KEROJET® AQUARIUS®

Innovative Water Scavenger Additive for Jet Fuel

The aviation industry continues to look for solutions that reduce the costs of maintenance and improve environmental compliance. Operators spend millions of dollars every year dealing with the consequences of water that accumulates in the fuel systems of their aircrafts. Regular water draining and the potential hazards of corrosion and ice formation in the fuel tanks are some of the more serious consequences of this problem.

KEROJET^® AQUARIUS^® is a unique, cost effective and easy-to-use additive that for the first time eliminates the problems caused by the accumulation of water in aircraft fuel tanks. 

KEROJET^® AQUARIUS^® is approved for use in jet fuel specified against ASTM 1655 and ASTM 7566.

Drainage of Aviation Fuel Tank

KEROJET^® AQUARIUS^® – Innovative Chemistry

• AQUARIUS^® encapsulates the water naturally present in the fuel by forming a molecular “cage” or micelle structure around the water molecules.
• There are no chemical reactions in the fuel – neither with AQUARIUS^® nor with water.
• The AQUARIUS^® micelle will ONLY encapsulate the water (H₂O) molecule.

Water is removed from the aircraft’s fuel tank during the regular combustion process in the turbine.

A critical safety and maintenance parameter

KEROJET^® AQUARIUS^® marks a milestone in improving both flight safety and aircraft usage. Time consuming and expensive stop overs in maintenance can be avoided, thereby increasing aircraft utilization and making the operation more cost effective. Beyond that, potential hazards of ice formation and corrosion are minimized. 

Significant Temperatures (Source UK AAIB)

•  Water ice forms (-1 to -3°C)
•  Sticky range (-8 to -20°C)
•  Ice starts to adhere to metal (-9°C)
•  Ice at most stickiness (-12°C)
•  Ice adheres strongly to metal surfaces (-17°C)
•  Ice takes on a more crystalline appearance below (-20°C)
•  Ice lacks the properties to bridge orifices (-25°C)
•  Spontaneous formation of ice crystals from super-cooled water (-24°C)
• Lowest temperature at which super-cooled water can exist in aviation fuel (-51°C)

DSC Results


Differential scanning calorimetry or DSC is a thermoanalytical technique used to identify the phase of a material. DSC measures the energy required to affect a consistent change in the temperature of the sample. Phase changes can be identified through variations in the energy level required to maintain a consistent temperature gradient.

Samples of fuel containing AQUARIUS^® with and without the presence of dissolved water indicate no phase change untilthe wax point of the fuel is reached at around -55ºC.

Samples of fuel without AQUARIUS^® clearly indicate a phase change at much higher temperatures as the water comes out of solution and starts to form ice.

 

Corrosion

Any large fuel system where quantities of undissolved water accumulate can suffer problems due to an increased risk of corrosion. This can occur inside the fuel tank and, more seriously, in the critical downstream engine components.

The innovative KEROJET^® AQUARIUS^® micelles effectively bind the water molecules into the fuel. Once trapped inside the micelle, the water molecules are not able to contribute to the corrosion of parts immersed in the fuel.