Researchers from University of Delaware experimenting to develop alternate jet fuel from woodchips and corncobs.
As the carbon emission are increasingly high. On an average air travel around world caused 815 million tons of CO2 emissions in 2016, according to International Air Transport Association. Moreover, The commercial flights and U.S military use 20 billion gallons of jet fuel. Also the federal aviation administration handled 43,684 flights. IATA says 7.2 billion passengers will travel by air in 2035.
Lignocellulosic Biomass
However, plant material transformed known as Lignocellulosic Biomass. Including new fuels and chemicals in UD’s Harker Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Laboratory. The scientists affiliated with the Catalysis Center for Energy Innovation (CCEI), an Energy Frontier Research Center supported by the U.S. Department of Energy.
Meanwhile, Establishing at UD, nine institutions to work on clean energy challenges.
Moreover, the process includes chemical processes coupling and deoxygenation. The plant material with low carbon content broken down from a solid into a liquid the carbon molecules chemically coupled to create carbon molecules in the jet fuel. The oxygen removed from these molecules. This branching is essential to improving the flow of fuel at the freezing temperatures of commercial flight.
According to CCEI Associate Director Basudeb Saha “International planes may fly at an altitude of 35,000 feet. Further, where the outside temperature could be as low as -14° Centigrade,” who is leading a renewable jet fuel project at the center. “That’s the temperature at which a plane has to run, and the fuel can’t be frozen.” says Saha.
Scientists developed new Catalysts called “chemical goats”
Although, companies making renewable jet fuel from triglycerides extracted from used oil and grease and from combination of hydrogen and carbon monoxide known as Syngas. “some use algae as its source material and even has an underground pipeline to the Los Angeles Airport (LAX), where a percentage gets mixed with conventional jet fuel”, Saha says.
Moreover, processing non-conventional material requires high pressure and high temperatures- 350°C (662°F).
At UD scientists developed catalysts chemical goats. The chemical reactions that can transform this plant material into fuel. Made from graphene, like honeycomb of carbon molecules. Its surface properties speedup the coupling reaction. Another catalyst removes oxygen in an energy-efficient way and produces high yields of branched molecules. 99 percent, suitable for jet fuel.
“The low temperature and high selectivity of our process. Instead, can enable cost-competitive and sustainable production of bio-based aviation fuels from lignocellulosic biomass,” Saha says.
[source:University of Delaware]
