BEIJING, Jan. 23 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese enterprise has developed a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), it will be made commercially available soon. This sustainable product marks a pioneering step for the country's SAF mass production, according to Science and Technology Daily.
Junheng Biology is a private petrochemical enterprise located in central China's Henan Province. After a five-year research and development phase, it has successfully converted kitchen waste oils into biodiesel and SAF by using its self-developed green and low-carbon biofuel technology, said Zhang Zhenhui, executive director of the enterprise.
SAF is a new type of aviation fuel that blends bio-manufactured green jet fuel with traditional fuel in a certain proportion. It has the potential to reduce carbon emissions over the fuel's life cycle by up to 80 percent, making it a viable alternative to green aviation energy.
"Junheng Biology is China's first private enterprise to obtain SAF airworthiness approval issued by the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC)," a CAAC official said.
The official highlighted Junheng Biology's contribution to the SAF production, noting that it not only guarantees SAF's future supply, but also sets up a benchmark for other private enterprises to contribute to the civil aviation sector's green development goal.
In addition, the enterprise took the lead in developing high acid-resistant and water-resistant catalysts, as well as waste animal and vegetable oil hydrotreating technology. The related products were exported to the European Union, with the operating income exceeding 2.2 billion yuan (about 300 million U.S. dollars) in 2023.
With the rapid development of the civil aviation industry, the rigid demand for aviation fuel is growing, while the large amount of greenhouse gas emissions generated during combustion has impeded the decarbonization progress of the industry.
Therefore, the CAAC has taken SAF as the key focus for the medium and long-term energy saving and emission reduction, and for the realization of green development.
The International Air Transport Association predicted that 65 percent of the carbon reduction in the aviation sector will be realized through the use of SAF by 2050. Various SAF technological breakthroughs will become a crucial pathway for the low-carbon transformation of the global aviation sector.
Meanwhile, many oil enterprises worldwide are jumping on the SAF business bandwagon. They have carried out the construction and operation of SAF projects in many regions around the world, indicating that SAF will become an indispensable part of the energy supply business of international oil conglomerates.
In April 2023, a Memorandum of Understanding for cooperation was signed between the U.S. industrial conglomerate Honeywell and China's Tianjin Free Trade Zone to establish a flagship SAF production base in north China. The move aims to meet the growing market demand for SAF, the company said. Enditem
