Researcher Thomas Kick works on the high-pressure burner at the DLR Institute of Combustion Technology, Stuttgart. Here, the laminar flame velocity of pre-evaporated liquid fuels such as synthetic kerosene is measured at atmospheric pressure. The skill consists of operating the test facility in such a way that a specific flame shape is guaranteed. Then, the laminar flame velocity can be reliably determined using what is known as the ‘cone method’. This is one of the most important combustion characteristics of a fuel because it largely determines the heat release and thus the design of the combustion chamber.