Airport Business

OCT 2014

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INDUSTRY INSIDER October 2014 airportbusiness 31 ing to work with the FAA at every corner to see if there's any mechanism to move that forward faster. But there is a lot of work to be done because it's a very large undertaking. You're looking at effectively certifying a fuel for every engine and aircraft in the United States. There is another mechanism to certify fuel, which involves using supplemental-type cer- tificates. However, it's believed that this is not really the primary vehicle for certification. But it's important to note that there is another process out there and people are free to attempt to certify in that way. If that happens, you're more likely to see very limited certifications in the works. You might see people going for certificates for a specific engine and airframe but you're not going to get the fleet-wide certification you need to commercialize. WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS IN DEVELOPING A SUSTAINABLE ALTERNATIVE TO AVGAS? The main one is the removal of lead. If you think about transportation fuels, Avgas is the last fuel that uses lead. Everything has lost it over the years. The primary reason for that is it's obviously well- known as a neurotoxin, and it bioaccumulates, which means it gets out into the environment and stays there. If it was biodegradable, you probably wouldn't see near the level of attention it's receiving now. HOW DO YOU MAKE SURE THE FUEL IS REPRODUCIBLE IN REQUIRED VOLUMES AT A PRICE THE AVIATION INDUSTRY CAN AFFORD? Another key element in the ability to bring an unleaded fuel to market is to make sure that the fuel is actually producible in the volumes required. Different people are looking at very different ways of manufacturing, and with some very new com- ponents that are not all from refineries. It's not just a question of, "Do you have the right materials and can you get enough of the materials?" It's also, "Are all the materials in the right places?" If there's a chemical or something you need, and it's only made in China, that could be a problem if you're making a fuel for Europe or the United States. It's a very complex undertaking that often gets lost in the discussion. It is not just about making a fuel chemistry that will work. It's about being able to actually produce it and supply the market with that fuel. This fuel also needs to be affordable. This is one of the key parts to our program. We didn't just look at making a fuel that will satisfy an engine in an airframe and look like 100 LL. It was about, "How can we do this and actually supply the market place?" That meant the materials used for that fuel had to be widely available. We don't want to get into the business of having to build plants to make something new. We weighed every- thing out—performance, storage, distribution and manufacturing—all of it. We are confident we have the right chemistry, as well as the infrastructure, to make unleaded Avgas a reality for use in light aircraft engines of all types. FAA SELECTS FOUR FUELS FOR TESTING THE FAA has selected four unleaded aviation fuels to undergo ini- tial testing at the agency's William J. Hughes Technical Center. The goal is for government and industry to work together to have a new unleaded fuel that reduces lead emissions for general aviation by 2018. Two fuels developed by Swift Fuels and one fuel each developed by Shell and TOTAL will undergo laboratory and rig testing beginning this fall and concluding in fall 2015. "We're committed to removing harmful lead from general aviation fuel," says Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. "This work will benefit the environment and provide a safe and available fuel for our general aviation community." In July, fuel producers submitted their replacement fuel proposals to the FAA for further evaluation as part of the Piston Aviation Fuels Initiative (PAFI), an industry-government initiative designed to help the general aviation industry transition to an unleaded aviation gasoline. The FAA assessed candidate fuels in terms of their impact on the existing fleet, the production and distribution infrastructure, the impact on the environment, toxicology, and the cost of aircraft operations. "The FAA looks forward to our continued work with fuel producers to make an unleaded aviation gasoline available for the general aviation fleet," says FAA Administrator Michael Huerta. Based on the results of the phase-one laboratory and rig testing, the FAA anticipates that two or three fuels will be selected for phase-two engine and aircraft testing. That testing will generate standardized qualification and certification data for candidate fuels, along with property and performance data. That entire testing process is expected to conclude in 2018. Approximately 167,000 general aviation aircraft in the United States rely on 100 low-lead aviation gasoline for safe operation. Low-lead is the only remaining transportation fuel in the United States that contains lead, which is considered a toxic substance. The small quantity of lead in the fuel creates the very high octane levels needed for high-performance aircraft. Most commercial airplanes do not use leaded gas. PAFI is facilitating the development and deployment of a new unleaded aviation gasoline that will have the least impact on existing piston-engine aircraft. PAFI will play a key role in the testing and deployment of an unleaded fuel across the existing general aviation fleet. Congress authorized $6 million for the fiscal year 2014 budget to support the PAFI test program at the FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center. " The alternative fuel should be a drop-in type of fuel so that when you use it, you don't know that you're using a different fuel. " TIM SHEA, AVIATION GASOLINE DEVELOPMENT MANAGER, SHELL

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