Household waste as a power source: Boeing is planning aircraft with biofuel

Saturday, January 23, 2021

Household waste as a driver
Boeing is planning aircraft with biofuel

Boeing is setting itself ambitious goals: by 2030, all of the aircraft manufacturer's machines are to run on sustainable fuels. The first tests were successful. An international regulation is still in the way of the US company's plans.

The US aircraft manufacturer Boeing wants to develop passenger aircraft powered entirely by eco-fuels by 2030. For this purpose, Boeing has already carried out tests with so-called sustainable aircraft fuels (SAF) in recent years, the company said. These include, among other things, vegetable matter, recycled household waste or used kitchen oil.

"Our industry and our customers are committed to addressing climate change, and sustainable aviation fuels are the safest, most measurable solution to reducing aviation carbon emissions for decades to come," said Boeing board member Stan Deal.

Boeing is pushing for international flight rules to be changed

The first aircraft that could be refueled with biofuel in addition to kerosene took off in 2008. So far, however, only half of the aircraft can be powered internationally with sustainable fuels. Boeing is therefore urging a rapid change in international regulations. In order for the aviation sector to be able to reduce its CO2 emissions by half by 2050 compared to 2005, machines powered entirely by biofuels would have to be approved much earlier, said Boeing.

According to the international aviation association IATA, alternative fuels can lower CO2 emissions by 80 percent compared to pure kerosene. In autumn, the association called for greater efforts in research and development in this area.