The Research Collaboration Is Turning Lignin into Bio-based Aviation Fuel
Innventia is coordinating the Lignojet research collaboration, which aims to establish lignin as a raw material in bio-based aviation fuel. The Swedish-Brazilian project is co-funded by VINNOVA, and brings together players throughout the entire value chain.
The global market for renewable products is expected to exceed USD 200 billion as early as 2015. Brazil will be one of the most important producers in this global market, with significant raw material assets and large-scale production of bio-based fuels. The recently launched Lignojet project will demonstrate how bio-based aviation fuel can be produced from forest raw materials that do not compete with food production through integrated production in the pulp mill.
Future aviation fuel must be based on renewable raw materials, but in order for these to be able to compete with fossil fuels they must be produced cost-effectively. This can be achieved by integrating production in the pulp mill, where there are already processes and equipment for dealing with large flows in a cost-effective and environmentally-friendly manner.
The project is bring co-funded by VINNOVA, and will run until December 2016. In addition to Innventia, the Brazilian pulp producer Fibria, Karlstad Airport, LignoBoost Demo, Valmet and SP Process Development are also involved. One of the project’s aims is to establish a roadmap for introducing lignin-based aviation fuel in Brazil and Värmland. Europe’s first permanent tank facility for bio-jet fuel was installed at Karlstad Airport a year ago.
– It’s certainly true that bio-jet fuel made from various raw materials is already used, but here it’s a matter of also developing applications within products based on forest raw materials as quickly as possible, says Karlstad Airport’s CEO Peter Landmark.
– In this way we will gain a new local fuel industry, and with our current knowledge we should be able to fly using certified biofuel from forest raw materials within 5-8 years.
– Bringing so many players together along the value chain has enabled us to create the right starting point for a large-scale launch of a new biofuel, explains Marie Anheden, who is leading the project and is responsible for Energy & Chemicals at Innventia.
More: www.innventia.com
