Twa800 fuel tank combustible mixture properties and minimum ignition energy

摘要

The specific mission was to identify the conditions of atmospheric pressure and ambient temperature under which a so-called empty-Boeing model 747-131 fixed wing jet aircraft center wing tank (CWT), containing a residual fuel loading of about 3 kg/m~3, less than 100 gallons of aviation kerosene (JetA Athens refinery commercial jet fuel), could form hazardous air/fuel mixtures. The issues are limited to explosion safety concerns relating to certificated fixed wing jet aircraft in regularly scheduled commercial passenger service. It is certain that a combustible mixture does not exist in a fuel tank containing Jet-A type fuel at ambient temperatures beow 38 deg C (100 deg F), which is the lean limit flash point (LFP) for commercial jet fuel at sea level. never the less, this study identified six highly unlikely, but rationally possible critical conditions which can occur in a combination which may permit a combustible mixture to exist within a jet aircraft fuel tank and pose a potential hazard. The scope of this paper is limited to concerns relating to fixed wing jet aircraft fuel tanks and commercial jet fuels. It is further limited to a historical review of the scientific literature in the public domain from 1950 to the present time, which defined the thermodynamic and minimum ignition properties of aviation gasoline and commercial jet type fuels; and, to comparison with the new thermodynamic data for JatA Athens flight test samples, released by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) during public hearings on the TWA800 event in Baltimore, Maryland in December 1997. This paper conclusively demonstrates that the USAF Wright Air Development Center and the US Bureau of Mines conducted and published cemprehensive evaluations of the potential hazards relating to jet aircraft fuel tanks as early as 1952. This historical scientific data nad the new data are relevant to pending TWA800 related litigation and implementation of NTSB recommendations resulting from the TWA800 event.