Pipeline’s Plan to Limit Sulfur in Jet Shipments Alarms Industry

摘要

Changes to the US jet fuel specification for Jet A usually involve lengthy analysis by stakeholders, as technical experts examine a potential amendment or adjustment from the perspective of all aviation players -– the airline, supplier, original equipment manufacturer (OEM) and others. That’s why Colonial Pipeline Co.’s apparently unilateral plan to stop shipping higher-sulfur 54-grade jet fuel from January 2018 caught the aviation fuel business by surprise. As the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) winds up its ten-year process of reducing the sulfur content in transport and heating fuels, 54-grade jet fuel now has the highest maximum sulfur limit of 3,000 parts per million (ppm) of all refined products except for marine bunkers (JFI May2’11). The EPA takes a 'hands-off' approach to the jet fuel specification, which is overseen by ASTM International. That standards organization is looking into the ramifications of reducing the sulfur content in jet fuel, with a task force due to present findings at the next meeting in early December in Orlando, Florida. The issue is not clearcut, with some experts maintaining that lower-sulfur jet fuel is a higher-quality fuel for aircraft since it generally has better thermal stability. Supply problems emerged at airports in the Midwest and East Coast this summer after jet fuel was deemed off-spec when it did not pass thermal stability tests (JFI Jul.18’16).