Civil unrest in the Middle East has pushed up the price of jet fuel by more than 30 percent since December. In response, airlines have increased ticket prices, and some have announced they will begin grounding older, less-efficient aircraft types. While no one knows for sure how long this spike in prices will last, it has prompted many in the industry to turn their attention back to the promise of biofuel.
While a 50/50 blend of jet fuel and synthetic paraffinic kerosene derived through the Fischer-Tropsch process was approved for use in 2009 by ASTM International, the governing body that approves the use of fuels, a standard for hydrotreated (or hydroprocessed) renewable jet fuel or HRJ was expected to be certified by the organization late last year. According to Jim Rekoske, vice president and general manager of renewable energy and chemicals at Honeywell subsidiary UOP–which has developed a technology process that will produce HRJ from feedstock oils such as camelina, jatropha and algae–approval for the new standard was delayed several months by the need for additional testing.
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