Aviation Fuel Quality Control

Keep Them Flying!

An Overview of Fuel Quality

Control Guidelines and Test Equipment

By Gammon Technical Products, Inc.

 Standards
ATA-103 (Airlines)
NFPA-407 (Fire Safety)
Your Oil Company
Airline Specific Policy
ASTM Manual 5
FAA
Even Professionals Make Mistakes
The Old Way Reed Fuller

DART
 What Do You Do When You
Have A QC Problem?
 Eliminate Any Risks
 Fix the Problem
 Educate Your People

But everybody will avoid calling the

Associated Press, and that is why you rarely
hear of problems at other locations, but
believe it, there are problems!
What is Our #1 Job?
 To put the correct clean, dry, unadulterated fuel
into the correct aircraft
 To do the job safely
 To prevent fire
 To prevent spills
 To follow the QC program and make sure others
do also
 To properly operate and maintain the equipment
 To always be on the lookout for potential
problems
Utilize the Latest Equipment

Velcon VF-1
Rampmaster .2

Grounding Cable
Truck Internal Valves
 NFPA 407
 Precheck even if Scully is used
 Make sure emergency shutoff closes
valve
 Do not use truck unless internal
valve operates properly
 Quality Control is:
 Having the Correct Equipment
 Tests and Procedures - To ATA-103,ASTM API
and Other Standards
 A Pain in the Butt
 Making Sure You Don’t Damage the Aircraft
 Not a Profit Center
 An Indispensable Policy That Must Permeate Your
Entire Company From The Top to the Bottom
Covering Personnel, Environmental and Flight
Safety
 MOST IMPORTANTLY It must be followed!
Make sure the
paperwork matches
the aircraft?

Do You Check Your

People to Make Sure
The Paperwork System is
Being Followed?

Worn Equipment Is
a Sign Of Use!
LOOKING FOR CHANGES

The Key to Quality Control is to take note of

anything out of the ordinary. Even if the
results are still within “acceptable” limits, a
sudden change to any characteristic or the
performance of any piece of equipment may
indicate a serious problem

Testing and Sampling is Meant to

Find Little Problems Before They
Become Big Ones!
 Changes To Look For
 Any and All Test Results -Even if the Results are “Acceptable”
 “Too Good” or “Too Consistent” Results (Pencil whipping)
 Outside of Prefilter Elements
 Inside of Coalescer Elements
 Strainers Nozzle - Coffee grounds and metal shreds????
 Differential Pressure / Flow Rate
 White Buckets - All Aspects, color, odor, haze, “lace”, water, etc.
 Membrane Test Time
 Paperwork
 Labor Times for Inspection Employees
 Equipment Appearance
 DID YOU MAKE A CHANGE? - Nozzle pressure changes with hose
length or size!
 True?
A check is in the mail
I’ll love you in the morning
We only use dedicated tractor trailers
Our pipeline always makes perfect “cuts”
Our equipment never breaks down
Our membranes are always A-0
We never see any differential pressure
We never have any water in our fuel
In 20 years we’ve never had a problem
====up until now===
 Receiving Fuel
The Most Overlooked Aspect of
Fuel Quality Control
Oh, you're the picky guys.
(Actually said by a terminal employee.)

Jet Fuel, Avgas, same thing, right

(Actually said by a transport truck driver.)

One Rejected Load Was Actually

Delivered to the Next Door FBO
Pumping Fuel Into Storage
 Stick Tank to Make  Check the Filter
Sure You Have Room Sump after
 Sump any Water Unloading
From Tank and Filter  Check Tank Volume
FIRST  Net Gallons will vary!
 Monitor Differential  Record the Data
Pressure on Filter
 Sample the Fuel
With MiniMonitor or
Millipore Tester
 White Bucket Test
 Color - Jet Consistent and NOT Pink!
 Odor
 Haze / Cloudiness
 Liquid water in the bottom of the bucket
 Spill coffee, food coloring or other water based liquid in
to be sure the bucket isn’t pure water
 Particles or Debris
 Filmy or lace- like floating material
 Anything else different from the usual
 Fuel Should be Clear and Bright - No Visible
Contamination
CLOUDY FUEL OBSERVED WHILE PERFORMING A WHITE PORCELAIN
BUCKET TEST INDICATES ENTRAINED WATER, SURFACTANT OR BOTH
CLEAR WHITE BUCKET SAMPLE INDICATING NO WATER
OR PARTICULATES. USE ANY COIN.
A Jar Makes An
Inexpensive Test Device
For Detecting Haze
Is There Water In The Bottom?
Spill In a Little Coffee or Food Coloring

