changes should be adopted? I am just tossing

that out as a possible dilemma we are now facing.

SPEAKER: I wish I had an answer. I think we have had one

dilemma in Handbook 44 to begin with; it is the provision for

allowing temperature compensation in wholesale metering

systems. I really do not know how that developed and why it

developed; whether this was a regional problem or an isolated

state problem. But you have that in there. Now what happened

seven or eight years ago all of a sudden becomes a different

type of a look-see at this particular section of handbook 44.

I want to make one other comment that I didn't have an

opportunity to make before. We heard several remarks made by

previous speakers about artificially heating the product. And

again this is an area that would have to be addressed in any

type of legislation as to what type of restriction* what type

of policy* would have to be adhered to with regard to that

type of situation.

I understand that in some areas that sell number 2* they

claim that in certain periods of the year* they may have to

heat number 2* particularly when temperatures fall to subzero

level. But when you get to heating to around 60* how much

control do they have to heating to 60? And if you can heat it

to 60* why not to 70? And if not to 70* why not to 80? These

factors are not really outlined that definitively in many of

our laws and regulations. And as tanks and customs and trade

practices change* I think we have to change along with them

to recognize these particular aspects of either potential

fraud or possible mistakes in heating.

SPEAKER: A thought that has occurred to me and maybe

some of you: we have an interesting paradox in some of the

states that are represented here now* even those that only

have a recognition of temperature compensation on a permissive basis in liquified petroleum. I can see in a state

where number two fuel oil might be* at least* on a limited

basis* allowed to be compensated now. It might even be more

paradoxical there where you can have the same category of

user treated differently depending on which fuel they are

purchasing even though they are purchasing it in the same

amounts.

Take for example motor fuel ap p 1 i ca t i ons. Granted* there

is very little carboration for motor fuel purposes of

propane. But we have a truck stop and I am sure others have

where this is the case* you can buy propane for motor fuel

temperature compensated. You could also in the state of

Oregon or California* perhaps, buy propane that is not
PAGE 118

temperature compensated for motor fuel. Similarly, in the

area of diesel or the near cousin to number two, you might be

buying motor fuel in 150 or 200 gallon quantities, diesel

uncompensated. You might be buying number two fuel oil for

home heating in 100 gallon quantity temperature compensated.

An so even though the amounts might be comparab^E and even in

some cases the application is comparable, we may now be

treating the same group differently depending on the fuel and

so forth.

So we have some inconsistencies even where we have done

nothing really to deliberately distinguish between the same

type of use. The committee has been sitting rather solemnly

drinking all of this in. Some of them have spoken. I might at

this point ask if Jim or the committee have additional

comments they would like to make.

SPEAKER: I am Bob Kell€tfj New York City Weights and

Measures. I have a question for the committee. I think based

on what we have heard here, putting aside any possible

equities involved in temperature compensation, the next

question would be is it feasible in the field?

Can you test it and if such a law is enacted, can it be

enforced? An unenforceable law is worse than no law at all. I just have to leave that hanging.

SPEAKER: We have covered considerable ground in this day

and a half. Primarily it was convened as indicated for the

purpose of the discussion of the temperature compensation

issue although two other subjects have been brought up. At

this point, if anyone has anything additional they would like

to bring out in those other areas which include the price

computation problem resulting ffp/»pver 99.9 cents per gallon

and the corollary to that, metric 'conversion which is one of

the options in the

pricing issue. We would entertain any additional

comments anyone would like to address to that subject at this

time.

SPEAKER: Mr. Chairman, Jim Crowley from wild, wonderful

and almost heaven, West Virginia. My director, Mr. Griffith,

asked me if we could in the state of West Virginia, and

probably some other states have the same question, if we

could come away from this meeting with some kind of an idea

or a suggested guideline as to what and how we are going to

attack this problem.

After thinking about the discussion yesterday, it looks

to me like there is a possibility we can go out here in the

field to states individually and attack this, possibly 50

different ways. This kind of reminds me of some of the

comments that have been made. You go across a crossroad

somewhere where two highways intersect and you have four

gasoline stations, one on each corner. One is selling by the

gallon where they have converted over possibly going from
PAGE 119

1.00 to $1.99. Across the street another is selling by

quarts. Another corner they have used the half price method.

