This is really GOOD news...
Friday, March 14, 2008 - Page updated at 12:00 AM
Boeing and Continental Airlines will test a plane that runs on biofuel
By Ángel González
Seattle Times business reporter
Continental Airlines wants to fuel its jetliners with something more palatable than Texas Tea.
The Houston-based airline is teaming up with Boeing and engine maker GE Aviation to test a plane powered by a new generation of renewable fuels, the companies said Thursday.
The agreement makes Continental the first major U.S. airline to formally dabble in alternative energy, a trend gaining momentum as crude-oil prices soar beyond their historical record. The airline industry, which accounts for 2 percent of global carbon emissions, is high on the watchlist of environmentalists and regulators concerned about global warming.
"Exploring sustainable biofuels is a logical and exciting new step in our environmental commitment," said Continental executive Mark Moran in a statement.
The flight, scheduled for the first half of 2009, will be Boeing's third joint biofuel demonstration with an airline.
Last month, Boeing and British airline Virgin Atlantic flew a 747 from London to Amsterdam with one of its four engines powered by a mix of 80 percent jet fuel and 20 percent biofuel based on coconut and babassu oil. The biofuel was provided by Seattle-based Imperium Renewables.
Boeing also plans a flight with Air New Zealand in the second half of this year.
The tests are part of an industrywide effort to find a biofuel that works while being environmentally and economically sustainable, said Boeing director of environmental strategy Bill Glover in a conference call with reporters.
Common alternative fuels based on corn, soybean and palm oil have been criticized because it takes enormous amounts of water and land to produce them; in addition, higher demand for these staples is disrupting food prices.
That's why the airline industry is focusing on so-called second-generation biofuels, based on marginal or experimental crops such as algae, switch grass and jatropha.
In the upcoming Continental flight, the companies will look at different, more advanced biofuels than in the Virgin Atlantic test, with a blend ratio ranging from 20 to 50 percent, said Glover. The Air New Zealand flight will also test another set of biofuels, he added.
"This is very much in the experimental stage; we don't have all the answers yet," Glover said.
A viable biofuel would be the Holy Grail of the airline industry, whose carbon footprint is poised to grow as demand for air travel skyrockets. Besides the soaring cost of fossil fuels, government-mandated greenhouse-gas emission limits could make flying airplanes more costly.
The International Air Transport Association has proposed building a zero-emissions aircraft within 50 years. Many analysts think that lofty goal is unattainable, but increased biofuel use, combined with other measures, could help keep emissions in check.
Airlines also are modernizing their fleets with more fuel-efficient planes, and seeking better traffic management on the ground and in the air to minimize travel time.
"This is a global challenge that calls for global solutions," said Glover. "People want to travel — and technology is really a key to enabling that to happen."
Seattle Times LINK
Boeing and Continental to Test Plane that Runs on Biofuel
Sustainable and renewable energy.
Moderator: Super Moderators
Jump to
- ON THE AIR ~ AM/FM/XM RADIO
- ↳ Art Bell's Midnight in the Desert
- ↳ Art Bell Classic Shows & Somewhere in Time Chat
- ↳ Art Bell Archive
- ↳ Art Bell Archive 12-2001 to 5-2002
- ↳ Fantastic Forum 'Original Radio Room'
- ↳ Art Bell/The New Frontier
- ↳ Dreamland ~ Whitley Strieber
- ↳ George Noory/C2C AM Topics/Radio topics
- ↳ Ian Punnett/Saturday Host
- ↳ George Knapp/C2C Sunday Host
- ↳ John B. Wells Caravan To Midnight
- ↳ Ham Radio/DXing
- Ship's Galley
- ↳ FFPirates on Twitter
- ↳ Announcements/ FYI
- ↳ Rapa - from the Ship's Archives
- ↳ Ship's Galley ~ Fantastic Forum Community
- ↳ The Crow's Nest
- ↳ First Time Posters Thread
- ↳ Laugh a bit with Ole 68
- ↳ Garden & Galley
- The Starboard Tack
- ↳ UFO
- ↳ Quantum Physics/Edge Science
- ↳ Paranormal
- ↳ Ancient Archaeology
- ↳ John Lear Archive
- ↳ Conspiracies/Black Ops
- USA
- ↳ Economy
- ↳ Media Watch
- ↳ Energy Policy
- ↳ American Survival
- The Blue Planet...
- ↳ Awakening of global consciousness
- ↳ The Natural World
- ↳ News from a parallel universe
- ↳ Environment in Crisis
- ↳ All Creatures Great and Small
- NEWS BREAK
- ↳ Alt News Blog
- ↳ National
- ↳ Global
- ↳ Weird Nooz
- SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
- ↳ FF IT Tech
- ↳ Earth/ Weather/ Climate
- ↳ Health
- ↳ Astronomy/ NASA/Physics
- ↳ Technology
- ↳ Chemtrails
- ↳ The 10th Planet
- FANTASTIC PUB
- ↳ The Brig
- ↳ Politics and Government 2014 - Present
- ↳ Food
- ↳ The Murky Bilge
- ↳ Music
- ↳ Religion/Metaphysics
- ↳ Philosophy
- ↳ Books, Documentaries, Movies, TV Shows
- ↳ USS TEXAS - BB35 Archive
- ↳ Poetry Forum
- ↳ Pirates and Skeptics -P&G, etc
- ↳ Photography
- SETI @ home
- ↳ FANTASTIC FORUM ~ SETi Team
- ↳ Team Art Bell
- Archive
- ↳ Third Party Candidates - 2004
- ↳ USA Archive
- ↳ Various
- ↳ Who Needs eBay?
- ↳ Iraq
- ↳ Politics and Government 2010-2013
- ↳ MAD'S Mali Journal
- ↳ Wild Card Thread
- ↳ Bush/Cheney '04 Campaign
- ↳ William Henry ~ Stargates in the Age of Tara
- ↳ Hemp Industry
- ↳ We the People
- ↳ Politics and Government 2004-2009
- ↳ Lost Harbour & Dry Dock
- ↳ Fantastic Forum Productions
- ↳ Star Trek Forum
- ↳ USS TEXAS ~ BB 35 Restoration/Preservation Project
- ↳ Politics and Government Pre-2007
- ↳ Fantastic Forum - Editor's Cut