Everybody is waiting for the next generation of biofuels.
Biofuels that do not only to meet the required technical specifications but also are produced without a detrimental impact on food, land or water. That appears to be not so easy.
Greenaironline reports that Rolls-Royce and British Airways could not find a supplier who could deliver 60.000 litres of this next generation biofuel. They wanted to do some extensive ground tests to determine the characteristics of the combination of engine and fuel.
The intensive trials, which would have taken place at Rolls-Royce’s Derby facility, would have involved the engine being powered by both ordinary kerosene and the alternative fuels, and operated through its full range of power settings, including idle, acceleration, take-off and cruise.
The airline industry burns some 260.000 million litres of kerosine per year. The IATA target is to replace 10 % in 2017 by alternative fuels: 26.000 million litres per year.
