Nigel=0Aearly in the Europa story someome built a tank using vinyl ester re
sin, double skinned with a foam=0A(acylic?) core. May have been more than o
ne, it was offered as a mod I think. =0AMike Costin who came from the racin
g car world built an aluminium tank.=0AGraham=0A=0A=0A=0A=0A_______________
_________________=0A From: "nigel_graham@m-tecque.co.uk" <nigel_graham@m-te
cque.co.uk>=0ATo: europa-list@matronics.com =0ASent: Thursday, 27 March 201
4, 8:23=0ASubject: Re: Europa-List: Re: XS Fuel Tank Kiwi Mod=0A =0A=0A-->
Europa-List message posted by: "nigel_graham@m-tecque.co.uk" <nigel_graham@
m-tecque.co.uk>=0A=0AI think that given a free choice, a plastic tank is th
e right way to go. Nearly all cars now use this material as is doesn't corr
ode, it's dimensionally stable, durable and crash tolerant.=0A=0AThe proble
m with the Europa tank is that it was made from the wrong material and (unb
eknown to the factory at the time) absorbed fuel and distorted. Also unexpe
cted was the strength with which epoxy resin bonded to the tank. If built a
ccording to instructions, the tank could move, but some enthusiastic builde
rs piled on the laminations that created stress risers which, after the pas
sage of time, caused the plastic to fracture.=0ASince we have no (cost effe
ctive) way to re-manufacture the tank out of a suitable plastic, the only o
ptions are to replace it with "more of the same" - meaning that in another
ten years it could fail again, or revert to the material of choice for airc
raft designers over the years - alumin(i)um.=0AThis may not be the optimum
material (as other posters have outlined), but it is the next best option f
or home-builders wanting to create a "one-off" that is light weight and (if
mounted correctly) fatigue resistant.=0A=0AFibreglass (chopped-strand-mat/
polyester resin) is a non-starter as it hardens over life and becomes extre
mely brittle. This was banned for use on motorcycles in the UK over forty y
ears ago as any accident almost inevitably resulted in a fireball.=0A=0AOne
avenue that does not seem to have been explored is the use of flexible "fu
el bladders" as used in the car racing world.=0A=0ANigel=0A=0AOn 27/03/2014
w Sarangan <asarangan@gmail.com>=0A> =0A> Just to play devil's- advocate,
whats the attraction of an aluminum=0A> fuel tank over a plastic one, or a
fiberglass one?=0A> =0A> I am familiar with the problems with Europa's pla
stic tank, but that=0A> does not mean aluminum is better. You are trading o
ff one problem for=0A> another.=0A> =0A> On that thought, can a tank be 3D
=
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