World first: Flying high on pond scum (algae biofuel for Air New Zealand)

[jpak]

http://www.stuff.co.nz/4132048a13.html

Air New Zealand and airliner manufacturer Boeing are secretly working with Blenheim-based biofuel developer Aquaflow Bionomic Corporation to create the world's first environmentally friendly aviation fuel, made of wild algae.

If the project pans out the small and relatively new New Zealand company could lead the world in environmentally sustainable aviation fuel.

It's understood Air NZ is undertaking risk analysis. If everything stacks up it will make an aircraft available on the Tasman to test the biofuel.

The fuel is essentially derived from bacterial pond scum created through the photosynthesis of sunlight and carbon dioxide on nutrient-rich water sources such as sewage ponds.

<more>

[TheWraith]

1. Jet fuel is basically kerosene, which can be refined from almost any kind of oil.

It was, in fact, originally produced entirely from waste oils.

[silverweb]

2. Wonderful!

I'm glad to see a major push in this direction. Air travel is a major, major polluter, but I don't see us going back to sailing ships to get from place to place any time soon.

I wonder if Sir Richard Branson is involved in this? I recall reading a while back that he was making "clean air travel" a priority mission. It wouldn't surprise me at all to find out that he's some kind of quiet partner in this experiment... or others much like it.

[kestrel91316]

3. This is WAY cool.

[Dead_Parrot]

4. Slightly OT, but I have to wonder...

...how big a secret it is, if it's in the paper.

:shrug: