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Made from renewable materials like biomass and agricultural waste, sustainable aviation fuel has enormous potential to decarbonize the aviation industry. But widespread adoption has yet to take off.

Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) makes up less than 1% of the fuel used in the aviation industry, while aviation fuel contributes about 3% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Producing SAF that is more energy efficient, cheaper and cost-competitive with fossil-based jet fuel is critical to widespread commercial use.

Now scientists at the Argonne National Laboratory have developed a novel technology that creates a cost-competitive SAF that could reduce GHG emissions in the aviation industry by up to 70%. Argonne's life cycle and techno-economic models were used to analyze the environmental impacts and economic viability of the SAF.

The research in ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering shows that novel methane arrested anaerobic digestion (MAAD) technology converts high-strength organic wastewater into volatile fatty acids, which can be upgraded to SAF.

As key precursors for SAF production, volatile fatty acids can play a critical role in decarbonizing the aviation industry, said Haoran Wu, an Argonne postdoctoral researcher.

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