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	Aviation jet fuel filtration test facility

The aviation jet fuel filtration test facility at Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) is currently the only independent and unbiased source for developing and evaluating aviation fuel filtration systems. Our state-of-the-art equipment, facilities, and knowledgeable staff offer comprehensive services for filtration manufacturers, distributors, and users, including:

• Developing innovative filtration media and systems

• Performing equipment qualification and validation services

• Developing and validating filtration procedures and methods

• Providing field analysis and contamination assessment services

For more than 40 years, SwRI has conducted aviation fuel research and testing, continually improving capabilities, facilities, and equipment. The SwRI Fuels and Lubricants Division has achieved certification to ISO 9001 and 14001, ensuring compliance with stringent quality control procedures in design, development, testing, and environmental management.

	A single-element test rig is used to perform a wide range of tests; left, a technician tests a coalescer/separator system; above, a filtration failure is shown releasing test dust into the fuel stream.

Research and Development

With broad capabilities in materials science, engine design and development, and fuel and lubricant technologies, SwRI offers aviation filtration manufacturers, suppliers, and users a single resource for engineering services such as:

• Long-term materials compatibility design

• Pipeline and hydrant design and modeling

• Hydrodynamic and flow simulations

• Component and equipment performance testing

Engineers evaluate filters and other components to determine the cause of failure. Visual inspection of filters and housings is often required to solve problems in the field.

Technical Services

	Filters are complex products, consisting of several layers of material designed to remove particulate and water contamination from fuel.

Single-element and full-scale system tests are performed on aviation filters, coalescers, separators, monitors, and microfilters to ensure compliance with national and international specifications according to API (American Petroleum Institute) and IP (Institute of Petroleum) specifications, including:

• Specification 1581 for aviation jet fuel filter and jet fuel separators

• Specification 1583 for aviation jet fuel monitors and absorbent-type elements

• Specification 1590 for aviation jet fuel microfilters

SwRI also performs tests according to military specifications such as MIL-PRF-52308J.

Qualification Testing

	Filtration is used during refueling to ensure clean fuel is being pumped into the aircraft.
	Particulate measurements are obtained during the evaluations to determine the filtration performance of the test filters.

Filtration manufacturers qualify their products to meet national and international specifications. The SwRI aviation filtration facility is an independent laboratory that provides the aviation industry with unbiased and accurate results.

Field Analysis and Contamination Assessment

Filters frequently encounter unknown contaminants or harsh operating conditions, resulting in filter failure. The Aviation Filtration Facility can simulate a wide range of conditions to duplicate the problem and determine the causes of the difficulty, and our staff can visit your site to assess conditions that may contribute to filter or component failure.

Laboratory Support

In addition to the Aviation Filtration Facility, SwRI has extensive laboratory facilities to provide technical support for standard testing or research and development programs. Available equipment includes:

• Automated tensiometer

• Microseparatometer

• Scanning electron microscopes

• Particle counters

For more information about the development and testing of aviation fuel filters capabilities at SwRI or how you can contract with SwRI, please contact Gary B. Bessee at gbessee@swri.org or (210) 522-6941.

| Fuels and Lubricants Technology Department | Fuels and Lubricants Research Division | SwRI Home |

Southwest Research Institute^® (SwRI^®), headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, is a multidisciplinary, independent, nonprofit, applied engineering and physical sciences research and development organization with 12 technical divisions.

October 29, 2009