Boeing, Air New Zealand and Rolls-Royce to conduct biofuel flight demonstration

Boeing, Air New Zealand and Rolls-Royce have announced a Memorandum of Understanding under which they will conduct a flight test with second-generation biofuels next year, as part of a wider research programme to understand renewable fuels and their potential future applications in aviation.

The partners say that as little as a year ago biofuels in aviation seemed like 'pie in the sky' to many industry observers, but it is now a possibility and technology is moving so fast that it may become viable in a much shorter timeframe than previously thought. Biopact readers have been able to follow these developments. Two years ago, our view that biofuels would become a reality in aviation before 2010 was laughed at; today, all major aircraft and jet-engine manufacturers, as well as governments and private aerospace R&D initiatives have launched biofuel programs, with some already in the stage of lab engine tests.

Our near-term goal in this pioneering effort is to identify sustainable alternative bio-jet fuel sources for the planes that are flying today. A significant first step is identifying progressive fuel sources that will provide better economic and environmental performance for air carriers, without any change to aircraft engines or the aviation fuel infrastructure. - Craig Saddler, president of Boeing Australia

The evaluation, due to take place in the second half of 2008, will use a biofuel blended with kerosene ('biokerosene'). An announcement on the source and mix will be made closer to the time of the flight. The fuel will be used on a Boeing 747-400, owned by Air New Zealand and powered by four Rolls-Royce RB211-524s. The Boeing 747 flight, which is likely to depart Auckland and will not carry customers, will be conducted under strict safety standards. Only one engine will use the derived fuel, the remaining engines will be driven by kerosene.

Data will be gathered throughout the test process that will contribute to a wider understanding of the capabilities and limitations of renewable fuels and aid in the search for alternatives to kerosene. The evaluation will validate on a real engine what previous lab work has predicted. After the evaluation has been completed, the engine will be examined for condition and overhauled prior to returning to normal operational service:
energy :: sustainability :: biomass :: bioenergy :: biofuels :: synthetic biofuels :: gasification :: Fischer-Tropsch :: biomass-to-liquids :: bio-jet fuel :: biokerosene :: aviation ::

This programme signals the continuation of a very long journey. The environment is not a new subject for us and we’ve been investing in research that has been devoted to environmental improvement for many years. As a world-class engineering organisation, Rolls-Royce is particularly well placed to take a major role in this arena and we are committed to finding solutions. As an industry, we’ve already succeeded in driving down fuel burn by 70 per cent on a passenger per kilometre basis since the dawn of the jet age. - Jim Sheard, Senior Vice President – Airlines for Rolls-Royce

Air New Zealand is keen to encourage research into alternative fuels and wants to work hand-in-hand with industry partners and the New Zealand Government on promoting this type of activity. Air New Zealand would like to progress to an all New Zealand bio-fuel for future tests flights, but sourcing the quantity necessary may be a challenge in the short term.

Research into bio-jet fuels has exploded over the past years, partly because airlines' profitability strongly depends on fuel costs and because bio-jet fuels promise to reduce emissions considerably. But biofuels for aviation present several challenges: they require high-performance characteristics, in particular the capacity to remain fluid at low temperatures and the need for smooth blending with petroleum based fuels. Gradually, biofuels are being designed that approach the required cold tolerance threshold (graph, click to enlarge).

Likely candidates are synthetic biofuels, obtained from gasifying biomass that is liquefied by Fischer-Tropsch synthesis ('biomass-to-liquids'). Such fuels can be refined into designer fuels with specific characteristics. Another potential fuel is 'green diesel' based on a hydrogenation process of vegetable oils.

Some recent initiatives in bio-jet fuel research include a large program by the French aerospace industry into second-generation (synthetic) biofuels and other candidates. The project, known as CALIN is being initiated by a conglomerate of research organisations consisting of France's aerospace research agency ONERA, propulsion company Snecma and members of the country's Aerospace Valley group which unites most of Europe's leading aerospace manufacturers, including EADS, Airbus, Air France Industries, Alstom and Dassault (earlier post).

