Turkish student invents ‘green’ turbojet motor that can run on six fuels

ESKİŞEHİR – Anadolu Agency

A high school student in the central Anatolian city of Eskişehir has invented a gas-turbine turbojet motor that can run on six different fuels.

Speaking to state-run Anadolu Agency, 17-year-old Eray Sarısöğüt said the motor can run on kerosene, LPG, pro-pane, 130-octane aviation gasoline, diesel oil and butane.

“These kinds of fuels easily reduce fuel costs as well give the motor a high performance because of a combustion chamber from TEI [Tusaş Engine Industries],” said the student.

Sarısöğüt—who is in 11th grade at Sabiha Gökçen Vocational Technical Education High School—said the gas-turbine turbojet is also environmentally friendly.

Arif Özkan, the counselor of the project and a teacher in the school’s aviation maintenance department, said this is a “first” in terms of the number of fuel types the turbojet motor can run.

“The help we received from TEI engineers for the combustion chamber was vital. If you try to get a turbojet motor that runs on kerosene fuel, you have to pay at least $100,000,” Özkan said.

“By doing it indigenously, we managed to lower the cost to 5,000 Turkish liras [$1,125]. Many schools have asked to use our invention for educational purposes,” he added.