Evaluation of Several Jet Fuels under Compression-ignition Operation on Thermal Efficiency, NOx, Particulate Matter, and Particle Size Distribution

Alternative fuels such as Fischer-Tropsch Synthesized Paraffinic Kerosene (FT-SPK) and Catalytic Hydrothermal Conversion Jet (CHCJ) are among those important sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs) for future transportation. However, these alternative fuels often vary in their fuel characteristics, which depend on feedstock and fuel production processes. Therefore, a detailed analysis of combustion, emissions, and efficiency of these alternative fuels must be performed under controlled experiments to understand the impact of fuel properties and operating conditions. Using a single-cylinder research engine (SCRE), extensive operating conditions were performed to realize any difference in performance that can be fundamentally understood by fuel properties (e.g., cetane number, heat of combustion, and density) of these fuels in comparison with Jet-A. The experimental setup includes high-speed data acquisition for combustion analysis and gaseous and solid emissions benches for nitrogen oxides (NOX) and particulate matter evaluation. Results suggested that an engine control management (ECM) strategy can potentially optimize the performance of these alternative jet fuels by compensating for differences in their fuel properties. This study aims to provide insights for future work on exploring different SAF fuels that are more environmentally friendly while meeting the required performance.