Are the canisters for isoButane (empty weight) heavier than other Butane mixes?

Question

I'm planning to use a butane "canister stove". The only canisters I can find locally are Butane/Propane mixes.

My understanding is that Propane canisters are extra heavy b/c Propane is under higher pressure.

Are Butane /Propane canisters heavier then other Butane mixes?

Side note: Butane boils at -1C, normally propane is preferred for cold climates, although cookers designed for with liquid feed are availble if going into sub freezing temperatures. — user5330, May 27, 2016 at 0:12

Langley · Accepted Answer · 2016-07-05 12:23:11Z

2

Yes.

The vapor pressure will increase significantly the more propane is in the mix. More pressure means that a thicker/more resillient canister is needed to withstand it.

As you can see even with the most common 30/70 mix, the pressure is doubled or trippled depending on temperature.

IsoButane has a greater vapor pressure than butane (Although only slightly) - which will also translate to a slightly heavier canister.

answered Jul 5, 2016 at 11:12

Langley

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This assumes that the canister is made stronger, as opposed to using the same canisters for both butane and butane/propane mixes. (Similar to the reasoning behind "why do drive through ATM buttons have braille on them".) Unfortunately I haven't seen pure butane canisters recently, only the mixes.
– requiem
Jul 5, 2016 at 15:22
That might be true for some manufacturers. I do not have any data but I do think it is far more likely that a mass producer of butane would want to use dedicated butane canisters because the material costs would be significantly lower when scaled to the thousands/millions. From my personal experience, a butane canisters appears to be lighter. I do not have an empty mixed canister on hand to measure their weight however.
– Langley
Jul 6, 2016 at 6:05

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