An aircraft has a fuel tank 50 which provides fuel to a gas turbine engine 10, an input of calorific value data for fuel available for refuelling the aircraft is received, preferably by a fuel tracking system 203. Independently, the calorific value of fuel supplied to the gas turbine engine in use, and/or the calorific value of the fuel provided to the aircraft on refuelling, is determined. An alert is generated if the determined calorific value is inconsistent with the received calorific value data. Determining the calorific value of the fuel provided to the aircraft may: use a fuel testing unit provided off-wing at a refuelling site; be performed during aircraft operations prior to take-off; burn fuel taken from the tank in an auxiliary power unit; be based upon monitored engine parameters during a time period; identify a tracer in the fuel and lookup a corresponding calorific value; be inferred from a physical or chemical fuel property. The input of calorific value data may be received via a user interface or communicated electronically to the aircraft. Checking the calorific value of the fuel may be particularly relevant for aircraft engines which use a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) rather than kerosene.
Calorific value
2023-11-22
Patent
Electronic Resource
English
Definitions of calorific value of fuels
Engineering Index Backfile | 1961
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