Nuclear Petrochemicals IT Engineering Risk Management Business Subscriber Login Login to EMIS or to pick up your paid subscription. Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether, or more commonly known as MTBE, has been used since the late 1970s as a substitute for leaded additives in gasoline. In the US since 1992, MTBE has been used in higher concentrations in reformulated gasoline, oxygenated fuel, and premium grades of unleaded gasoline to fulfill the US Congress oxygenate requirements set in the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments.
Oxygen helps gasoline burn more completely, reducing harmful vehicle emissions.
Oxygen displaces gasoline components such as aromatics and sulfur. Most refiners use MTBE over other oxygenates primarily for its blending characteristics as well as for economic reasons. There were also research reports that claimed the chemical's carcinogenic nature, although this was widely debated. Several bills are now pending in the US Congress that will sharply reduce or eliminate MTBE in gasoline. There are opposing views and reactions to the possible US ban, especially from clean fuel associations in US and Europe.