In case you thought the day would never come that an airplane could travel a little over 600 miles on nothing more than 100% plant-based jet fuel, just ask the 100 passengers that were actually on the flight and have now become a major part of history.
The United Airlines eco-skies flight took off from Chicago O’Hare flying the approximately 610 miles to D.C. Reagan National airport, fueled purely by what some may call the “future of aviation.” Designed by the company Virent, the fuel originates from different forms of agricultural waste such as corn cobs and stalks.
Although the current legislation only allows aircrafts to fly when powered by just 50% renewable fuels, after having done a number of test flights without any passengers back in October, co-partners Virent and United Airlines were finally allowed to use pure biofuel, making it a first in the history of aviation. Notably, the company explained that the flight’s performance indicators were the same as flights that use fossil fuels.
One major advantage of the Virent company is that their product has chemical similarities to petroleum-based jet fuels, especially when it comes to the boiling point, freeze point, and thermal stability. Because of this, Virent hopes that their biofuels can eventually replace fossil fuels without being forced to replace any of the infrastructure of the aviation industry.
Virent president and general counsel Dave Kettner said, “Virent’s proprietary technology converts widely available, plant-based sugars into fuels that are 100% renewable and 100% compatible with today’s aviation fleet.”
He added, “For this flight, Virent used corn sugar to manufacture the fuel component that made petroleum blending unnecessary, and so yesterday’s flight demonstrates that we can power sustainable aviation without modifying today’s modern airline engines or the infrastructure that serves the airline industry.”
Meanwhile, CEO of United Airlines, Scott Kirby, also shared in a statement, “Today’s flight is not only a significant milestone for efforts to decarbonize our industry, but when combined with the surge in commitments to produce and purchase alternative fuels, we’re demonstrating the… impactful way companies can join together and play a role in addressing the biggest challenge of our lifetimes.”
With aviation being cited as having a 2% – 2.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions, others claim that the numbers are actually closer to 5% because of their CO2-equivalents. Meanwhile, some share that the numbers are at 3.5%. Regardless, the numbers account for a large portion of harmful gasses to the environment.
Virent’s fuel is known as “synthetic aromatic kerosene,” which works by turning plant sugars into an oil through a multistep, patented process that lessens the greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50% when burned during a flight. While this is still in the research and development phase, it’s also funded by Delaware’s Marathon Petroleum in order to transition into a more carbon-neutral production strategy.
In partnering with Virent, it’s United Airlines’ hope that they reach the milestone of being carbon-neutral by the year 2050. And with the airlines’ support, Virent also hopes to announce the commercialization of their biofuel in the next few months. Should this push through, it could mean a world of difference in the world’s fight against climate change.
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