Catastrophic Destruction

The reality of trying to burn Jet A-essentially a high-quality kerosene-in a spark-ignition piston engine was detailed in a March 1988 NASA technical paper:

Key Takeaways:

• Using Jet A (kerosene) in a spark-ignition piston engine is rapidly destructive.
• Jet A alters the ignition point, causing the unburned mixture to autoignite ahead of the flame front during the compression stroke.
• This uncontrolled autoignition results in detonation, a violent pressure rise that can lead to catastrophic destruction of the combustion chamber and subsequent engine failure.

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