U.S. Army TARDEC Fuels and Lubricants Research Facility

In 2007, the U.S. Army TARDEC Fuels and Lubricants Research Facility (TFLRF) celebrated its fiftieth year of operation at Southwest Research Institute (SwRI). The facility functions as an extension of the U.S. Army Tank Automotive and Armaments Command (TACOM) Petroleum and Water Business Area in Warren, Mich. Augmented by the diverse staff and modern facilities at SwRI, TFLRF conducts fuels and lubricants research for:

• U.S. Army

• Department of Defense

• Department of Energy

• Other government agencies such as DARPA

• Commercial clients

The capabilities of the TFLRF range from fundamental investigations to field validation testing and rapid response problem solving.
 

U.S. Army TARDEC Fuels and Lubricants Research Facility Laboratory Equipment

The U.S. Army built the facility at SwRI as a stand-alone laboratory complex with capabilities for engine testing and analytical chemistry experiments. These capabilities parallel, on a smaller scale, the commercial capabilities available in the SwRI Engine Lubricants Research and Petroleum Products Research Departments. As the partnership between the Army and SwRI evolved, the Army increasingly has depended on the Institute?s commercial facilities for the more standardized evaluations, and the TFLRF became more focused on custom projects.
 

Turbine Combustion Capabilities of the TFLRF

TFLRF houses a unique turbine combustion capability sized around the Army T-63 gas turbine engine to:

• Support turbine combustion research focused on fuel impacts on emissions and combustion system component durability

• Simulate the combustion section of the T-63 or other small gas turbines, or can run sectors from larger engines

An outgrowth from the combustor work is a series of bench-scale facilities for assessing the formation of fuel-derived deposits on turbine engine atomizers and other fuel system components. Fuel-derived deposits are the leading cause of turbine engine overhaul, and the facility has developed a number of techniques to assess the propensity of fuels to form deposits and to evaluate engine hardware for deposition tendencies.
 

In addition to gasoline engine test stands, the TFLRF houses a number of diesel fuel injection system test stands to evaluate the impact of the following on injection system wear:

• Low lubricity fuels

• Fuel additives

• Alternative fuel formulations

Using a number of bench wear test devices as well as full scale engine hardware, the laboratory is continuing to conduct research on fuel lubricity and other fuel issues affecting diesel fuel injection system durability. Fluid filtration is becoming increasingly critical to engine durability as a result of high-pressure injection systems. Filtration for both ground and aviation vehicle systems is particularly critical for military operations in high dust environments. The TARDEC facility maintains capabilities for assessing the performance of fuel filters and water separators, including an SwRI-owned facility for assessing pipeline scale filtration performance.
 

For more information about the TARDEC Facility at SwRI, contact Steven D. Marty at (210) 522-5929.