Fuel System

Gravity Feed System Fuel Pump System

Fuel Related Problems

Pre-ignition
Causes
 Premature burning is usually caused by a residual hot spot in the combustion chamber, often created by
a small carbon deposit on a spark plug

 Using a lower than prescribed octane rating

Detonation

Causes
 Use of a lower fuel grade than that specified by the aircraft manufacturer.
 Operation of the engine with extremely high manifold pressures in conjunction with low
rpm.
 Operation of the engine at high power settings with an excessively lean mixture.
 Maintaining extended ground operations or steep climbs in which cylinder cooling is
reduced.

 Avoiding Detonation
 Keep cowl flaps open on the ground
 Proper Grade of Fuel to be Used
 Use rich fuel settings during takeoff and initial climb
 Avoid high power, and steep climb.
Fuel Contamination Due to Condensation

Solution
 Refilling the fuel tanks to full levels at the end of each day.
    
Fuel Type
AVGAS 80
•Has a Very low lead content
•Only suitable for low compression engines
•Red in colour
AVGAS 100
•High lead content
•Used on high compression engines
•Green in colour
AVGAS 100LL
•Contains a Low lead content
•Blue in colour

Fuel are “Dyed” to change their color for distinction

Fuel Grade
 Omni Specific Fuel Used: Petron Blaze 100 octane.
 Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) issued by the Federal Aviation
Administration
 “If the proper grade of fuel is not available, use the next higher grade as a
substitute “
Fuel Type
 MOGAS (Motor Gasoline)
 Cheaper than AVGAS
 It tends to cause vapour locks in pipelines at high temperature and altitudes
 Carbureted engines using this fuel are more susceptible to carburetor icing
 It has low lead content which can lead to pre-ignition and detonation
 Low Compression Engine – Uses Low Fuel Grades (ignites at lower temp.) High
Compression Engine – Uses High Fuel Grades (ignites at higher temp.)
 “If the proper grade of fuel is not available, use the next higher grade as a
substitute “
 Omni Specific Fuel Used: Petron Blaze 100 octane.
 Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) issued by the Federal Aviation Administration
Fuel Injection System
Fuel pump - provides fuel from the tanks to the FCU
Auxiliary fuel pump(electrical) – provides fuel under pressure to the fuel/air
control unit for engine starting and/or emergency use
Engine Driven Fuel Pump – used after starting the engine, and provides the fuel
to the fuel/air control unit

FCU(fuel control unit) - replaces the carburetor, meters fuel based on the
mixture control setting, and sends it to the fuel manifold valve at a rate
controlled by the throttle.
Fuel manifold valve- distributes the mixture to individual nozzles
Discharge nozzles – atomize fuel into fine mist and inject the fuel/air mixture
directly into each cylinder intake port
Throttle Valve- controls airflow to the engine
Metering Fuel valve- controls fuel flow going in the manifold valve via throttle
control. Provides correct air/fuel ratio
Mixture control Valve- connected to mixture control lever. Regulates amount of
fuel entering the system
Fuel pressure gauge- allows mixture to be adjusted according to altitude and
power setting
Vapor Lock
 Prominent in fuel injected aircraft after shutting down a hot engine.
 Atomized fuel (sprayed by the intake nozzles) evaporates into the fuel lines,
preventing fuel from reaching the engine during start-up.
 Solution: Use of the auxiliary fuel pump.