BASF and Lufthansa have successfully started the In-Service-Evaluation (ISE) for BASF’s new water scavenger additive for jet fuel – Kerojet® Aquarius. The ISE marks an important step in the commercialization for this innovative additive.
In the course of the ISE, BASF’s additive solution is used on designated flight routes on Airbus air planes. On July 24, the ISE started successfully with an Airbus A340-600 between Munich and San Francisco. The advantage of the additive is that cost intensive measures to extract water at mandatory intervals can be reduced as water accumulation will be minimized. In addition, time consuming and expensive stop overs in maintenance can be avoided, thereby increasing aircraft utilization and making the operation more cost effective.
“The implementation of Kerojet® Aquarius will constitute a milestone in improving both flight safety and aircraft usage. Applying Aquarius will avoid the presence of ice in wing tanks and further improves the margins of safety”, says Thorsten Lange, Head of Fuel Purchasing Lufthansa Group.
Kerojet® Aquarius is a unique and easy-to-use performance additive that supports water management in aircraft fuel systems as a critical safety and maintenance parameter for airlines. Kerojet® Aquarius disperses the water contained in kerosene, respectively the fuel tank, and the water is removed from the aircraft’s fuel tank during the normal combustion process in the turbine.
BASF and Lufthansa expect the full details of the ISE to be available by the end of the year, after which the broader commercialization of Kerojet® Aquarius is expected to start.