Evaluating Sustainable Aviation Fuel Emissions in Turbine Engines: Organic Pollutant Composition and Potential Health Implications for Aviation Industry Workers
Abstract Description: The urgent need to reduce aviation's environmental footprint has accelerated the transition to Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAFs). As this transition is taking place and growing, understanding the complete emissions profile of SAFs and associated health implications of SAF emissions is important. While extensive research has focused on SAFs' carbon reduction potential and engine performance, the detailed characterization of the organic pollutant emissions with exhaust of aircraft engines burning SAFs and the occupational health implications for aviation workers regularly exposed to these emissions remains largely unexplored. This study systematically examines the organic pollutant composition of SAF emissions from aircraft engines and evaluates potential occupational health risks to aviation workers. This study employs a high-pressure lab-scale jet fuel combustor that simulates actual aircraft engine combustion conditions. The combustor enables precise replication of real-world combustion while overcoming the logistical and safety constraints of full-scale aircraft engine testing. The reference fuels are SAFs that represent diverse chemical production pathways that are currently accepted and available in the market such as ATJ-SPK (Alcohol-to-Jet Synthetic Paraffinic Kerosene) and FT-SPK (Fischer-Tropsch Synthetic Paraffinic Kerosene). Exhaust sampling is performed using a spatially averaged 3-prong collector probe and the Series 110B Spot Sampler™ aerosol particle collector. Particle size distribution of nanoparticles and fine particles are measured in real time using a Fast Mobility Particle Sizer (FMPS). The TRACE GC Ultra, Gas Chromatographer-Mass Spectrophotometer (GC-MS) and Beckman Coulter System Gold 126 solvent module High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) are used to separate the individual gaseous compounds in the mix of VOCs and non-volatile (at room temperature) organic compounds within complex mixtures of air pollutant blends to determine the composition of hazardous pollutants in the bulk fuel used for the field experiments. Through detailed chemical analysis and exposure assessment, this research provides essential insights into the occupational health aspects of aviation industry’s gradual transition to SAFs, addressing a significant oversight in current aviation sustainability initiatives.
