“We expect to see a lot of innovation and energy directed at creating sustainable fuel over the next 10-20 years and we are here to support this growth in any way we can. Despite the challenges of affordability and scalability, we believe that Sustainable Aviation Fuels are the only solution to decarbonise long-haul aviation,” Dave Smith, Director, Central Technology, Rolls-Royce.
We strongly believe that no single country or company can solve this challenge, we must work globally and together. Naturally, our airline customers have the same desire and we are working closely with them, as well as our competitors, peers and the oil and gas industry. Governments and regulators also have an important role to play.
Most of our aircraft engines, such as the Trent XWB and the Trent 7000, can already operate using blended SAF. We believe that all of our newer engines would probably be able to operate on 100% SAF and we’re in the process of verifying that so potentially the regulatory cap of 50% blend can be lifted.
We’re involved in a research project at the Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg, which includes building a demonstration plant to produce sustainable fuels using electric power. The plant will test the use of sustainable fuel for mobility on land, water and the air. It will look at the generation of heat and power, and what the carbon footprint of the process looks like.