This proposal presents a program for the development of a cruise missile payload that can effectively inhibit combustion engine operation of an adversary's motorized military equipment without adversely affecting personnel or the environment. This approach utilizes a proprietary fuel combustion inhibitor (FCI) in liquid aerosol or micro-encapsulated dust. The proprietary FCI is in many ways ideal for this application because: it is a liquid under all conditions, and hence enters the combustion zone in condensed form, vaporizing and pyrolyzing in the flame in high concentration; on a weight or volume basis it is orders of magnitude more effective than Halon 1301 in inhibiting fuel combustion; it is denser than aluminum and makes excellent use of limited volumes such as those available in submunitions; questions of extinguishment effectiveness for engine nacelle fires are already being addressed under a USAF Phase II SBIR contract; toxicology risk assessment for the proprietary FCI is presently underway at USAF Armstrong Laboratory; the atmospheric fate and environmental effects of the proprietary FCI are currently being examined at the California Institute of Technology and the University of North Texas; and methods of dispensing the proprietary FCI are currently under development. The key technical issues addressed in this Phase I program are: aerosol cloud size and density required for desired military effectiveness; aerosol effectiveness against engines with intake air filters, and effects on personnel.
