Jet fuel produced from food waste could significantly reduce the aviation industry’s greenhouse gas emissions, according to new research.
Discarded food scraps, grease, fats, and manure converted into paraffin, which can be used in aviation fuel. It could pave the way for a dramatic reduction of emissions caused by conventional fossil jet fuel.
According to Scientists, sustainable aviation fuel could lessen greenhouse gas emissions by 165% compared to conventional fossil jet fuels, reducing the amount of waste that ends up in landfill while also cutting the output of soot from plane engines, reports The Independent.
The study was initiated to find out whether volatile fatty acids (VFAs) from food waste could be converted into a useful product.
Traditionally, wet kitchen waste and sludge has been converted to methane. However, the scientists hoped to find another use for it by retrieving molecules from food waste undergoing fermentation and transforming the VFAs into paraffin, a combustible hydrocarbon used in aviation fuel.
Researchers have been successful in increasing the proportion of the eco-friendly fuel blended with conventional fossil fuel to 70%, after converting the paraffin to ensure that it would work with a jet engine.
They also managed to reduce soot particles by 34% compared to conventional jet fuels, which also decreases the number of ice crystals produced, which in turn reduces the climate impact of contrails.
Experts say contrails can create an imbalance in the Earth's radiation budget – or 'radiative forcing' – by change global cloud levels, which usually results in global warming.
The authors of the new report suggested the method of converting food wastes into jet fuel had the potential to replace more than 20% of current jet fuel consumption in the US, where more than 21 billion gallons are consumed annually – a figure that is expected to double by 2050.
Using discarded waste, which is both low-cost and widely available, also reduces the environmental impact of biofuels which require plants to be grown on vast areas of land.
The research was published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The British government on Tuesday launches the Jet Zero Council, which aims to deliver zero-emission transatlantic flight within a generation.
The project will provide £15m for companies to explore new technologies capable of converting household rubbish, waste wood and excess electricity into sustainable aviation fuel.
Progress is already being made in the field of sustainable aviation. The first flight of a hydrogen-electric passenger aircraft took place at Cranfield University in September, and easyJet hopes to operate its first fully electric commercial flight by 2030 after partnering with US firm Wright Electric.