RAPID GELLING OF AIRCRAFT FUEL
Abstract
Experimental evidence has shown that the severity of accidental hydrocarbon fuel fires can be reduced by chemically solidifying the liquid fuel. The purpose of the subject work was to determine the feasibility of utilizing this principle to reduce the dangers of postcrash aircraft fires. The feasibility of rapidly gelling large quantities of aircraft fuel has been investigated and established. The types and quantities of chemical gelling agents required were investigated. The times required for the gelling of 50- gallon quantities of fuel have been determined. Mechanisms and power sources for mixing gelling agents with fuel have been evaluated. The hazards and penalties associated with these systems have been established. Impact tests were made to determine the reduction of fire hazard with gelled fuel under dynamic conditions. These tests showed radical differences in performance between gels which behave similarly under static tests. Soap type and amine-isocyanate gels have about equal effectiveness in reducing fire hazards in small scale experiments. The performance of the soap system was decidedly superior in terms of achieving rapid gelling of large quantities of fuel.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 01, 1966
- Accession Number
- AD0629765
Entities
People
- A. R. Schleicher