Jet fuel

Jet fuel in the USSR and the Russian Federation is produced for subsonic aircraft in accordance with GOST 10227-86 and for supersonic aircraft in accordance with GOST 12308-2013. Five types of fuel are provided for subsonic aviation (TS-1, T-1, T-1C, T-2 and RT), for supersonic - two (T-6 and T-8V). The most popular in the territory of the Russian Federation and the post-Soviet space at present are TS-1 fuel (of the highest and first grades) and RT fuel (of the highest grade).

Jet fuel in the United States is produced separately for military and commercial aircraft.

TC-1 fuel

Obtained by direct distillation of sulphurous oil (target fraction - 150-250 ° C). In the case of a high content of sulfur and mercaptans , hydrotreating or demercaptanization is carried out, and then used in a mixture with straight-run fraction. The content of the hydrotreated component is limited to a concentration of 70% to prevent a decrease in the antiwear properties of the fuel. The most common type of jet fuel for subsonic aviation. It is used both in military and in civil engineering. It is also used for flotation enrichment.

T-1 fuel

The product of direct distillation of low-sulfur oil of a naphthenic base with boiling limits of 130-280С. It contains a large amount of naphthenic acids and has a high acidity, therefore it is subjected to alkalization followed by water washing (to remove naphthenic acids formed as a result of alkalization of sodium soap).

The presence of a significant amount of heteroatomic compounds, mainly oxygen-containing, determines, on the one hand, relatively good anti-wear properties and fairly acceptable chemical stability of the fuel, on the other hand, low thermo-oxidative stability.

Long-term experience in the use of T-1 fuel in aviation has shown that due to its low thermo-oxidative stability, there are increased tar deposits in the NK-8 engine installed on the main types of civil aviation aircraft (TU-154, IL-62, IL-76), in As a result, engine service life is drastically (almost 2 times) reduced. The production of T-1 fuel is very limited, and it is produced only in the first quality category.

T-1C fuel

The product of distillation of low-sulfur oil of a naphthenic base with a boiling range of 130–280 ° C. It contains a large amount of naphthenic acids, which is why it has a high acidity; therefore, after the fraction is separated from oil, it is alkalized and then washed with water. The heteroatomic naphthenic compounds contained in the fuel provide good anti-wear properties and chemical stability; on the other hand, the fuel has very low thermal oxidative stability. Long-term tests have shown that when using this fuel in the NK-8 engines ( TU-154 (A, B, B-1, B-2) and IL-62 ), increased resinous deposits occur, due to which the engine service life is reduced twice. Currently, only first grade fuel is produced and very limited.

Raw materials for production can serve as scarce grades of oil with a negligible sulfur content (oil of the North Caucasus and Azerbaijan).

T-2 fuel

The product of distillation of crude oil of a wide fractional composition is 60-280 ° C. contains up to 40% gasoline fractions, which leads to high saturated vapor pressure, low viscosity and density. The increased pressure of saturated vapors causes the probability of the formation of steam plugs in the fuel system of the aircraft, which limits its altitude.

Fuel is not produced; It is reserve in relation to TS-1 and RT.

RT fuel

Obtained by hydrotreating straight-run kerosene fractions with boiling limits of 135-280 ° C. As a result of hydrotreating, the content of sulfur and mercaptans decreases, but antiwear properties and chemical stability also worsen. To prevent this, antiwear and antioxidant additives are introduced into the fuel.

RT fuel fully complies with international standards, surpassing them in individual indicators. It has good antiwear properties, high chemical and thermo-oxidative stability, low sulfur content and an almost complete absence of mercaptans . Fuel can be stored for up to 10 years and fully provides a resource for engine operation. It is used both on passenger liners and on military supersonic aircraft ( Su-27 , Tu-22M , etc.)

T-6 fuel

Obtained by deep hydrogenation of straight-run fractions 195-315 ° C, obtained from a suitable naphthenic oil. Limited use in supersonic aircraft on some types (for example, MiG-25 ). Tu-144 flew on T-6 fuel - the only supersonic passenger airliner in Russian aviation. T-6 jet fuel is the fuel of the Onyx march ramjet .

T-8V fuel

It is a hydrotreated fraction with a boiling range of 165-280 ° C. In the case of naphthenic low-sulfur oil, it is allowed to use the straight-run fraction without hydrotreating. It is used in supersonic aviation of the Russian Air Force (for example, Tu-160 ).

T-10 fuel

Synthetic aviation fuel T-10, otherwise - decilin . High-calorie, very fluid and toxic fuel was created for the only brand of the R95-300 engine, which was installed on the X-55 air-launched cruise missile. Obtained by the petrochemical synthesis of polycyclic cycloalkanes, the precursor in the synthesis is dicyclopentadiene. The exact chemical composition of this fuel is not published.