Snecma recently succeeded in testing a CFM56-7B jet engine with an ester-based biofuel at a Snecma site in Villaroche. The engine is produced by a joint venture between Snecma, CFM International, and General Electric Company. The fuel used was a methylester derived from plant oil, mixed with 70% Jet-A1 kerosene. The successful test with the unmodified engine reduced carbon dioxide emissions by 20% (earlier post and here).

Boeing recently announced that it is planning to to fly aircraft on a 50% biofuels blend in a bid to reduce its carbon footprint and to overcome the future threat of 'Peak Oil'. According to Boeing, a blend of synthetic (bio)fuels and vegetable-oil based biofuels makes it possible in the future to replace petroleum-based jet-fuels.

Boeing is collaborating with, amongst others, NASA and researchers in Brazil (here) and mentioned several sustainable bio-jet fuel production paths in its recent publication 'Alternate Fuels for use in Commercial Aircraft' [*.pdf].

The father of Brazil's bio-jet fuel and his company Tecbio, which conducted flight-tests already in the 1980s and which today collaborates with NASA and Boeing recently launches biofuel cooperatives in Brazil to reduce poverty. Their aim: to produce bio-jet fuels from Babassu, a sustainably harvested oil-rich nut. The vision is for a vast 'social justice' program that relies on sustainble, traditional Babassu forestry (more here).

Also this year, Virgin Atlantic announced that it will fly a 747 on biofuels in 2008. The company excluded the use of synthetic biofuels, because they have already been tested in the lab and proved to be viable. Virgin Atlantic wants to research yet another series of alternatives; it has been looking at Africa for potential feedstock production projects, likely based on Jatropha oil. Sir Richard Branson intends to get his entire fleet working on renewable bio-based fuels (earlier post).

A large number of private initiatives are underway to develop biokerosene. Amongst them Diversified Energy which developed biofuels that withstand very cold temperatures and can be used in aviation. Their process consists of freeing up the free fatty acids contained in triglycerides from glycerol and passing them through a catalyst after which a resulting gas is synthesized into a liquid (earlier post)

UOP, a Honeywell company, has accelerated research and development on renewable energy technology to convert vegetable oils to military jet fuels. UOP developed a technique based on hydroprocessing that may yield fuels that meet the stringent requirements (more here).

The University of North Dakota recently received a US$5 million grant to develop military bio-jet fuels (earlier post). Whereas North Carolina State University found an innovative technology for the production of biofuels for jet aircraft based on transforming glycerol, the major byproduct of biodiesel (earlier post).

Obviously, several armies are looking into biofuels for aviation as well. A study for the US Military, written by Sasol, concluded that synthetic biofuels (Fischer-Tropsch) can power the entire military - including its airforce - in case of severe oil supply disruptions (earlier post). Finally, the U.S. Air Force has been experimenting extensively with synthetic fuels, which can be made from biomass. It already ground-tested them in real engines (earlier post).

In a very recent development, Brazil's state-owned Petrobras announced it plans to introduce a type of bio-jet fuel named 'Bio QAV' in 120 of the country's airports, with concrete trials to begin in 2008. 'Bio QAV' ('Biokerosene for Aviation') is based on the H-bio second-generation biodiesel production process, which relies on hydrotreating vegetable oils (more here).

Many more developments are under way, a search of our site will reveal them.

Graph credit: Alternate Fuels for use in Commercial Aircraft, Boeing, 2007.

References:
Rolls-Royce: Rolls-Royce joins Air New Zealand and Boeing in renewable fuels study programme - September 28, 2007.

Air New Zealand: Air New Zealand Announces Bio Fuel Research Initiative - September 28, 2007.

David L. Daggett, Robert C. Hendricks, Rainer Walther, Edwin Corporan, "Alternate Fuels for use in Commercial Aircraft"[*.pdf], Boeing, 2007.