Techniques to Characterize the Thermal-Oxidation Stability of Jet Fuels and the Effects of Additives

Abstract

Three techniques integrated into a single instrumented platform allow simultaneous measurement in real time of particle-size growth rate, surface mass-deposition rate, and concentration of dissolved oxygen in thermally stressed jet fuel. Particle growth rate is studied using Photon Correlation Spectroscopy (PCS); surface mass-deposition rate is measured with a Quartz Crystal Microbalance (QCM); and dissolved-oxygen concentration is monitored by Pyrene Fluorescence Quenching (PFQ). The three techniques have been used simultaneously to study the behavior of a jet fuel undergoing thermal stressing and to evaluate the performance of an anti-oxidant, a dispersant, and a metal deactivator in another jet fuel.

Application of Photon-Correlation Spectroscopy and Quartz-Crystal Microbalance to the Study of Thermally Stressed Jet Fuel

“…The asymptotic particle size attainable in these experiments was 240 nm at 185-195 °C, which probably corresponds to the limit of oxygen available; at 165-175 °C the asymptotic particle size was observed to be still increasing with residence time, which indicates that the mechanism of particle growth at this lower temperature is still active, probably due to the availability of dissolved oxygen in the system (Vilimpoc et al, 1995(Vilimpoc et al, , 1996.…”