Global aviation fuel consumption reached an all-time high of nearly 100 billion gallons in 2019, and demand is expected to increase in the coming decades.
Sustainable aviation fuels derived from plant biomass could help minimize aviation’s carbon footprint and meet international carbon neutrality goals.
Scientists at the University of Washington have successfully tested a new way to produce sustainable jet fuel from agricultural waste. The method works thanks to the lignin in plants, which is about 30% of their biomass.
Published in a magazine Fuel Processing Technology, the team’s research demonstrates a continuous process that directly converts lignin polymers, one of the main components of plant cells, into a form of jet fuel that could help improve the performance of sustainably produced aviation fuels, shared TechXplore.
Lignin is extracted from the stalks, cobs and leaves left after harvesting the corn crop as well as other agricultural products. The team has developed a process that breaks down the lignin polymer and at the same time removes oxygen to create jet fuel.
Lignin-based jet fuel could make sustainable fuels cleaner and easier to use in jet engines. Thanks to their density, efficiency and characteristics, they can effectively replace compounds derived from fossil fuels.
This research marked the team’s first successful test of a continuous process that is more suitable for commercial production. The project also used a less processed, cheaper form of lignin called “technical lignin”, contrasting with similar studies using lignin bio-oil.
“The aviation enterprise aims to generate 100% renewable aviation fuel. The lignin-based jet fuel complements existing technologies,” said Josh Hein, a member of the research team and co-director of the WSU-PNNL Bioproducts Institute.
By offering reduced emissions, lignin-based fuel can become fully compatible with all existing engines, infrastructure and aircraft such as existing fossil fuel-derived aviation fuel.
“We are working to create an efficient, commercially viable technology for a complementary blend component that can achieve the 100% drop goal,” Heine said.
The team is now working to refine their process for better efficiency and reduced costs.
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