And Water is More Distinct

Haze is
Free
Water
0.75”, 2” and 3” bottles with 100PPM of water
Accurate
Hydrometer
Readings
(Mercury Issue)

Spin the
hydrometer gently
Do not allow it to
touch the jar
Keep it clean
 A
Centering
Device
Can Make
Correct
Readings
Easier
When You Raise Your View To Be Level With
The Surface This Will Indicate API 43.5
Indicated API 40.3
Using A Spill-Over Type
Hydrometer Jar
If You Read 43.5 at 81.6 degrees F
2. Read corrected API at 60 F mar
3. Result is API gravity
1. Align measured fuel temperature
at 60 F of 41.65
against measured API
 “Normal”
Contaminants in Aviation Fuels

 Dirt  Pieces of Burst Filters

 Dust (From Tank  Tank Lining Paint Chips
Vents)  Other fuels
 Rust  Microorganisms
 Water (Lots of Water!)  Rubber from failed
 Surfactants hose

And MUCH More!

 Real Contamination in Aviation Fuels

 Lavatory “Blue Fluid”  Transmission Fluid

 Fuel Oil  Insects
 Fertilizer  Caustic Soda
 Outlet Prist Can  Gloves
Tubes  Rags
 Lizards  Eyeglasses
 Dead Birds  Fish
 Sand  Bolts / Other
 Metal Shavings Hardware
 What is the Most Common Way
Gross Water Gets into Aircraft?

Through the Vent or Roof of

the Refueler Truck
Keep Rain
Drains Clear

Any Leak Can

Let Rainwater
Into The Tank

When The Vent

Opens Any
Standing Water
Will Enter the
Tank!
The Drain Lines
Should Be Transparent
Plastic So You Can
Inspect For Debris
 Water in Aviation Fuels
 DISSOLVED WATER  UNDISSOLVED WATER
 Like Humidity in Air  Free Water
 Cannot be Measured  Like Fog
With Field Equipment  In Tank Bottoms
 Cannot be Removed  Slugs
by Filtration  Can be Removed By
 1 PPM per Degree Filtration
Fahrenheit  Will Settle From Fuel

Aquarius Additive – 2 to 5 years away

Water - Bio - CI/LI – FSII/Prist
What Is A Part Per Million?
1 Gallon Per Million Gallons
1/10,000 of 1 percent

A Properly Operating Filter Separator or

Monitor Will Remove Water Down to NO
MORE THAN 5 PPM!
Detecting Free Water In Fuel
 VISUAL - Haze is Visible at 30 ppm
 Velcon Hydrokit - Water Detector 15 or 30 ppm
 Shell Water - Detector 15 or 30 ppm
 Metrocator - Spotted Paper Indication
 AquaGlo Water Detector - An Instrument For
Measuring Water
 Water Finding Paste? NO! Only For Water Level
In A Tank Bottom
 Water Probe? Only for detecting water in sumps
As Required by ASTM and API for Measuring Free Water

Manufactured Under
The Aqua-Glo Water Detector Kit License From Exxon

A Free Video On Calibration and Use is Available - Just Call 800-524-0287

MICROBIAL CONTAMINATION
FOUND IN THE AIR AS SPORES
FOUND MAINLY IN WATER
SIDE OF TANK WALL
WATER IN TANK BIRD BATHS
IT CAN TRAVEL
FILTRATION EQUIPMENT
AIRCRAFT FUEL TANKS
REMEDY/BIOCIDES
 Dirt In Aviation Fuel

An 87 or 9 Series Coalescer Element Will Remove

About 99% of Particles over 1/3 Micron
MiniMonitor Particulate Detector
to ASTM D2276

Bonding And Grounding

Hose Assembly
What is Bonding and Grounding?
Bonding is connecting two parts
Grounding is connecting those parts to earth

The purpose of bonding and/or grounding is to

neutralize sparks between items before
and during operations

MOST IMPORTANT
Bonding aircraft during refueling
Bonding and grounding ALL other operations

NFPA-407 2001 Actually forbids grounding of refueler

trucks in direct refueling
 F-15 Hangar Problem
 Auto-Fire
suppression shut
off after
inadvertent
release
 Explosion during
defueling in open
air from wing tank
 They couldn’t be
convinced that
bonding was
necessary
 They agree now
Ground to Pipe,
NOT Fitting as Our New QD Will NOT Spray Fuel!
Shown!

