TL;DR: Glyphosate is a systemic herbicide. Water contamination of fuels is a big problem. Plant life can grow in contaminated fuels and clog up fuel systems in engines. Herbicides in fuels help control that plant growth.

Long version: Maintaining fuel quality is important to western society. Everyone needs to be able to trust our fuel sources. The US Military, UPS, Amazon, the dude hauling roofing shingles, you, and me. Since our modern life is pretty much built on the back of petroleum fuels, we all have a vested interest in their quality.

Modern gasoline contains ethanol, in varying concentrations. There are several reasons for this, but one reason is that ethanol raises the octane rating of gasoline, which can be an expensive process, hence the premium price of premium gasoline.

Another reason is that ethanol itself is actually hygroscopic, meaning it readily absorbs water. In very small amounts, ethanol helps control water contamination by putting the water into a burnable solution, rather than having it pool up in the bottom of the fuel tank to be sucked up by the fuel pump. This is the principle by which fuel stabilizer products claim to work, with the use of methanol. The entire idea is to put the water present in the fuel into solution so that it can be burned by the engine and removed from the fuel system.

Fuel injectors and pumps are lubricated by fuel. So, water ingress in the fuel system is bad because the paraffins present in gasoline that provide the lubrication will be displaced by the water, which doesn't quite have the lubricating properties that gasoline does.

The point of all this is that water in sufficient concentrations in a fuel, for example in a puddle at the bottom of the tank, can promote algae growths. This is a problem in both diesel and gasoline. These plant growths will clog fuel systems in a hurry, so having a systemic herbicide present in the fuel makes a lot of sense.

In the case of diesel fuel, the problems caused by water contaminated fuel to the fuel system are much the same. Lubricating films being broken down and causing metal-to-metal contact will completely destroy diesel fuel pumps and injectors, causing big money repairs.

While the problems resulting from water contamination in diesel fuel systems are much the same, the chemistry involved is different. Gasoline is a hydrophobic substance that repels water, so ethanol is added in concentrations of 10% or better to absorb it and keep it (with limits) from pooling. Of course, ethanol is billed as an "environmental" measure, but from an engineering viewpoint it serves a much different function.

Contrast that with diesel fuel which is entirely hygroscopic. Water contamination is also controlled in a diesel fuel system a little differently, with fuel-water separator filters.

The US government, the entire petroleum industry, Freightliner, PACCAR (Peterbilt, Kenworth), Mack and Volvo, Mercedes-Benz, Detroit Diesel, Caterpillar, Cummins, all have spent BILLIONS of dollars on the research and development of controlling fuel contamination and mitigating the potential damage. On a typical modern truck, water ingestion by the fuel system can be a guaranteed $10,000 to $15,000 repair.

TL;DR: Glyphosate is a systemic herbicide. Water contamination of fuels is a big problem. Plant life can grow in contaminated fuels and clog up fuel systems in engines. Herbicides in fuels help control that plant growth.

Long version: Maintaining fuel quality is important to western society. Everyone needs to be able to trust our fuel sources. The US Military, UPS, Amazon, the dude hauling roofing shingles, you, and me. Since our modern life is pretty much built on the back of petroleum fuels, we all have a vested interest in their quality.

Modern gasoline contains ethanol, in varying concentrations. There are several reasons for this, but one reason is that ethanol raises the octane rating of gasoline, which can be an expensive process, hence the premium price of premium gasoline.

Another reason is that ethanol itself is actually hygroscopic, meaning it readily absorbs water. In very small amounts, ethanol helps control water contamination by putting the water into a burnable solution, rather than having it pool up in the bottom of the fuel tank to be sucked up by the fuel pump. This is the principal by which fuel stabilizer products claim to work, with the use of methanol. The entire idea is to put the water present in the fuel into solution so that it can be burned by the engine and removed from the fuel system.

Fuel injectors and pumps are lubricated by fuel. So, water ingress in the fuel system is bad because the paraffins present in gasoline that provide the lubrication will be displaced by the water, which doesn't quite have the lubricating properties that gasoline does.

The point of all this is that water in sufficient concentrations in a fuel, for example in a puddle at the bottom of the tank, can promote algae growths. This is a problem in both diesel and gasoline. These plant growths will clog fuel systems in a hurry, so having a systemic herbicide present in the fuel makes a lot of sense.

In the case of diesel fuel, the problems caused by water contaminated fuel to the fuel system are much the same. Lubricating films being broken down and causing metal-to-metal contact will completely destroy diesel fuel pumps and injectors, causing big money repairs.

While the problems resulting from water contamination in diesel fuel systems are much the same, the chemistry involved is different. Gasoline is a hydrophobic substance that repels water, so ethanol is added in concentrations of 10% or better to absorb it and keep it (with limits) from pooling. Of course, ethanol is billed as an "environmental" measure, but from an engineering viewpoint it serves a much different function.

Contrast that with diesel fuel which is entirely hygroscopic. Water contamination is also controlled in a diesel fuel system a little differently, with fuel-water separator filters.

The US government, the entire petroleum industry, Freightliner, PACCAR (Peterbilt, Kenworth), Mack and Volvo, Mercedes-Benz, Detroit Diesel, Caterpillar, Cummins, all have spent BILLIONS of dollars on the research and development of controlling fuel contamination and mitigating the potential damage. On a typical modern truck, water ingestion by the fuel system can be a guaranteed $10,000 to $15,000 repair.

