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Fuel Vent Fire Protection

AC 25.975-1 · FAA

Public domain · FAAAdvisory Circulars

Overview

The Fuel Vent Fire Protection (AC 25.975-1) is a public-domain FAA advisory circular, republished here as a free chaptered HTML edition with a linked table of contents and the official PDF.

Publisher
FAA
Document
AC 25.975-1
Pages
20
Chapters
4

Key points

  • This advisory circular (AC) provides guidance on compliance with FAA regulations regarding flame arrestors to prevent fuel tank explosions.
  • The guidance is applicable to airplane manufacturers, modifiers, foreign regulatory authorities, and FAA certification engineers.
  • Flame arrestors are recommended as an effective means to delay flame propagation into fuel tanks during post-crash scenarios.
  • The AC outlines acceptable means of compliance, including flame arrestors, fuel tank inerting systems, and fire suppression systems.
  • The installation of flame arrestors may affect fuel tank vent performance and must be evaluated for various operational conditions.
Frequently asked questions
What is the purpose of this advisory circular?

The purpose of this advisory circular is to provide information and guidance concerning compliance with FAA requirements for preventing fuel tank explosions caused by ignition of vapors outside the fuel tank vents.

Who is the intended audience for this AC?

The guidance in this AC is intended for airplane manufacturers, modifiers, foreign regulatory authorities, and FAA transport airplane type certification engineers and their designees.

What are the acceptable means of compliance mentioned in the AC?

Acceptable means of compliance include flame arrestors in fuel tank vents, fuel tank inerting systems, fuel tank pressurization systems, and fire suppression systems.

What does the AC say about the effectiveness of flame arrestors?

The AC states that flame arrestors may not be effective against ignition caused by lightning strikes, as high-speed pressure waves can bypass them without sufficient time for heat transfer.

Does this AC impose mandatory requirements?

No, the material in this AC is not mandatory or regulatory in nature; it describes acceptable means for showing compliance but does not create additional regulatory requirements.

Appendix A

06/24/16 AC 25.975-1 Appendix A Appendix A. Example of Calculation for Fuel-to-Air Ratio Table A-1. Combustion Properties of Hexane Property Value Heat of Combustion, BTU/lb. 19,200 Molecular weight 86.17 Limits of inflammability in air (% by volume) percent: Lower 1.2 Upper 7.4 Flash point -7 °F Boiling point 156 °F Auto-ignition temperature 433 °F Vapor pressure at 70 °F (psia) 2.5 Note: The combustion of hexane and oxygen is written as: 2 𝐶 𝐻 + 19 𝑂 = 14 𝐻 𝑂 + 12 𝐶𝑂 6 14 2 2 2 For every 2 moles of hexane consumed, 19 moles of oxygen are required for complete combustion with no residual oxygen. Thus, 172.34 gm of hexane require 19 x 32.00 = 608 gm of oxygen or 2627.48 gm of air, which is 23.14 percent by weight oxygen.

Hence, the weight of air to weight of hexane required for stoichiometric burning (i.e., complete combustion of hexane with no excess oxygen) is 15.24. A 1.15 fraction of stoichiometric mixture of air and hexane has an air-to-fuel weight ratio of: 2627.48 = 13.2 1.15 × 172.34 Table A-2. Fuel-to-Air Mixtures for Flame Arrestor Tests Condition JP - 4 Percent JP - 4 Fuel/Air Hexane Percent Hexane Fuel/Air by Volume Mass Ratio by Volume Mass Ratio Lean limit 0.90 0.035 1.3 0.04 Between lean limit and 1.10 0.045 1.7 0.05 stoichiometric Stoichiometric 1.58 0.065 2.2 0.0658 1.15 Stoichiometric 1.82 0.074 2.5 0.07567 Between stoichiometric 3.0 0.15 6.3 0.2 and rich limit Rich limit 6.16 0.23 8.0 0.26 A-1

Appendix A

06/24/16 AC 25.975-1 Appendix A Table A-3. Combustion Properties of Propane Proper ty Value Heat of combustion (298K), kcal/gm - mole 530.6 Flammability limits in air (% by volume), percent Lower 2.2 Upper 9.5 Flame temperature (stoichiometric in air, STP), °C 1925 * Quenching diameter, inches 0.11 * Minimum spark ignition energy, millijoules 0.027 * Critical velocity gradient for flashback, sec-1 600 * Laminar flame speed, cm-sec 40 *Applicable to 1.1 stoichiometric propane-to-air at standard temperature and pressure (STP).

Note: The combustion of propane and oxygen is written as: 𝐶 𝐻 + 5 𝑂 = 4 𝐻 𝑂 + 3 𝐶𝑂 3 8 2 2 2 For every mole of propane consumed, 5 moles of oxygen are required for complete combustion with no residual oxygen. Thus, 44.09 gm of propane require 5 x 32.00 = 160 gm of oxygen or 691.44 gm of air, which is 23.14 percent by weight oxygen.

Hence, the weight of air to weight of propane required for stoichiometric burning (i.e., complete combustion of propane with no excess oxygen) is 15.7. A 1.15 fraction of stoichiometric mixture of air and propane has an air-to-fuel weight ratio of: 691.44 = 13.7 1.15 × 44.09 A-2

Appendix A

06/24/16 AC 25.975-1 Appendix A Figure A-1. Fuel Tank Vent Flame Arrestor Test Schematic Note: This test schematic is not intended to represent an acceptable test configuration for project-specific compliance testing. The test installation, including the length and diameter of downstream vent line and the orientation of the flame arrestor will have a significant impact on the effectiveness of the flame arrestor. Therefore, the test configuration should be representative of the actual airplane installation. Additional surface temperature measurements may be needed if the flame arrestor is installed in a location where ignition of flammable vapors could lead to propagation of the external vent fire into the fuel tank. For example, a vent flame arrestor could be installed adjacent to a fuel surge tank, such that hot surfaces of the flame arrestor or vent system could cause ignition of flammable vapors and propagation of the fire into the fuel tank.

Additional surface temperature data would be needed to demonstrate that surface temperature limits are not exceeded.

A-3

Appendix A

06/24/16 AC 25.975-1 Appendix A Figure A-2. Flame Arrestor Surface Temperature at Various Flow Rates and Stoichiometric Mixture Ratios FAA Technical Report ADS-18, Lightning Protection Measures for Aircraft Fuel Systems (see paragraph 3.3 of this AC).

A-4 Advisory Circular Feedback If you find an error in this AC, have recommendations for improving it, or have suggestions for new items/subjects to be added, you may let us know by (1) emailing this form to 9-AWA-AVS- AIR500-Coord@faa.gov or (2) faxing it to the attention of the Aircraft Certification Service Directives Management Officer at (202) 267-3983.

Subject: Date: Please check all appropriate line items: An error (procedural or typographical) has been noted in paragraph on page .

Recommend paragraph on page be changed as follows: In a future change to this AC, please cover the following subject: (Briefly describe what you want added.)

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Source & rights

Source: faa.gov. Public-domain U.S. Government work (17 USC §105) — freely reproducible.

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Document details

Doc number
AC 25.975-1
Publisher
FAA
Pages
20
File size
560 KB
Chapters
4