FLORIDA – October 28th 2013 – Mainstream Engineering Corporation, a 27-year-old research and manufacturing company located in Brevard County, has been awarded a contract from the Air Force Research Laboratory to develop improved chemical kinetic models for jet fuel combustion.
The demand for increased thrust from gas turbine engines, while simultaneously reducing engine size and weight, has lead to real challenges in designing robust augmentors and interturbine burners. Researchers can use computer-aided engineering tools to speed the development of next-generation turbine engines, but these tools require an accurate description of the combustion chemistry.
Mainstream engineers are working with a team from MIT to improve the understanding of combustion chemistry for conventional petroleum-derived jet fuels (JP 5 and JP-8) and alternative synthetic jet fuels.
Mainstream’s R&D efforts will allow manufacturers of turbine and diesel engines to design better engines for power and propulsion applications. In particular, the models will help engine designers understand the effects that new alternative fuels will have on engine operability, performance and emissions.
About Mainstream Engineering
Mainstream Engineering Corporation is a solutions-oriented research, development and manufacturing small business founded in 1986. Their mission is to transition advanced thermal control, energy storage and energy conversion technology into high-quality, cost-effective, environmentally-safe green, commercial products. Products include lightweight diesel/JP8-fueled engines (including generators and hybrid vehicle drive trains), advanced thermal control units, advanced biomass conversion technologies, refrigerators/freezers for shipping containers and the QwikProduct™ line of heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration (HVAC/R) products. Areas of advanced research include thermal control, energy conversion, engine and emissions research, turbomachinery, chemical technology, and materials science.