[Avionics Today 12-03-2014] Boeing has completed the world’s first flight using sustainable diesel biofuel in its ecoDemonstrator 787 flight test airplane. The eco-friendly fuel is made from vegetable oils, waste cooking oil and waste animal fats and is already widely available and used in ground transportation.
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| The ecoDemonstrator 757 and 787 test airplanes. Photo: Boeing |
Boeing powered the test aircraft with a blend of 15 percent sustainable green diesel and 85 percent petroleum jet fuel in the left engine. On a lifecycle basis, sustainably produced green diesel reduces carbon emissions by 50 to 90 percent when compared to fossil fuel, according to Finland-based Neste Oil, which supplied green diesel for the ecoDemonstrator 787. The flight test was coordinated with the FAA, Rolls-Royce and Pratt & Whitney, while EPIC Aviation blended the fuel.
“Green diesel offers a tremendous opportunity to make sustainable aviation biofuel more available and more affordable for our customers,” said Julie Felgar, managing director of environmental strategy and integration at Boeing Commercial Airplanes. “We will provide data from several ecoDemonstrator flights to support efforts to approve this fuel for commercial aviation and help meet our industry’s environmental goals.”