WSU scientists create sustainable jet fuel from corn waste

Washington State University scientists successfully tested a new way to produce sustainable jet fuel from corn and other agricultural waste.

Their findings were published in the journal ‘Fuel Processing Technology.’

According to researchers, the ‘lignin-based fuel’ could make sustainable fuels cleaner and more easily useable in jet engines.

Lignin comes from the stocks, cobs, and leaves left after corn is harvested.

Because of its density, efficiency, and seal-swelling characteristics, hydrocarbons from lignin could effectively replace fossil fuel-derived compounds called aromatics.

“The aviation enterprise is looking to generate 100% renewable aviation fuel,” said Josh Heyne, research team member and co-director of the WSU-PNNL Bioproducts Institute. “Lignin-based jet fuel complements existing technologies by, for example, increasing the density of fuel blends.”

According to WSU, global aviation fuel consumption reached an all-time high of nearly 100 billion gallons in 2019. Demand is expected to grow in the coming decades.

Sustainable aviation fuels derived from plant-based biomass could help reduce aviation’s carbon footprint, reduce contrails, and meet international carbon neutrality goals.

“Our achievement takes this technology one step closer to real-world use by providing data that lets us better gauge its feasibility for commercial aviation,” said lead scientist Bin Yang, professor in WSU’s Department of Biological Systems Engineering.

The team is now refining its process for better efficiency and reduced costs.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Bioenergy Technologies Office, the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and Advanced Refining Technologies LLC supported the research.

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