Emirates concludes engine ground trial using 100% SAF

UAE’s flag carrier Emirates has announced the completion of ground engine testing for one of its GE90 engines on a Boeing 777-300ER with 100% sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). The trial was carried out to evaluate the GE90 engine’s capability to run on the specially blended 100% SAF, without any changes to aircraft systems, and to ensure that the performance of the engine is not impacted. It was also aimed at ensuring that there was no special maintenance procedures required on the Boeing 777-300ER or GE90 engine to run. The test was carried out on two engines, with one running on 100% SAF and the other on conventional jet fuel, to better analyse the fuel system´s behaviour and performance. During the test at the Emirates Engineering Centre in Dubai, the aircraft first underwent a standard pre-inspection process, after which the stationary operating testing started by first operating the Honeywell 331-500 auxiliary power unit (APU) on 100% SAF. The APU was loaded fully with SAF to start the engines, and the left engine was exercised through its full power range, using the same settings to be utilised for the experimental flight. After the simulation was completed, the fuels were isolated in separate fuel tanks to maintain segregation of test fuels.<br/>