The emissions characteristics of two combustion platforms, a T63 turboshaft engine and an atmospheric
swirl-stabilized research combustor, fueled with conventional military jet fuel (JP-8), a natural-gas-derived
Fischer−Tropsch synthetic jet fuel (also referred herein as synjet or FT), and blends of the two were investigated.
Nonvolatile particulate matter (PM) and gaseous emissions were analyzed to assess the impacts of the aromatic-
and sulfur-free synjet fuel on the combustion products of the two platforms. The engine was operated at two
power settings, and the combustor at several equivalence ratios, to evaluate the emission production over a
wide range of combustion temperatures. Conventional aerosol instrumentation was used to quantify particle
number (PN), size, and PM mass emissions, while a Fourier Transform Infrared analyzer was used to quantify
the gaseous species. Planar laser-induced fluorescence and laser-induced incandescence techniques were
employed on the research combustor to study the effects of the FT fuel on the formation and oxidation of
particles in the combustor primary zone. Test results show dramatic reductions in particle concentrations and
mean size on both combustion platforms with the neat FT and synjet fuel blends relative to operation with
JP-8. Reductions of over 90% in PN were observed on both platforms for several operating conditions with
neat FT fuel. For the engine, over an 80% reduction in smoke number was observed with neat synjet relative
to operation on JP-8. As expected, reductions in sulfur oxide emissions and slight increases in water vapor
(measured only in the atmospheric combustor) resulted due to the sulfur-free nature and higher hydrogen-to-carbon ratio of the synthetic fuel. Minor impacts were observed for other gaseous emissions. American Society
for Testing and Materials fuel specification tests showed that JP-8/synjet blends up to 50/50% by volume
satisfied the JP-8 military fuel requirements and that only the minimum specific gravity requirement was not
satisfied at higher synjet concentrations. Impacts of the synjet fuel on the emissions of the atmospheric combustor
and the T63 engine, a comparison of emissions between the two platforms, and results of in situ laser-based
measurements in the combustor reaction zone are discussed.
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