Flow
A Ball Valve Will Aid in
Operation In High
Pressurized Systems

Turn Valve to TEST Position to Flow

Fuel Through the Plastic Monitor
 Maintain The
Bond to the
Bucket!

Flow 1 or 3 Gallons of Fuel Into the Bucket

Ask Your Fuel Supplier or Airline How Much
Draw Excess Fuel From Monitor - Observe
the Membrane for Unusual Color
Remove the Membrane - Dispose of
the Thicker Backup Pad
Undated Books or Books Dated 1981 Or Older Are No
Longer Approved Under ASTM
The ATA
Standard Color
Chart With
Particulate Chart
 Evaluation Of Membranes
GTP Rule of Thumb

Dry Color Should Be Less Than a “3”. A 2 Is Cause For

Concern
If You See a Membrane Different From Your Usual Scale
(For Example, You Usually Get an “A-2” and Suddenly Get a
G-2) This May Indicate A Serious Contamination Problem
If You Get a Sudden Dark Membrane, Run a Test Before
and After the Filter. Look For a Change.
You Can Run The Test With Two Membranes. If The Bottom
Membrane Has Color, This is “Color Bodies”, Which May
Not Be a Problem
Replacement Plastic
Monitors
Replacement
Membranes
Save Money

Reload Your Old

Plastic Monitors
Properly Label
ALL Equipment
Especially
Emergency
Controls
We have a free Test Procedure and Certificate
When The Test Valve Is Operated, The Piston
Should Move Smoothly To The Bottom Of the
Scale.
If It Moves Smoothly But Slowly, You May Need
A New Filter.

If It Moves In Jumps, Or Does Not Move To

The Bottom Of The Scale, Clean The Glass And
Piston With Scotch-Brite

Return The Valve To The Normal Position, Stop

Flow. The Piston Should Return To Zero. If Not,
Clean The Tube And Piston, If This Does Not
Solve The Problem, Replace The Spring

This Pushbutton Tester Is Simple, Inexpensive

And Includes A Pressure Relief Valve
Flushing New Fuel Hoses
 Repeated soak and dispose
 Once fluid is clear
 Minimum 500 gallon recirculation
flush

The interior of a hose is called the tube. This tube must

be conditioned. No brand of hose is exempt. If a
Salesman Says His Hose Doesn’t Need Flushing THROW
HIM OUT!
 Testing Your Equipment
 Make Sure the Water Detector Works
 Make Sure the Deadman Works
 Make Sure the Emergency Stop Works
 Makes Sure the “Nozzle Pressure” Gauge is Accurate at
Both No Flow and Full Flow
 Make Sure The Fire Extinguisher is OK
 Inspect the Hose Exterior for Wear
 Check For Leaks
 Check the Grounding/Bonding Reel
 TEST DRIVE the vehicle to test interlocks
3-Lug Adapters and Nozzles
 Check Aircraft for missing lugs
 Check Aircraft for excessive wear
 Includes: Slots, Lugs and Seal Area
 Check Nozzle for proper fit, proper
condition
 Look for leakage or movement
 Look for slippage of hose at ferrule (API-
1529 Requirement for paint mark!)
Filter Separators - EI/IP/API-1581

Vessel/Filter Filter element

combination MUST meet new 1581
5th Edition unless excepted

New Requirement – Flat Bottom

vessels must have slope unless
excepted

Corrected DP – How on Hydrant

System? Gammon FR Meter coming
soon (Max flow, Pipe size, orifice
size)
What is Coming in the Future!

BP Kerostat 8118 = to Stadis 450 (Almost there)

Aquarius (777 +others approval testing needed)
Synthetic Jet Blend 50:50 (issues)
Bio Jet Fuel (cost/issues)
Bio Contaminant Detection 100 ppm Pipeline)
FSII reduction 25% eventually to 400 ppm
 End
Thank You
Gammon Technical Products, Inc
2013