Effects of jet-fuel microbial isolates on a polyurethane foam.

Jet-fuel microbial isolates were studied for effects on a polyurethane foam material that has been proposed as a baffling material for use in aircraft fuel tanks. Evidence was found that a polyesterurethane foam gave increased cell counts and oxygen uptake with a bacterial isolate, and extensive matting with fragmentation and decreases in tensile strength of the foam with a fungal isolate. The polyurethane foam was affected by activity of the jet-fuel microbial isolates to an extent that would cause serious microbiological problems in the fuel tanks of jet aircraft.