In February 2010, the Pentagon announced that U.S. jets would soon use a new type of fuel – algae.  It contracted Solazyme, a bioproduct company in San Francisco, to provide 100% algae-based jet fuel.  Solazyme sent 1,500 gallons of Soladiesel to the Navy for testing in July, and on September 15^th the company announced it satisfied its contract with the Navy by providing 20,000 gallons.  It was the largest microbial shipboard fuel delivery in history.

There has been plenty of attention paid to recent developments in alternative automobile fuel, but land vehicles aren’t the only machines that need sustainable alternatives. Average jet aircrafts achieve a fuel economy of somewhere between 67 and 78 mpg – impressive compared to the average car, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be looking for better fuel.  The U.S. government has taken up that pursuit.  It aims to use renewable energy like algae for 50% of its needs by the year 2012, and to reach this goal the Department of Defense has already agreed to another contract with Solazyme for 150,000 gallons.

Solazyme is happy to help.  “Reducing dependence on foreign oil is a national security imperative, and Solazyme's technology focuses on producing an abundant, domestic and renewable source for oil and fuels," said Jonathan Wolfson, Solazyme’s CEO.  “Working with the Navy, DLA Energy and the DOD to collectively lead the drive for advanced low carbon fuels is an honor.”

The U.S. isn’t the only country catching the biofuel wave.  British Airways has paired up with Solena Group, another U.S. company, to build a sustainable jet fuel plant with the aim of producing fuel for its fleet by 2014.  The plant will use biomass that would otherwise end up in London landfills to create low-carbon fuel at a rate of 500,000 waste tons per 16 million gallons.  That would be enough to make every flight out of London City Airport carbon-neutral. 

The British Airways program helps in three ways.  Lower carbon emissions and landfill waste reduction are the two obvious benefits.  The third part of their sustainable plan involves burning excess fuel to create carbon-neutral electricity to feed into the grid. Such a multifaceted project helps not only British Airways but those in the surrounding community as well.

The world of aviation transport is getting an overdue green makeover, and that’s encouraging.  However, air traffic makes up only 12% of the transportation sector’s fuel consumption – automobiles still dominate at 80%.  The consumer and commercial auto industries need similar progress more than ever and Leonardo Academy is building strategies to reduce the environmental impact of transportation.  Learn more about how that happens here.

Written by :

Andrew Millar