Publications

Sustainable Aviation Fuel Blending and Logistics

11/25/2024

Advancing aviation requires a multipronged approach in both alternative fuel use and efficiency to meet pollution reductions and environmental requirements and goals. About 80% of aviation pollutants are from flights longer than about 930 miles (ATAG 2024). Aviation was also responsible for 9% of domestic transportation pollution in 2022 (EPA 2022). The United States has a significant commercial aviation sector accounting for nearly 28% of global jet fuel use (IATA 2024b, EIA 2024g).

Authors: Moriarty, K.; McCormick, R.

SAF Policy Scorecard: Evaluating State-Level Sustainable Aviation Fuel Policies in the United States

11/1/2024

As several states across the U.S. have begun to adopt or consider policies to expand sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) development, this paper compares key provisions for state-level policies and analyzes the state support available to fund each policy initiative. This report also highlights three critical shortcomings in the current U.S. SAF policy landscape: 1) state support for some SAF pathways may not increase overall low-carbon fuel supply; 2) short-term or short-lived policies may impede long-term SAF investment; and 3) existing SAF policy frameworks incentivize the use of SAF without penalizing aviation pollution, violating the “polluter pays” principle.

Authors: Andy Navarrete, Nikita Pavlenko, Jane O'Malley

Sustainable Aviation Fuel Grand Challenge Roadmap Implementation Framework

11/1/2024

Announced in September 2021, the Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) Grand Challenge is a governmentwide initiative to drive innovation in the domestic SAF industry. The goals of the SAF Grand Challenge seek to achieve lower costs, enhanced efficiency, and expanded production of SAF across the United States. This implementation framework report inventories and maps the current federal capacity to act on the steps laid out in the SAF Grand Challenge Roadmap published in September 2022. This report is intended to inform relevant stakeholders of federal capabilities and programs that will advance the goals laid out in the SAF Grand Challenge Roadmap, importantly highlighting any current barriers or areas for improvement within federal agency programming.

Authors: William Goldner, Justin Bredlau, Prem Lobo, Valerie Reed, Zia Haq, Craig Brown

Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) State-of-Industry Report: Hydroprocessed Esters and Fatty Acids Pathway

7/1/2024

This technical report from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) details the sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production process, with a particular focus on the hydroprocessed esters and fatty acids (HEFA) pathway, which is currently the only commercially deployed SAF production pathway to produce a significant volume of fuel. The report outlines and evaluates the HEFA supply chain and identifies obstacles that could hinder future commercial production. While specific to SAF, this report may offer information relevant to the production of other liquid transportation fuels due to the more widely applicable nature of producing hydrocarbon fuels.

Authors: Oscar Rosales Calderon, Ling Tao, Zia Abdullah, Michael Talmadge, Anelia Milbrandt

Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) State-of-Industry Report: State of SAF Production Process

7/1/2024

Because of their compatibility with existing fuel infrastructure and vehicle technologies, biofuels will be a critical component of hard-to-abate sectors in the U.S. Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) will similarly be a changemaker in the aviation industry. This study examines the various SAF production pathways, provides an overview of the current state of the industry, and addresses challenges and hurdles facing the industry in order to proactively mitigate their impact.

Authors: Oscar Rosales Calderon, Ling Tao, Zia Abdullah, Kristi Moriarty, Sharon Smolinski

The Future of Biofuels in the United States Transportation Sector

12/29/2023

This article analyses conversion options for biomass to fuels in the U.S. transportation sector, particularly for heavy duty transportation and aviation, based on regional carbon dioxide transportation and injection costs and U.S. tax credits at the time of publication. The article found that that under current credits biofuels play a role only in some regions of the U.S., but a range of policy scenarios, including combining biofuel production with carbon-capture and storage, can lead to biofuels playing a significant role nationally.

Authors: Geissler, C; Ryu, J; Maravelias, C

Bioenergy Technology Office Multi-Year Program Plan

3/1/2023

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) works alongside national laboratories, universities, and private industry partners to advance energy technologies sourced from renewable carbon resources. This Multi-Year Program Plan (MYPP) establishes BETO’s missions and goals, while also identifying strategic approaches to the Office’s research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) plans. Included in these plans are initiatives to decarbonize multiple sectors of the U.S. economy, de-risk relevant technologies, create jobs and economic opportunities, and increase participation in the continued development and use of energy technologies. This MYPP is at once an internal, operational guide, as well as a resource to communicate BETO’s mission and goals to stakeholders and to the public.

Impacts of Regional Air Mobility and Electrified Aircraft on Airport Electricity Infrastructure and Demand

2/1/2023

The U.S. aviation system is an important part of the nation’s economy, transporting hundreds of millions of passengers and billions of pounds of freight annually. In the coming decades, air transportation of people and cargo is set to expand; however, several challenges currently face the aviation sector, including achieving pollution reduction goals, serving larger populations through regional and local airports, managing aircraft noise, and reducing the cost of operations. This report summarizes an analysis of the electrical infrastructure that might be necessary to serve electric aircraft at a subset of airports where potential electric aircraft flight demand has been provided. Additionally, an estimate for the amount of on-site distributed energy resources that could be used to serve electric aircraft in cost-effective scenarios is provided.

