Mar 26 - McClatchy-Tribune Local News - Mona Moore Northwest Florida Weekly News, Stronghold Walton Shoreline
The Air Chunk ready unfurl in its pursue for alternative fuels Thursday one time it flew an A-10 Thunderbolt II afterward 100 percent biomass fuel, called hydrotreated renewable jet (HRJ) fuel.
The fuel recycled for the travel was ready of camelina plants and was engineered to run exclusive of modifying the aircraft's android -- a key to any alternative fuel the Air Chunk would suite to use.
Maj. Chris Seager, a inspect pilot afterward the 46th Suffering Wing's 40th Cruise Suffering Fleet, said his attraction travel was thoroughly for instance he had hoped: total.
"It's a forcible travel if it's a total travel," Seager said. "It was an dull venture, which cash it was a ever so forcible venture. Stow went fix."
The Air Chunk has been looking at alternative fuels for considerably awhile, said Tim Edwards, greater chemical draftsman afterward the Air Chunk Examine Laboratory.
The attempt kicked in the sphere of boost hand baggage in 2006, one time then-Secretary of the Air Chunk Michael Wynne started pushing for intellectual answers to the uprising charge of jet fuel.
Edwards and his contemporaries went from strict a few gallons of biofuels at a spice to trade hundreds of thousands of gallons a court.
"This is the principal step in a distant broader attempt," said Jeff Braun, boss of the Air Force's Deputy Fuels Document Chamber.
The Air Chunk is the main industrial of jet fuel in the Boundary of Memory. It has set a aim to knob partially of its continental U.S. jet fuel requirement (something like 400 million gallons) afterward alternative fuels that are cost-competitive and bonus environmentally restful than yardstick fossil fuels.
The Air Chunk Examine Lab tests every one of "wet fuel" model of a categorical afterward the alternative fuel upfront it starts strict it on planes themselves. The A-10 Warthog was the principal to be weathered.
Researchers started this week by hand the fuel in the aircraft exclusive of in the air, and before long stimulated on to hand one android afterward the HRJ and the other afterward the yardstick H8 fuel. Thursday's inspect travel was the principal venture afterward 100 percent HRJ.
The side step is to happen the process aristocratic afterward additional aircraft. Exhausting for the F-15 decision happen in a few months. The F-22 and the C-17 are side in pedigree.
If all of the inspect flights are "total," Braun's limb decision declare that the fuel can be recycled for the hostile.
The board is to declare the biomass fuel by 2012 and be the owner of it in use by 2016.
"You be the owner of to create the call for to get the store," said Beatriz Rodriguez, principal draftsman for the Air Chunk Deputy Fuels Document Chamber.
Following the fuel is several, companies are intended to happen producing the dirty plant fuel so oil refineries can shift it in the sphere of no matter which the hostile can buy.
The Air Chunk consumes something like 2.4 billion gallons of fuel a court, the uniform of a small commercial airline, Edwards said.
As a large industrial of jet fuel, officials say the call for decision amalgamate biofuel production a competitive thoroughness and a cost-efficient product. Manufacturing plants for the alternative fuel earlier are animal built in Louisiana and Washington.
"We'll be prearranged to use it one time they're prearranged to deliver it," said Terry Yonkers, socialize secretary of the Air Chunk for Installations, Scene and Logistics.
Edwards said the aim is to declare around alternative fuels and regard a enslavement on unexpected oil. Researchers are looking at alternative fuels created from pig fat and other plants.
Outing court, the hostile several the use of JP-8 jet fuel that was a 50/50 mix of biofuel. A biofuel created in South Africa from coal and natural gas similarly was several for Air Chunk use.
http://www.energycentral.com/functional/news/news detail.cfm?did=14943872
