Mondo Knows Facts

Jet fuel is chosen for a low freezing point

Jet A-1 must stay liquid at minus 47 degrees Celsius, because fuel in the wings cools during long flights At cruise altitude the air outside is near minus 50 degrees, so fuel in the wing tanks drifts towards that temperature over several hours. Jet A-1 is specified to freeze no higher than minus 47 degrees Celsius, while the Jet A grade used in the United States allows minus 40. Fuel also cools engine oil on its way to the injectors, which returns a little heat. It sits in Mondo's technology collection, one of 200 facts that each trace back to the reference below.

Where this comes from

Britannica

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Tags: aviation, fuel, cold-weather

Jet fuel is chosen for a low freezing point: the short answers

Where does this come from, and can I check it?
Jet A-1 must stay liquid at minus 47 degrees Celsius, because fuel in the wings cools during long flights. The figure is taken from Britannica, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
Is this really a technology fact?
Yes. It sits on the Technology shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.
What else can I read about it?
The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.