Did chemical properties change that much since the last study? Can you point to the flaws of the study or are you just discarding it for being 30 years old?
Perhaps some constructive input explaining where the above mentioned study is wrong and why would benefit all of us.
If you read my post regarding long-term storage, I reviewed all of the studies in detail, including the extensive limitations of the methods, analysis and conclusions.
All of these studies are old, and
most of the methods are quite questionable -- but nonetheless they offer some insight into some of the problems that can be encountered with cylinder storage. As bad as the data is, this data is all we have. No one else has done any other studies since.
Industry leaders (CGA, PSI, etc.) have made numerous recommendations regarding cylinder handling based on these studies -- annual VIPs are just one such practice that resulted from these "old, outdated" studies. We can all make our own decisions if we read the original data and draw our own educated conclusions.
Personally, I follow industry recommendations. But, in my opinion, the bottom line is that if you will stay out of trouble 99.999999999% of the time if you get your cylinders inspected annually, get a hydro every 5 years, and get your air fills from a well-maintained compressor.
'nuff said.
P.S. Oh, yeah, and don't breath old gas without testing it first