Then the fourth one/ he is selling by the liter, metric

conversion. When you are driving down there what station are

you going to choose?

SPEAKER: Any additional comments? I think ue are back to

another dilemma that we have all recognized at least in the

weights and measures area for sometime; we want to provide

leadership particularly through the conference so that people

know what they can do an«/what is acceptable and which route

to go.

On the other hand, it has been brought out here in

several parts of the discussion that if we exert too much

leadership we are usurping —taking over the perogatives of

our legislative bodies and they get a little unhappy. In some

cases we are content to be followers and let them take the

leadership. In this kind of an issue it is kind of difficult

to see where to draw the line. Certainly in terms of the

metric option.

However, I certainly sympathize with and would like to

use this forum of the national conference if at all possible

in providing whatever leadership is practical, possible and

p o 1 i t i ca ll^ac c ep tab 1 e at this point. So the purpose of the

symposium has been to develop information, to dialogue on it,

to get additional information to the standing committee on

specifications and tolerances.

The information we have received here during the past

two days will be digested and c onsi dered by the committee and

certainly spoken to in some form at the national conference

in July, whether it will simply be a report or concrete

recommendations. It is past the interim meeting stage and the

tentative report of the committee is ready to go to press.

The issues involved certainly can be spoken to and we do

have the perogative, I guess, in areas where there is some

sort of urgency or emergency to bring up new material.

However, that has been used very sparingly in the past.

Certainly some of the topics we have discussed here today and

developments that have brought them about may be in the

category that we will have to take ex tra-ord inary steps in

trying to bring some of the issues to a decision-making point

by July.

On behalf of myself I would like to thank the speakers

and those of you who took the time out of your busy schedules

to be with us. At this point, I will ask AlTholen if he has

any c ommen t s and closing remarked on behalf of the Office of

Ueights and Measures, the co-sponsor of our symposium being

the National Bureau of Standards.

MR. TALEN: For the Office of Ueights and Measures I also

want to thank the close to 100 folks who took the time to

come and share their opinions, their knowledge and their
PAGE _12'0

facts u/ith us.

I want to commend the committee, the S?<T committee, for

appearing in 100 percent force.

I want to thank Ken for moderating the meetings and

handling everything in a very even-handed manner.

I would be remiss if I didn't commend Otto Wornloff who

was the prime mover in putting the program together. I think

we have had a very outstanding couple of days.

I would like to put a personal piece of what I consider

urgent business. I do believe this question of the price at

the pump going over 99.9 cents is one that ought to be

addressed by the committee with a recommendation to the

c onf er enc e. If they have a consensus on the committee, considering

everything they know, of what the best way to go is, I think

it would be helpful if this could be sent out to the states.

Me certainly would be willing and happy to special mail that

sort of advice whether it is unofficial, a general opinion,

or what.

An addendum to the Tentative Report of the NCWM

Committee on Sp ec i f i ca t i ons and Tolerances is on the following page.

MR. THOLEN: I just want to thank everybody for a very

fine meeting. I think the manners displayed and the

willingness to share have been exemplary.

MR. SI MILA: In conclusion, I hope to see as many of you

as can make it out to Portland, the rose city, in July for

the 64th Conference where with decisive leadership —what is

it our friend, Gary, has described —we, the unwilling, led

by the unknowing are doing the impossible for the ungrateful

and we have become so used to doing everything with nothing

that we can now do the impossible with nothing —or something

like that. , Thank you.

(Whereupon, the symposium concluded.

)
PAGE 12)

ADDENDUM

TO THE TENTATIVE REPORT OF THE

COMMITTEE ON SPECIFICATIONS AND TOLERANCES

This addendum results from information obtained during the Temperature

Compensation Symposium which is referenced in Item 307-1 of this report.

Since automatic temperature compensators that interface with vehicletank meters are apparently readily available from several manufacturers,

it is the view of the committee that this technology should be recognized

in the Code for Vehicle-Tank Meters. It is also the committee's view

and intent that this action neither requires this equipment to be used, nor does it make its use entirely voluntary. It merely removes an obstacle if, in the sale of any product measured by a vehicle-tank

meter, it is considered appropriate and legal to compensate for temperature

variations.

