Cars use gasoline but jets use something closer to diesel, maybe kerosene, that’s less combustible. Wouldn’t they need a _more_ volatile or explosive fuel to get the most thrust for performance?
In: Engineering
Piston engines rely on the fuel burning at a specific time during the cycle, when the piston has reached the top of its stroke, and different fuels can tolerate different amounts of compression before spontaneously igniting. This means the compression ratio of the engine is tailored specifically for one fuel. (though some engines inject fuel directly into the cylinder to get a better compression ratio than premixed air and fuel will allow)
Turbine engines are much less picky about fuel, because the fuel is burning continuously. It doesn’t have to survive compression while mixed with air without detonating prematurely. Performance is mostly a question of compression ratio and combustion temperature. More of each of those will get you more efficiency and performance, but turbine engines basically always run lean to reduce temperature, in order to keep the turbine from melting and also because higher combustion temperatures increase NOX emissions.
One thing that’s sometimes done to increase power is inject water alongside extra fuel, so you can burn more fuel without melting the engine.
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