TL;DR: Glyphosate is a systemic herbicide. Water contamination of fuels is a big problem. Plant life can grow in contaminated fuels and clog up fuel systems in engines. Herbicides in fuels help control that plant growth.

Long version: Maintaining fuel quality is important to western society. Everyone needs to be able to trust our fuel sources. The US Military, UPS, Amazon, the dude hauling roofing shingles, you, and me. Since our modern life is pretty much built on the back of petroleum fuels, we all have a vested interest in their quality.

Modern gasoline contains ethanol, in varying concentrations. There are several reasons for this, but one reason is that ethanol raises the octane rating of gasoline, which can be an expensive process, hence the premium price of premium gasoline.

Another reason is that ethanol itself is actually hygroscopic, meaning it readily absorbs water. In very small amounts, ethanol helps control water contamination by putting the water into a burnable solution, rather than having it pool up in the bottom of the fuel tank to be sucked up by the fuel pump. This is the principal by which fuel stabilizer products claim to work, with the use of methanol. The entire idea is to put the water present in the fuel into solution so that it can be burned by the engine and removed from the fuel system.

Fuel injectors and pumps are lubricated by fuel. So, water ingress in the fuel system is bad because the paraffins present in gasoline that provide the lubrication will be displaced by the water, which doesn't quite have the lubricating properties that gasoline does.

Further, water in sufficient concentrations in a fuel, for example in a puddle at the bottom of the tank, can promote algae growths. This is a problem in both diesel and gasoline. These plant growths will clog fuel systems in a hurry, so having a systemic herbicide present in the fuel makes a lot of sense.

In the case of diesel fuel, the problems caused by water contaminated fuel to the fuel system are much the same. Lubricating films being broken down and causing metal-to-metal contact will completely destroy diesel fuel pumps and injectors, causing big money repairs.

While the problems resulting from water contamination in diesel fuel systems are much the same, the chemistry involved is different. Gasoline is a hydrophobic substance that repels water, so ethanol is added in concentrations of 10% or better to absorb it and keep it (with limits) from pooling. Of course, ethanol is billed as an "environmental" measure, but from an engineering viewpoint it serves a much different function.

Contrast that with diesel fuel which is entirely hygroscopic. Water contamination is also controlled in a diesel fuel system a little differently, with fuel-water separator filters.

The US government, the entire petroleum industry, Freightliner, PACCAR (Peterbilt, Kenworth), Mack and Volvo, Mercedes-Benz, Detroit Diesel, Caterpillar, Cummins, all have spent BILLIONS of dollars on the research and development of controlling fuel contamination and mitigating the potential damage. On a typical modern truck, water ingestion by the fuel system can be a guaranteed $10,000 to $15,000 repair.

TL;DR: Glyphosate is a systemic herbicide. Water contamination of fuels is a big problem. Plant life can grow in contaminated fuels and clog up fuel systems in engines. Herbicides in fuels help control that plant growth.

Long version: Maintaining fuel quality is important to western society. Everyone needs to be able to trust our fuel sources. The US Military, UPS, Amazon, the dude hauling roofing shingles, you, and me. Since our modern life is pretty much built on the back of petroleum fuels, we all have a vested interest in their quality.

Modern gasoline contains ethanol, in varying concentrations. There are several reasons for this, but one reason is that ethanol raises the octane rating of gasoline, which can be an expensive process, hence the premium price of premium gasoline.

Another reason is that ethanol itself is actually hygroscopic, meaning it readily absorbs water. In very small amounts, ethanol helps control water contamination by putting the water into a burnable solution, rather than having it pool up in the bottom of the fuel tank to be sucked up by the fuel pump. This is the principal by which fuel stabilizer products claim to work, with the use of methanol. The entire idea is to put the water present in the fuel into solution so that it can be burned by the engine and removed from the fuel system.

Fuel injectors and pumps are lubricated by fuel. So, water ingress in the fuel system is bad because the paraffins present in gasoline that provide the lubrication will be displaced by the water, which doesn't quite have the lubricating properties that gasoline does.

Further, water in sufficient concentrations in a fuel, for example in a puddle at the bottom of the tank, can promote algae growths. This is a problem in both diesel and gasoline. These plant growths will clog fuel systems in a hurry, so having a systemic herbicide present in the fuel makes a lot of sense.

In the case of diesel fuel, the problems caused by water contaminated fuel to the fuel system are much the same. Lubricating films being broken down and causing metal-to-metal contact will completely destroy diesel fuel pumps and injectors, causing big money repairs.

While the problems resulting from water contamination in diesel fuel systems are much the same, the chemistry involved is different. Gasoline is a hydrophobic substance that repels water, so ethanol is added in concentrations of 10% or better to absorb it and keep it (with limits) from pooling. Of course, ethanol is billed as an "environmental" measure, but from an engineering viewpoint it serves a much different function.

Contrast that with diesel fuel which is entirely hygroscopic. Water contamination is also controlled in a diesel fuel system a little differently, with fuel-water separator filters.

The US government, the entire petroleum industry, Freightliner, PACCAR (Peterbilt, Kenworth), Mack and Volvo, Mercedes-Benz, Detroit Diesel, Caterpillar, Cummins, all have spent BILLIONS of dollars on the research and development of controlling fuel contamination and mitigating the potential damage. On a typical modern truck, water ingestion by the fuel system can be a guaranteed $10,000 to $15,000 repair.