In order to provide for the sale of products at a reference temperature,

further changes to weights and measures laws and/or regulations will be

required. The committee offers the following as a guide when this action

is to be taken.

The gallon is defined as being equal to 231 cubic inches. Providing for

the measurement of volume at specified temperatures can be done in

a manner similar to that followed in the Model State Packaging and

Labeling Regulation which specifies reference temperatures for various

kinds of commodities. An example of a suggested regulation is:

TERMS: LIQUID MEASURE, HOME HEATING OILS. —Whenever home heating oil

is sold or delivered to a consumer by liquid measure, the volume sold

and delivered shall be in terms of the United States gallon of 231 cubic

inches and the volume shall be expressed at 60 °F. This may be accomplished

through the use of an approved meter equipped with an automatic temperature

compensating mechanism, or the use of an appropriate volume correction table.

This regulation will result in equitable, efficient and uniform marketing

of fuel oil in that all buyers and sellers will be on the same basis at

all times.

The specific changes that would need to be made to the Code for

Vehicle-Tank Meters cannot all be conveniently presented herein.

The numerical designations of those code paragraphs which are presently in the liquid-measuring device code that the committee

recommends be included in the vehicle- tank meter code are as follows:

Paragraphs from Code for Liquid-Measuring Devices Recommended for

Incorporation in the Code for Vehicle-Tank Meters:

S.2.6.

5.2.6. 1. S.2.6. 2.

5.2.6. 3.

5.2.6. 4.

5.4.3.2.

N . 4 . 1

.

N.4. 1. 1. N.5.

UR. 3. 5.

UR. 3.5.1

.

UR. 3. 5. 2.

UR. 3. 5. 3.
NBS-1 1 4A ntv. 9-7S) I

U.S. DEPT. OF COMM.

BIBLIOGRAPHIC DATA

SHEET

1. PUBLICATION OR REPORT NO.

NBSIR 79-1 776(R)

Z.Gov't Accession No. 3. Recipient's Accession No. 1

| 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE

Proceedings of Symposium on Temperature Compensated

Volumes in the Sale of Petroleum Products

5. Publication Date June 1979

6. Performing Organization Code

7. AUTHOR(S) - tCll tOrS

Harold F. Wollin and Louis E. Barbrow

9. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME AND ADDRESS

NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

WASHINGTON, DC 20234

10. Project/Task/Work Unit No.

11. Contract/Grant No.

12. SPONSORING ORGANIZATION NAME AND COMPLETE ADDRESS (Street, city, State, ZIP)

National Conference on Weights and Measures

National Bureau of Standards

Washington, D.C. 20234

13. Type of Report & Period Covered

Final

14. Sponsoring Agency Code

15. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES

_] Document describes a computer program; SF-185, FIPS Software Summary, is attached.

16. ABSTRACT (A 200-word or leas tactual summary of most significant information. It document includes a significant bibliography or

literature survey, mention it here.)

This is a report of the proceedings (edited) of a Symposium held at the

National Bureau of Standards on April 3-4, 1979.

The central matter discussed was the delivery of petroleum products over

a wide range of temperatures and procedures for (1) automatically

compensating, or (2) correcting deliveries to what they would have been

under standard temperature conditions (60 °F).

17. KEY WORDS (six to twelve entries; alphabetical order; capitalize only the first letter of the first key word unless a proper name;

separated by semicolons)

Automatic temperature compensation; computed temperature compensation;

measurement assurance; temperature coefficient; temperature compensation;

volume (all of petroleum)

18. AVAILABILITY 1 .Unlimited 19. SECURITY CLASS

(THIS REPORT)

X" For Official Distribution. Do Not Release to NTIS UNCLASSIFIED

L Order From Sup. of Doc., U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC

20402, SD Stock No. SN003-003-

20. SECURITY CLASS

(THIS PAGE)

i Order From National Technical Information Service iNTIS), Springfield, V A. 22161 UNCLASSIFIED

21. NO. OF

PRINTED PAGES

123

22 . Price 2 0 82

USCOMM- DC