UK Startup Develops Low Carbon Jet Fuel Made From Human Waste (bbc.com) 41
Chemists at a lab in Gloucertershire have developed a low carbon jet fuel made entirely from human sewage. James Hygate, Firefly Green Fuels CEO, said: "We wanted to find a really low-value feedstock that was highly abundant. And of course poo is abundant." The BBC reports: Independent tests by international aviation regulators found it was nearly identical to standard fossil jet fuel. Firefly's team worked with Cranfield University to examine the fuel's life cycle carbon impact. It concluded that Firefly's fuel has a 90% lower carbon footprint than standard jet fuel. Mr Hygate, who has been developing low-carbon fuels in Gloucestershire for 20 years, said although the new fuel was chemically just like fossil-based kerosene, it "has no fossil carbon, it's a fossil-free fuel."
"Of course energy would be used (in production), but when looking at the fuel's life cycle, a 90% saving is mind-blowing, so yes, we have to use energy but it is much lower compared to the production of fossil fuels," he added. [...] First, they create what they call "bio-crude." It looks like oil: thick, black, gloopy. Most importantly, it behaves like crude oil chemically. Dr Sergio Lima, who is also research director at Firefly Green Fuels, said: "What we are producing here is a fuel which is net zero." [...] The bio-kerosene is now being tested independently at the DLR Institute of Combustion Technology at the German Aerospace Center, working with Washington State University. Further future testing will also be carried out by the UK SAF (Sustainable Aviation Fuels) clearing House, based at University of Sheffield. First results have confirmed the fuel has near-identical chemical composition to A1 fossil jet fuel. The UK Department of Transport has awarded the team a 2 million pound research grant.
So they can make a test tube of kerosene in the lab. That is a long way from replacing kerosene in the world's airports. Mr Hygate has done his maths. Each human, he calculates, makes enough sewage in a year to produce 4-5 liters of bio jet fuel. To fly a passenger jet from London to New York would need the annual sewage of 10,000 people. And another 10,000 to come back. Put another way, the UK's total sewage supply would meet about 5% of the country's total aviation fuel demand. It may sound small, but he insists: "That's pretty exciting." "There's a 10% sustainable aviation fuel requirement, that's a legal mandate. And we could meet half of that with poo."
"Of course energy would be used (in production), but when looking at the fuel's life cycle, a 90% saving is mind-blowing, so yes, we have to use energy but it is much lower compared to the production of fossil fuels," he added. [...] First, they create what they call "bio-crude." It looks like oil: thick, black, gloopy. Most importantly, it behaves like crude oil chemically. Dr Sergio Lima, who is also research director at Firefly Green Fuels, said: "What we are producing here is a fuel which is net zero." [...] The bio-kerosene is now being tested independently at the DLR Institute of Combustion Technology at the German Aerospace Center, working with Washington State University. Further future testing will also be carried out by the UK SAF (Sustainable Aviation Fuels) clearing House, based at University of Sheffield. First results have confirmed the fuel has near-identical chemical composition to A1 fossil jet fuel. The UK Department of Transport has awarded the team a 2 million pound research grant.
So they can make a test tube of kerosene in the lab. That is a long way from replacing kerosene in the world's airports. Mr Hygate has done his maths. Each human, he calculates, makes enough sewage in a year to produce 4-5 liters of bio jet fuel. To fly a passenger jet from London to New York would need the annual sewage of 10,000 people. And another 10,000 to come back. Put another way, the UK's total sewage supply would meet about 5% of the country's total aviation fuel demand. It may sound small, but he insists: "That's pretty exciting." "There's a 10% sustainable aviation fuel requirement, that's a legal mandate. And we could meet half of that with poo."
Surely they could do the same with pig shit (Score:5, Insightful)
Surely they could do the same with pig shit as well, as there is a hell of a lot of that too.
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Have you not heard the phrase "happy as a pig in shit"?
Re:Surely they could do the same with pig shit (Score:4, Interesting)
It's a dumb phrase because free-roaming pigs do not wallow in shit, theirs or anything else's. Caged pigs who have no room to move and nowhere to go will wallow in their own shit because they literally have no choice. But they aren't happy about it.
Pigs roll in mud to cool off. Not shit.
Dogs, on the other hand, LOVE to roll in shit, including and especially the shit of other animals. The best explanation I have heard is that this is a hunter instinct; it obscures their scent so they will have an easier time approaching prey.
I suppose we could say "happy as a dog in shit" but that would remind people of uncomfortable truths, so it probably won't ever catch on.
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Yeah, but them some weird desert guy with a random collection of kids shows up and steals your machine and engineer.
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Are you referring to this [foxnews.com]? Safe edible meat from poop.