Authors: Cox, J.; Harris, T.; Krah, K.; Morris, J.; Li, X.; Cary, S.

Evaluation of Performance Variables to Accelerate the Deployment of Sustainable Aviation Fuels at a Regional Scale

11/19/2022

An increase in jet fuel consumption and has led to the need for alternative technologies to produce sustainable aviation fuels (SAF). One option to produce SAFs is to utilize waste or biomass-based feedstocks that has the potential to reduce pollutants by 50% or more compared to conventional jet fuel. However, there is a lack of understanding of how the synergistic effects of key performance variables could hinder or help the deployment of aviation fuels on a regional scale. Here, we assess the implications of key variables–including type and quantity of waste/biomass feedstock availability, cost of SAF production, policies, and fuel/infrastructure logistics–on the deployment of SAF at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport. Our sensitivity analysis shows renewable fuel incentives and feedstock price to be key performance variables affecting the production cost and deployment of SAF.

Authors: Bhatt, A.H.; Zhang, Y.; Milbrandt, A.; Newes, E.; Moriarty, K.; Klein, B.; Tao, L.

U.S. Renewable Diesel Fuel and Other Biofuels Plant Production Capacity

8/8/2022

This report is intended to measure estimated gallons of renewable diesel fuel, renewable heating oil, renewable jet fuel, renewable naphtha and gasoline, and other biofuels (excluding fuel ethanol and biodiesel) and biointermediates that a plant is capable of producing over a period of one year (365 consecutive days) starting on the first day of each report month.

Authors: U.S. Energy Information Administration

Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Sustainable Aviation Fuel Logistics and Production Study

10/1/2021

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) commitment is to meet the goals set by the Paris Agreement, with an interim pollution reduction target of 35% by 2025 and 80% by 2050. PANYNJ is seeking innovative solutions to reduce pollution for all public forms of transportation, including aviation. Similarly, the global aviation industry adopted the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA). Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), made from non-petroleum feedstocks, is a near-term alternative fuel that reduces pollution from air transportation. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) conducted a resource assessment and a techno-economic analysis to identify the potential for production in the port district. Although SAF could be sourced from other areas of the United States or imported, an evaluation of local production was conducted due to the potential positive impacts of converting local waste feedstocks into SAF for use at nearby airports. The study found that the highest volumes of feedstock nearby were municipal solid waste and woody biomass. SAF must be blended with Jet A up to certain percent determined by ASTM International fuel quality standards prior to use in aircraft. SAF from a stand-alone facility could be delivered by barge, rail, or truck to a Linden, New Jersey based terminal for blending with Jet A or it could be blended in the Gulf region and shipped via the Colonial pipeline to one of the terminals. The investment will take place at the terminal(s) to accommodate SAF/Jet A blends and it will be business as usual for the airports in how they receive fuel and distribute it to aircraft.

Authors: Moriarty, K.; Milbrandt, A.; Tao, L.

PTC and ITC for Aviation Fuel: Analysis Using the Biomass Scenario Model

3/5/2021

This analysis uses the Biomass Scenario Model, a system dynamics model of the bioenergy supply chain, to explore different scenarios of implementation of a production tax credit (PTC) and investment tax credit (ITC) for sustainable aviation fuel.

Authors: Newes, E.; Vimmerstedt, L.; Haq, Z.; Lindauer, A.

Evolution of Plug-In Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure in the United States

8/1/2020

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuels Data Center (AFDC) has tracked alternative fueling and electric vehicle charging infrastructure in the United States since 1991. This paper explores the history of the AFDC Station Locator, which was launched in 1999, and discusses the growth of electric vehicle supply equipment. It also looks at how electric vehicle drivers access public charging, and evaluates challenges, gaps, and opportunities facing both electric vehicle drivers and the industry as a whole.

Authors: Brown, A.; Lommele, S.; Eger, R.; Schayowitz, A.

Federal Vehicle Fleets: Agencies Have Continued to Incorporate AFVs into Fleets, but Challenges Remain

7/25/2019

Since 1988, a series of laws have been enacted and executive orders issued related to federal goals of reducing federal fleets’ petroleum use. For fiscal year 2017, federal agencies were required to: acquire certain types of vehicles, use more alternative fuel, and meet targets for reducing petroleum and per-mile pollution. Federal agencies were also under a directive to increase acquisitions of electric vehicles. This report reviews federal agencies’ efforts related to these fiscal year 2017 requirements. It addresses how agencies reported meeting fleet energy requirements and how agencies efforts changed their fleets as well as challenges agencies face related to further meeting fleet energy goals.

Fleet Compliance Annual Report: Model Year 2017, Fiscal Year 2018

3/27/2019

This annual report of the Alternative Fuel Transportation Program, which ensures compliance with DOE regulations covering state government and alternative fuel provider fleets pursuant to the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (EPAct), as amended, provides fleet compliance results for manufacturing year 2017 / fiscal year 2018.