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August 5, 2022
By Dana Givens
A NASA-Backed Study Will Test
Ammonia as a Carbon-Free Alternative to Jet Fuel
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Most of the the
aviation industry’s efforts to seek out alternatives to fossil
fuels have focused on the viability of electric engines, hydrogen
power and Sustainable Aviation Fuel. Now, a new study will explore yet
another potential alternative: ammonia.
The University of Central Florida
announced this week that it would begin testing ammonia as a potential
fuel solution for
aircraft. The program is backed by a five-year grant from
NASA worth $10 million, and it hopes to determine whether ammonia
represents a realistic fuel option for commercial airliners.
More from Robb Report
The team will be led by faculty from the
university and experts from Georgia Tech and Purdue. In addition,
companies within the aviation sector, such as Boeing, Southwest
Research Institute, and the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority, have
also been tapped to join the program.
Researchers hope to find ways to use
ammonia as the main hydrogen carrier to create carbon-free emissions
while in flight. To accommodate the new fuel, the team is also
developing new jet engine components, using a Boeing 737-8 as a base
model.
Dr. Jayanta Kapata, a UCF professor and
the study’s lead investigator, believes ammonia could be a carbon-free
alternative to conventional gas. “Use of ammonia as an aviation fuel
will not produce any carbon dioxide. Ammonia is the only potential
alternative aviation fuel that allows a pathway for near-elimination
of nitrogen oxides in engine exhaust,” he told Robb Report in
an email. “In addition, ammonia can also greatly reduce formation of
contrails that also impact earth’s radiation balance. Thus, among all
aviation alternatives, ammonia can provide some unique advantages that
can’t be matched by the rest.”
The University of Central Florida ammonia
study begins at a time when airlines such as
United and TAP Portugal have begun to implement strategies to use
Sustainable Aviation Fuel on commercial flights. However, UCF’s
study, which will run through 2027, isn’t the industry’s first
flirtation with ammonia. Indeed, Australian company Aviation H2
announced already plans to partially operate its Dassault Falcon 50
business jet on ammonia by mid-2023.
Whether ammonia can offer a scalable
carbon-free alternative to conventional gas is an open question. The
UCF study, hopefully, will give us some answers when it concludes.
Green Play Ammonia™, Yielder® NFuel Energy.
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509 995 1879 cell, Pacific.
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