I know, you are just being a troll. But the fact is that worldwide hunger has nothing to do with food shortage. There is more than enough food thrown away every day to feed the world. It has everything to do with distribution (and economics). It costs money and requires infrastructure to get the food from people who have too much to people who don't have any, and nobody is bearing that cost. And, further more, when free food is delivered to starvin
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Re:Surely they could do the same with pig shit (Score:4, Insightful)
The issue might be collection. Human waste is conveniently concentrated at sewage plants already.
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A ridiculous amount of it is not being used for either, unfortunately, and is just going to waste (pun not intended), spewing nitrous oxide into the atmosphere.
Nitrous oxide is the third most emitted greenhouse gas, largely because of animal agriculture.
Re: Surely they could do the same with pig shit (Score:2)
The other important question is what happens to all that nitrogen. If itâ(TM)s means we have to produce a ton of ammonia to replace the fertiliser, itâ(TM)s a terrible plan.
If you thought... (Score:4, Funny)
...the seats were uncomfortable before, just wait for the butt-hose, flyboy!
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Au contraire.
With Fred Flintstone fuel-on-the-fly potty seating, people will have no need to leave their seats, eliminating one of the annoyances of modern air travel.
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Which will let the airlines cram the seat rows even closer together!
It's a win-win!
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Which will let the airlines cram the seat rows even closer together!
It's a win-win!
BUTT THE STINK that will be created by a plane full of [excrement deleted] ...
It's time to ... (Score:2)
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would need even more energy to separate the good stuff (poo) from the rest.
That is how water treatment plants already work though, they separate and then process the waste. Solids are filtered and organic waste is treated, etc.
I don't mean to trivialize what probably has to happen to make this idea reality but it's not the most unworkable idea, the fact that sewage by design is centralized plays in its favor.
Of course the real question is absent subsidies will this be able to get close to current spot price of kerosene which looking up just now is $88 a barrel or $1.80 a liter.
Re: Are we being serious? (Score:3)
the new fuel was chemically just like fossil-based kerosene, it "has no fossil carbon, it's a fossil-free fuel."
When I saw this I knew it was nothing but theater.
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Neat! Yeah this is a way better use of the poo if it works.
actually, hydrothermal carbonization solves this (Score:2)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?... [youtube.com]
check out matt farrell's explainer video like in the middle.
Glad to hear it. (Score:2)
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Be careful what you wish for! Next on the agenda if this one is successful is to ban meat and have us eat "beyond meat" made of human feces, with a side order of very expensive soylent green for the ones who will be able to afford it. Only the elites will continue to eat conventional food.
byproduct (Score:3)
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According to their web site [flyfirefly.uk], the residue can be used as a soil improver in agriculture, which would suggest that it's no more toxic than conventional fertiliser. They appear to just be using hydrothermal liquefaction [wikipedia.org], which generally doesn't release toxic byproducts.
poop (Score:1)
But how does it work? (Score:3)
I got curious how this works--how does one take organic matter (crap) and convert it into petroleum? Some quick internet searching yielded a patent:
https://patents.google.com/pat... [google.com]
In that case, the answer is high heat, higher pressure, and a homogeneous catalyst. And it makes sense, as natural oil was made slowly when organic matter was buried under high pressure. The temperature and catalyst speed up what is a natural reaction. Presumably a similar method is employed here.
How? I'm sure I could use CO2 from air too... (Score:2)
It's all about where the energy comes in (and how long it takes). No details on the process means it may as well be fictional. I can create kerosine too... it'll take a lot of energy, but if we're not sharing details beyond "done"...
My best guess after skimming the article for details (didn't see any), is they're extracting (and maybe creating from the rest) oil/fat. Then using that to create the kerosine (recombine the long carbon/hydrogen chains toward a target length). Just because you can do it doe
A long time process finanally beingn optimized. (Score:1)
Log ago people discovered that cattle dung left to dry could serve as a fuel for a fire. Maybe it didn't get a s hot as s fire from wood but it go hot enough. Put some wood on the burning dung and the wood could dry out and provide even more heat. If all someone had on hand was dry dung and wet wood then this could be a means to stay warm, and not have to put so much effort into falling trees. Rather they could augment or replace the wood with cattle dung. Over time industry developed from this. Peopl
I don't like to brag (Score:2)
I don't like to brag but that is my hot shit they are using. Oh yes.
Wait; Our shit is jet fuel??!! (Score:2)
When the intelligent airliners take over, the seat changes are going to make business class look like first class.
Starship Excrementprise (Score:1)
"Scotty, shit me up!"
This would have been useful (Score:1)
Beats blocks of ice (Score:2)
low carbon? (Score:4, Interesting)
It's just like kerosene, but low carbon? How does that work, journalists?
What a crock of shit (Score:2)
How was your flight? (Score:2)
How was your flight?
Crappy. Came in too heavy; had to dump fuel over San Francisco. Stunk like heck.
But at least now San Francisco smells better.