Romantic get-aways, action-filled destinations, family vacations or highly anticipated business trips. These are several reasons many of us take the plunge and travel by air.
Why do so many prefer to fly, over other transportation options? Mainly because of the advantages of speed and comfort. However, most don’t realize flying is one of the safest means of travel. Did you know more people die in car crashes than on airplanes? But is traveling by air really safe; well, at least for our planet?
While aviation contributes 2% of carbon emissions and is growing, yet it is a small segment of the larger transportation sector, which contributes 28% of carbon emissions in the U.S and 13% globally. In 2012, all the worldwide flights produced 689-million tons of CO2. Prospectively, that is equivalent to 102-million checkout bags at the grocery store. However, there is good news! Many airlines are going green with their jet fuels.
Lanzatech and Virgin Atlantic teamed up in 2011, to produce the first airline to launch a biofuel-powered flight, with at least half the carbon footprint of the standard fossil-fuel alternative—kerosene. Lanzatech is still developing the biofuel on a larger scale, to commercialize the product.
Within three years, Virgin Atlantic’s goal is to be the first commercial airline to use the new fuel on its routes from Shanghai and Delhi to London. The breakthrough fuel is currently being piloted in New Zealand—and a bigger facility will be built in Shanghai this year. The first commercial operation is anticipated to launch in China, by 2014.
Since 2011, some airlines such as, Lufthansa and Continental have been paving the way with a green agenda. Its U.S. aircraft maker and leader in sustainable travel, Boeing is seeking regulatory approval of a 50/50 blend of green diesel and its “traditional” petroleum jet fuel to use on all its planes. Currently, Boeing is working with the FAA and testing various green diesel mixtures.
What exactly is green diesel? The fuel is made from oils and fats, such as used cooking oil, plant oils or waste animal fats; in a process that uses hydrogen to break big molecules into smaller ones. Why green diesel? While comparable in price to the traditional $3-per-gallon jet fuel, green diesel will emit at least 50-percent less carbon dioxide than fossil fuels, over its lifecycle.
Is there another alternative to green diesel jet fuel? Yes, there is green jet fuel! What’s the difference? Green Jet Fuel is a feedstock-flexible solution, It converts a wide range of sustainable feedstocks–like algae or camelina—into high-quality, on-spec renewable jet fuel.
Green jet fuel powered the first-ever transatlantic flight. Honeywell Green Jet Fuel offers several advantages: a non-food, feedstock that doesn’t interfere with food, land or water resources. Airplanes fly longer, using less fuel and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 65 to 80%. Similar to green diesel, it uses a 50/50 blend of green jet fuel and petroleum-based jet fuel.
Feedstocks no longer have to compete with food resources? That’s right! Biomass conversion is the process of converting non-food-based feedstocks into RTP green fuel. Its process is so fast, less than two seconds, that biomass is heated with hot sand, vaporized and then quickly cooled. This product can then be used in the generation of electricity and for the production of process heat.
Why develop renewable jet fuel? The aviation industry accounts for about 2% of global greenhouse gas emissions—and that share is expected to grow to 3 % by 2050. Emissions are on the rise; unless pioneers like Virgin, Lufthansa and Continental continue working toward reducing our carbon footprint. We are hopeful that our planet’s health could increase for the better.