Scientists at the Wageningen University and Research Center (Netherlands) have developed a new type of aviation fuel produced using potato waste.
The possibility of creating a promising aviation fuel from potato production wastes has already been proven in laboratory conditions.
The BioJet Fuel project, running from 2017 to 2020, aimed to define the conditions needed to scale this process and create a viable production chain for bio-based aviation fuels.
The raw materials used as a model in this project are potato peelings. They were used for the enzymatic production of acetone, butanol and ethanol (ABE fermentation). The ABE mixture obtained from the substrate is catalytically converted to hydrocarbons and, after hydrogenation and fractionation, to aviation fuel.
Now potato peelings are used as low-value feed for cattle or converted into methane by anaerobic digestion; in the future, the range of their use for biofuel production may be significantly expanded.
Experimental studies have shown that the complete production chain of converting agricultural waste into fuel is already technically feasible.