DRDC Atlantic Emerging Materials Section Develops Innovative Optical Technology for Determining the Concentration of Icing Inhibitor in Aviation Fuels

25 January 2005

Due to the extreme environments in which military aircraft are forced to fly, the addition of fuel system icing inhibitor (FSII) to aviation turbine fuels to combat the detrimental effects of suspended and free water in the fuel is a critical requirement. The new Fuel Ice Inhibitor Supplement Analytical Refractometer (FI²SAR), developed by DRDC Atlantic, is an exciting, more efficient method for detecting the level of FSII in aviation turbine fuels.

FSII, which has a preferential solubility for water, combines with free water in the aviation fuel at low temperature to prevent it from forming ice crystals, which can block fuel supply lines and restrict or cut off fuel flow to engines. The traditional test method for determining the concentration of this icing inhibitor, the B2 Kit, requires a large volume fuel extraction and the use of a hand held refractometer. The FI²SAR reduces the volume of fuel required from 160 to 5.0 milliliters (mL), reducing both health and environmental risk from spillage.

The Quality Engineering Test Establishment in Gatineau PQ., the Technical Authority for aviation products for the CF, has evaluated FI²SAR and determined it to be “a technique of exceptional scientific status, which is sufficiently accurate to stand alone in the determination of FSII”. The FI²SAR system, which is auto-corrected for temperature, uses a novel micro-controller computer to drive its optical components and interface to the user. The system is small, compact and able to run on a single 9V battery for periods in excess of one year. It features a sealed keyboard and LCD display and is built into a rugged Pelican 1120 protective case.

In 1997 Marentec Inc. of Dartmouth, under contract to DRDC Atlantic and Mr. Randy Haggett of the Emerging Materials Section of DRDC Atlantic, developed an optical technology to measure the concentration of solutions of aqueous film forming foam (AFFF) used for fighting fuel fires.

The technology termed PHASAR (Portable Hand Held Aqueous Solution Analytical Refractometer) was an electro-optical refractometer capable of resolving extremely small index of refraction variations. In 2003 it was felt that the PHASAR technology, patented by the crown, could be adapted for other applications such as the measurement of FSII in aviation fuels. This led to the development of the FI²SAR.

The FI²SAR is presently being evaluated by the United States Naval Air Systems Command in Patuxent River, Maryland and following field trials will be presented to both ASTM and CGSB for adoption as an alternative test method to the B2 Kit. Marentec Inc., who has licensed the technology from DRDC Atlantic, is presently in negotiations with a major US manufacturer of aviation fuel test equipment to manufacture and market FI²SAR worldwide. It’s estimated that the annual sales of the FI²SAR system will number approximately 300 units.