Does jet fuel need oxygen to burn?

Jet engines are air breathers. They take in air (which contains oxygen needed for combustion), mix it with fuel, burn it to increase the pressure, and exhaust the spent gases out the back at a high rate of speed. This high-speed ejection of mass propels the plane forward.

Can a jet engine run on natural gas?

Many ground based jet engines powering electrical generators burn natural gas. It’s not a very good fuel for aircraft jet engines though. Natural gas (methane) needs very heavy pressure bottles to carry it, or it needs to be cooled to around MINUS 162c to turn it into a liquid.

Is a non breathing engine that carries its own fuel as well as the oxygen needed for the fuel to burn?

Nonair-breathing, or rocket, engines. Rocket engines carry both fuel and oxidizer on board, and they are therefore not dependent on the surrounding atmosphere for the needed supply of oxygen. Rockets are usually classified by the type of fuel burned; solid-propellant rockets carry a solid mixture of fuel and oxidizer.

Can a jet engine run on methane?

Methane as a fuel in a turbine system for power production has existed for decades, beginning with models such as the GE Frame-3 generators still in use in many places today. Cryogenic methane as a fuel is currently under research in many fields, including the SpaceX Raptor program.

Is a rocket engine a jet engine?

The main difference between them is that jets get the oxygen to burn fuel from the air and rockets carry their own oxygen, which allows them to operate in space. Jet engines have two openings (an intake and an exhaust nozzle). Rocket engines only have one opening (an exhaust nozzle).

How do jet engines get oxygen?

All jet engines – including experimental ones known as Scramjets which use supersonic combustion and ramjet propulsion – get their oxygen from the atmosphere. This is the most inexpensive way to get oxygen, and now your vehicle range is limited only by the amount of fuel you carry on board; the oxygen is free and available in unlimited quantity!

What would happen if you put an oxidizer in an airplane?

Then the weight of the oxidizer would weight down the aircraft. For each kilogram of pure octane (one of the components of jet fuel) you would need around 1.7 kilogram of pure O2. In other words it would double the weight of the fuel you have to bring.

Where do rocket engines get their oxygen?

Your question is understandable, since rocket engines also propel some flight vehicles and they use oxygen from a different source. Any combustion requires oxygen. All jet engines – including experimental ones known as Scramjets which use supersonic combustion and ramjet propulsion – get their oxygen from the atmosphere.

Why are reaction engines more energy efficient than jet engines?

Basically, reaction engines are more energy efficient the larger the amount of propellant in relation to fuel is. With a jet engine the propellant is air which happens to already contain more oxygen than is needed to burn the fuel.