Energy & Fuels, Vol.32, No.2, 1336-1339, 2018
Estimation of Static Dissipater Additives in Aviation Turbine Fuels Using ASTM D7524 and ASTM D2624: Observation, Precautions, and Suggestions Thereof
Static dissipater additives (SDAs) are conductivity improver additives that are added to aviation turbine fuels (ATFs) to avoid sudden increase in conductivity that may occur during transfer/pumping of ATF. STADIS 450 has been used globally as the SDA in aviation jet A1. The dosage of SDA into jet fuels is very closely specified (1-3 ppm). Due to surface active nature, SDA dosage may deplete with time. The monitoring of concentration of SDA is very critical and is generally carried out using conductivity measurement as per ASTM D2624 or as per liquid chromatographic technique based ASTM D7524 method entitled in "Determination of static dissipater additive (SDA) in aviation turbine fuel using HPLC technique with UV detector in the range of 1 to 12 ppm". In this work, SDA blended ATFs in the range of 1-5 ppm have been analyzed for estimation of SDAs using both HPLC based ASTM D7524 and conductivity measurement based ASTM D2624. This paper suggests precautions that need to be taken while using the two methods. The work also recommends suggestions that can make the ASTM D7524 findings more specific and precise and ensures better recoveries. While the initial procedures were adopted from ASTM D7524, multiple collections during cartridge extraction process and use of HPLC with photodiode detector instead of UV detector bring down the detection level to 0.5 ppm of SDA in ATF.