This Jet Fuel Substitute (That’s Not Hydrogen) Could Pave Way For Cleaner Skies

As researchers look into the possibility of cleaner skies, as with the numerous innovations involving hydrogen-powered fuel, a team at the University of California, Riverside, has come up with a new substance that could result in less emissions: ammonia borane.

While hydrogen is one of the best options for a zero-emissions flight, it requires significant storage space when condensed into a cryogenic liquid. Not to mention, it’s difficult and dangerous to handle.

According to New Atlas, that’s where boron-based fuel comes in. In the 1950s, the US Air Force and Navy were exploring ways for aircraft to fly farther and faster, looking for a source of fuel that would be both cost-effective and easy to use.

This search resulted in fuels created from boron, called boranes, which were developed in ‘Project Zip’.

However, the borane fuels weren’t as successful as anticipated. As they are solid at room temperature and burn at a higher temperature, the substance had to be mixed with hydrocarbon-based fuels to work. Furthermore, the fuels produced a sticky waste product that clogged up engines, and wasn’t easily removed during cleaning. Hence, the project was binned sometime in 1959.

Now, scientists are looking into a way to use boranes as fuels without the need for mixtures or catalysts. 

One way to achieve this is by forming the borane into nanoparticles and burning it together with  oxidizers potassium perchlorate (KClOâ‚„) or ammonium perchlorate (NHâ‚„ClOâ‚„) for a quicker release of energy.

“Here, we were able to create more complete combustion of the chemicals and increase the energy of the entire reaction by using the chemistry of the oxidizer itself, without needing a catalyst,” explained Pankaj Ghildiyal, PHD student at the University of Maryland.

Moving forward, the team will look into a protective coating for the particles, as they tend to degrade quickly in humid environments.

“We’ve determined the fundamental chemistry that powers this fuel and oxidizer combination. Now we are looking forward to seeing how it performs at large scale,” said Prithwish Biswas, leader of the team at UC Riverside.

[via New Atlas and UC Riverside, cover image via Frenc | Dreamstime.com]