For each type of aviation fuel, depending on the application, regulatory technical specifications are established. In general, aviation fuel must comply with the interstate standard GOST 10227-86 “Fuels for jet engines. Technical conditions ”(with Amendments No. 1, No. 2, No. 3, No. 4, No. 5, No. 6).

According to GOST 10227-86, about 30 fuel characteristics should be checked, including density , kinematic viscosity , acidity , iodine number , flash point and so on.

Sampling to verify its compliance with the established characteristics is carried out in the samplers according to the methods reflected in GOST 2517—2014 “Oil and petroleum products. Sampling methods. " The volume of the combined fuel sample of each type is not less than 2 dm ³ .

• Antistatic

Many years of experience in operating domestic and foreign air transport have proved that during pumping fuel or when refueling aircraft, accumulation of static electricity is possible. Due to the unpredictability of the process, there is a danger of explosion at any time.
To combat this dangerous phenomenon, antistatic additives are added to the fuel. They increase the electrical conductivity of fuel up to 50 pS / m, which ensures the safety of aircraft refueling and fuel transfer.

Abroad use additives ASA-3 (Shell) and Stadis-450 (Innospec). In Russia, the Sigbol additive (TU 38.101741-78), approved for the addition of TS-1, T-2, RT and T-6 to fuel in an amount of up to 0.0005%, has spread.

• Anti-water crystallization

When refueling with a temperature of −5 ... + 17 ° C after 5 hours of flight, the temperature in the tank decreases to −35 ° C. The temperature drop record is −42 ° C (Tu-154) and −45 ° C (tanks supplying the Il-62M extreme engines). At these temperatures, ice crystals precipitate from the fuel, clogging the fuel filters, which can lead to a cessation of fuel supply and engine shutdown. Even with a water content of 0.002% (mass.), Air filters with a pore diameter of 12-16 microns begin to clog.

To prevent ice crystals from falling out of the fuel at low temperatures, anti-water crystallization additives are introduced into the fuel directly at the aircraft refueling site. Ethyl cellosolve (liquid I) according to GOST 8313-88, tetrahydrofuran (THF) according to GOST 17477-86 and their 50% mixtures with methanol (IM additives, THF-M) are widely used as such additives. Additives can be added to almost any fuel.

• Antioxidant

They are introduced into hydrotreated fuel (RT, T-6, T-8V) to compensate for the chemical stability that is reduced as a result of hydrotreating. In Russia, the additive Agidol-1 (2,6-di-tert-butyl-4-methylphenol) is used according to TU 38.5901237-90 at a concentration of 0.003-0.004%. In such concentrations, it almost completely prevents oxidation of the fuel, including at elevated temperatures (up to 150 ° C).

• Antiwear

Designed to restore anti-wear properties of fuel lost as a result of hydrotreating. It is introduced into the same fuel as the antioxidant additive. In Russia, the Sigbol additive and the Sigbol and PMAM-2 additive composition (polymethacrylate type - TU 601407-69) are used. For RT fuel, the additive “K” (GOST 13302-77) is often used, which is equivalent to Sigbol in terms of efficiency, and also, due to the deficiency of the additive “K”, the additive High-Tech-580 from the company Ethyl.

The volume of jet fuel production in 2007 amounted to 9012.1 thousand tons. Of these, 7395.04 thousand tons were delivered to the domestic market, the rest - for export. The production of jet fuel in Russia is engaged in 20 oil refineries ^[1] :

• OJSC NK Rosneft :
  • Komsomol Oil Refinery (TS-1)
  • Syzran Oil Refinery (RT)
  • Novokuibyshevsky Oil Refinery (TS-1, RT)
  • Achinsk Oil Refinery (TS-1)
  • Angarsk NHK (TS-1)
  • Ryazan Oil Refinery (TS-1)
• OAO Lukoil :
  • Volgogradneftepererabotka (TS-1, RT)
  • Permnefteorgsintez (RT)
  • Nizhny Novgorodnefteorgsintez (TS-1, RT)
  • Ukhtaneftepererabotka (RT)
• OJSC Gazprom Neft :
  • Moscow Oil Refinery (TS-1)
  • Omsk Oil Refinery (TS-1)
• OJSC “Surgutneftegas”
  • PO Kirishinefteorgsintez (TS-1)
• LLC Gazprom processing
  • Branch "Surgut condensate stabilization plant named after V. S. Chernomyrdin " (TS-1)
• OAO NGK Slavneft
  • Yaroslavnefteorgsintez (TS-1)
• OAO NK RussNeft
  • Orsknefteorgsintez (RT)
• NK "Alliance"
  • Khabarovsk Oil Refinery (TS-1)
• TAIF-NK OJSC
  • Nizhnekamsk Oil Refinery (TS-1, RT)
• Novo-Ufa Refinery (TS-1)
• Nizhnekamsk Oil Refinery (TS-1, RT)
• Krasnodarekoneft (TS-1, T-1)
• PJSC Tatneft
  • TANECO JSC (RT, TS-1, Jet A-1)

There is no data on the production of T-6 and T-8V fuel. Previously, T-6 kerosene was produced by the Angarsk NHC and Orsknefteorgsintez.

