February 2011 AIRBUS ALTERNATIVE FUELS Summary Airbus research and a number of test flights have shown that

alternative fuels work with todays aircraft without any modifications, and that if enough alternative fuel was available to make it commercially viable, then airlines would use it today. Airbus has come a long way since launching its alternative fuels roadmap in early 2008 with the worlds first alternative fuels flight using a commercial aircraft (the A380). Since then, Airbus has been instrumental in the approval of 50 per cent alternative fuels, followed closely by the worlds first ever alternative fuels passenger flight in 2009 (an A340), Latin Americas first bio-fuel flight (an A320) in November 2010, and the announcement of the worlds first ever daily passenger bio-fuel flights from mid 2011 using an A321. The biggest challenge today remains the availability of sustainable feedstock from which to produce enough alternative fuel for aviation. Airbus is bringing together farmers, refiners and airlines to create the sustainable bio-fuel value chain, in order to speed up its commercialisation. Any solution must be sustainable so that the feedstock production does not interfere with food, water or land, and is produced in a socially responsible way The aviation industry goal is to find an alternative fuel that works on current and future aircraft without the need for modification, is sustainable and helps reduce overall CO2 emissions. A fuel made from bio mass is a good option because when it is consumed, it emits the CO2 it naturally absorbed when it grew, thereby helping neutralize overall CO2 emissions. Alternative fuels roadmap The most obvious way to cut CO2 emissions is to reduce fuel consumption. This can be done through improvements in aircraft technologies as well as streamlining air traffic management. Alternative fuels, is another option. Airbus is actively investigating alternative energy sources for aviation, and believes this could help the sector eventually achieve almost carbon neutral growth by 2020 and 50% reduction in CO2 emission levels by 2050 compared to 2005. Any alternative fuel would need to work on existing aircraft and engines. Technically, standard jet fuel or kerosene has specific characteristics that are necessary and remarkably suitable for flight conditions. It has a good energy content (35 percent more than ethanol), a low freeze point (below minus 40C) so doesnt freeze in flight and it is stable and reliable. Alternative fuels for aviation must meet these same characteristics. For the foreseeable future, aircraft will require kerosene type fuels whilst other sectors can consider simpler alternatives such as ethanol or FAME (Fatty Acid Methyl Ester) and even switch to options such as electricity or hydrogen fuel cells. Plant could be a good solution for alternative fuel base as it absorbs CO2 as it grows and releases it when burnt. The net result is that the CO2 absorbed and released can partially
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cancel each-other out to achieve near neutral emissions. A bio-fuel which can be mixed with standard jet fuel and does not require engine modifications is an attractive solution. Airbus believes that solutions for alternative fuel production must reflect each regions flora and habitat and natural resources. There will therefore be a variety of feed-stocks. An integrated solution would be to recycle the CO2 emitted by industry to speed up the growth of algae to convert into bio-fuel. Research is focusing on sustainable feedstocks that are neither in competition with food nor water resources. Promising options include micro-algae, woodchip waste, camelina, halophytes such as salicornia (plants growing in salt water), and in the longer term other waste produce, and yeast for example. All aviation fuels must be approved before they can be used commercially and to achieve this, Airbus launched the Alternative Fuels Roadmap in early 2008. The Alternative Fuels Roadmap also demonstrated that some alternative fuels can help reduce emissions. Phase one of the roadmap was achieved on February 1st, 2008, by the completion of the worlds first ever flight by a commercial jet (an A380 between Filton and Toulouse) using synthetic liquid jet-fuel made from natural gas (GTL). The fuel is similar to standard jet fuel in terms of CO2 but has virtually no sulphur and is better for local air quality. This first stage showed that if synthetically produced fuels work on existing aircraft without modification, then so would fuel produced from biomass (Biomass to Liquid BTL). Thanks to these and later tests, 50% blends of GTL and BTL were authorised in 2009 and Qatar Airways flew the worlds first commercial service with GTL that October. In April, 2010, United Airlines flew an A319 with GTL. Phase two of the roadmap focuses on sustainable bio mass based fuels and its commercialisation. In January 2010, Airbus and Qatar teamed up in a project to speed up the approval, production and supply of bio fuel. This was followed in November 2010 with the establishment in Brazil of the first value chain (bringing together farmers, refiners and airlines) to speed up commercialise bio-fuel production from the Jatropha plant. At the end of 2010, Airbus and Lufthansa announced the worlds first daily passenger flights using bio-fuel from mid 2011, using an A321. A solution lies in using both synthetic fuels and bio-fuels. If maturity of alternative high yield sustainable feed-stocks is available by the middle of the next decade, Airbus believes that by 2030, around 30% of all jet fuel could be advanced bio-jet fuel. The worlds foremost authority on climate change, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) say that aviation contributes to two per cent of man made CO2 emissions and that this will grow to three per cent by 2050. In Airbus 40 year existence, developments in technology have helped drive dramatic improvements in aircraft performance. Todays aircraft are 70 per cent more fuel efficient than 40 years ago and emit 70 per cent less CO2. In this time aircraft have also become 75 per cent quieter. ***

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