Comparison of Jet Fuel produced by Nonconventional Sources: Manufacturing, Emission and Performance

Abstract

The need for alternative fuels to power aviation both commercial and military arises from two main factors -energy security and environmental safe guards. Various researchers around the world are looking at alternate feedstocks and methods to obtain drop in fuel keeping the environmental impact of the whole process in mind. The primary target for all these fuels is to satisfy physical and combustion characteristics of at least existing petroleum derived jet fuel -JP-8 and Jet A. With the present global competition for fossil fuel feedstock and increasing price the energy security offered by nonconventional sources seems very attractive. This paper looks at the physical and combustion characteristics of 1. Biodiesel from hydroprocessing (HEFA) and transesterification and 2. Coal, gas and biomass derived synthetic liquid fuels as aviation fuels. The former has already been used in various test runs and the latter already in commercial use in Johannesburg and makes comparison to find the better option. Finally we take a look at "well to wake" concept of a fuel life cycle to see how practical is their use on large scale and future requirements of the aviation industry to access the possibility of them as a long term alternate to petroleum derived jet fuel.

The effect of alternative fuels on gaseous and particulate matter (PM) emission performance in an auxiliary power unit (APU)

“…There are various studies in the literature regarding the overall environmental impact, global warming potential and the use of alternative fuels in gas turbines (26,(28)(29)(30)(31)(34)(35)(36)(37)(38)(39)(40)(41)(42)(43)(44)(45)(46)(47) . Recent studies by Christie et al (47) and Brem et al (26) show the impact of hydrogen content in the fuel on PM emissions.…”

Comparison of Vibrations and Emissions of Conventional Jet Fuel with Stressed 100% SPK and Fully Formulated Synthetic Jet Fuel

“…Synthetically produced jet fuels, along with the hydro-processed bio-derived oils, have surfaced as feasible substitutes as they showcase properties similar to conventional jet fuels. Synthetic jet fuels are derived from biomass, coal, or natural gas by the Fischer Tropsch (FT) process [6][7][8]. Fully synthetic jet fuel consists of 50% synthetic paraffinic kerosene, derived from the FT process and 50% severely hydrogenated coal tar kerosene [9].…”

Effect of novel alternative fuels and compositions on vibrations of a gas turbine engine

“…Alternatives to Jet fuel come through various production pathways such as FischerTropsch process, Hydro processing and transesterification [2][3]. Fuels derived from these processes such as GTL or CTL, bio-diesels and HRJ Fuel are being tested for reduced gaseous and particulate emissions [4]. 2 American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Consequently, it becomes vital to investigate the effects of these emerging alternative fuels on combustion instabilities or combustion dynamics.…”