Any aviation fuel leaving the refinery is tested and accepted by a military representative. ^[2]

In the United States, Jet A, Jet A-1, Jet B jet fuel is produced for the needs of commercial aviation. The most widely used Jet A-1 fuel. Characteristics: density 0.775-0.825 kg / dm3, flash point: + 38 ° C, freezing point: -47 ° C.

Military jet fuels are marked with the letters JP.

• Fuel JP-1 in its characteristics corresponds to Jet A. Developed in 1944.
• Fuel JP-2. Has a low freezing temperature. Designed in 1945. It has never been widely used.
• Fuel JP-3. Has a low freezing temperature. Designed in 1947. Not applicable.
• Fuel JP-4. It is a kerosene-gasoline mixture with additives. The main type of fuel in the US military aviation from 1951 to 1995.
• JP-5 fuel is mainly used on aircraft and ship-based helicopters. It has a high flash point. It is a complex mixture of hydrocarbons.
• JP-6 fuel was developed in 1957, under the program for the creation of the VVKiriya XB-70 supersonic high-altitude bomber. It is similar in composition to JP-5, but has a lower freezing temperature and better thermal stability. After the cancellation of the XB-70 program, fuel production was discontinued.
• JP-7 fuel was developed for the SR-71 Blackbird. Thermostable fuel with high flash point.
• Fuel JP-8. Specification MIL-DTL-83133. The main type of jet fuel based on kerosene, deliveries began in 1978. Since 1996, replaces the JP-4. In 1998, a more thermostable fuel JP-8 + 100 was developed.
• Fuel JPTS. Designed in 1956 for the Lockheed U-2 high-altitude scout. Approximately three times more expensive than JP-8 fuel. Limited edition and in present
• HEF (high energy fuel) is a high-energy boron-containing experimental fuel. It was used on North American XF-108 Rapier and XB-70 Valkyrie aircraft. Despite a significant increase in engine power on this fuel, many insoluble problems remained, such as increased engine wear, fuel aggressiveness, toxicity, toxic engine exhaust, etc. Five plants were built (probably) for the production of various types of HEF: HEF- 1 (ethyldiborane), HEF-2 (propylpentaborane), HEF-3 (ethyldecaborane), HEF-4 (methyldecaborane), and HEF-5 (ethylacetylenedecaborane), but the program was phased out in 1959. The approximate cost of the project was $ 1 billion in 2001 prices (for more details see the English article Zip fuel).
• Synthetic synthetic fuel. On December 15, 2006, the B-52 took off from the US Air Force Edwards base, fueled with a 50/50 mixture of JP-8 kerosene and Syntroleum fuel. The seven-hour flight was recognized as successful.

• Aviation fuel
• Aviation gasoline
• Sintin - synthetic rocket fuel

• Chertkov Ya. B., Spirkin VG Use of jet fuels in aviation, M., 1974;
• Oil and gas processing technology, part 3. Chernozhukov N. I.,
• Refining and separation of petroleum feedstocks, production of commercial petroleum products, 6th ed., M., 1978;
• Chemotology in civil aviation . Handbook, M., 1983, p. 56-64. V.G. Spirkin.
• Fuels, lubricants, technical fluids. Assortment and application: Reference. 2nd ed. Ed. V. M. Shkolnikova. M .: Chemistry, 1999
• A. G. Akhmadullina, A. I. Samokhvalov, L. N. Shabalina, V. A. Bulgakov, G. M. Nurgaliev, A. S. Shabaev. Demercaptanization of the kerosene fraction on a polyphthalocyanine catalyst. Chemistry and technology of fuels and oils, No. 2, 1998, p. 43.

• GOST 10227-86 Fuels for jet engines. Technical conditions (neopr.) . Date of treatment January 26, 2015.
• GOST 2517-85 Oil and petroleum products. Sampling methods. Retrieved January 26, 2015.
• Fuel thermostable T-6 and T-8V for jet engines. Technical conditions (neopr.) . Date of appeal May 31, 2013.
• Aviation fuel for gas turbine engines Jet A-1 (Jet A-1). Technical conditions (unspecified) . Date of appeal May 31, 2013.
• Technical regulation “On requirements for automobile and aviation gasoline, diesel and marine fuel, jet engine fuel and heating oil” (neopr.) . Date of treatment May 31, 2013. Archived May 31, 2013.