INFLUENCE OF SYNTHETIC FUELON NITRILE RUBBERSUSED IN AVIATION

Abstract

Thispaper investigates the influence of alternative fuel on selected butadiene–acrylonitrile rubbersused as seals in engine and fuel supply systems of post-Soviet aircrafts. The conventional fuel Jet A-1, the synthetic blending component from hydrotreated esters and fatty acids (HEFA) and its blendwereinteracted with the sample nitrile rubbers.HEFAtechnology has been approved by ASTM D7655 for use in turbine aircraft engines. The effect was evaluated on the basis of changes in the nitrile rubber’s volume, mass and hardness. It has been confirmed that the synthetic component containing no aromatic hydrocarbons has a different effect on nitrile rubberthan the conventional fuel. When thenitrile rubberswere subjected to microscopic observations,the most frequently observed effect waswashing out or dissolving of nitrile rubbersurface fragments.

Keywords

• nitrile rubber
• synthetic fuel
• hefa
• seal swelling