Making aviation fuel from biomass

MIT researchers are converting the plant material lignin into hydrocarbon molecules that could help make jet fuel 100 percent sustainable. In 2021, nearly a quarter of the world's carbon dioxide emissions came from the transportation sector, with aviation being a significant contributor. While the growing use of electric vehicles is helping to clean up ground transportation, today's batteries can't compete with fossil fuel-derived liquid hydrocarbons in terms of energy delivered per pound of weight - a major concern when it comes to flying. Meanwhile, based on projected growth in travel demand, consumption of jet fuel is projected to double between now and 2050 - the year by which the international aviation industry has pledged to be carbon neutral. Many groups have targeted a 100 percent sustainable hydrocarbon fuel for aircraft, but without much success. Part of the challenge is that aviation fuels are so tightly regulated. "This is a subclass of fuels that has very specific requirements in terms of the chemistry and the physical properties of the fuel, because you can't risk something going wrong in an airplane engine," says Yuriy Román-Leshkov, the Robert T. Haslam Professor of Chemical Engineering.