Brazilian manufacturer Embraer will seek to demonstrate the feasibility of a biofuel-powered jet aircraft using native plants as the fuel source.

The company plans to select a specific refining mixture by the middle of next year, but the candidates include palm leaves, coconut oil and castor oil, Satoshi Yokota, Embraer’s executive vice president for strategic planning and technology development, tells ATI.

The aircraft platform used to conduct the demonstration will remain undecided until the availability of the biofuel source is confirmed.

Embraer may select a turbofan-powered business jet or E-jet, but that determination will be based strictly on aircraft availability at the time the biofuel supply is delivered, Yokota says.

The company’s goal is to conduct the demonstration in 2008, but the schedule for the program has not been fixed. Currently, “there is not sufficient quantities [of biofuel] available at this point”, he adds.

Embraer’s plans follow Boeing’s announcement in June that it plans in 2008 to demonstrate an algae-based biofuel on a General Electric-powered Virgin Atlantic 747 and a Rolls-Royce-powered Air New Zealand 747.

Embraer can use local plant sources rather than algae because of Brazil’s abundance of vegetation, Yokota says. Biofuel does not have to compete with the country’s food supply.

Embraer also certificated the ethanol-powered Ipanema aircraft in 2004, which uses a piston engine.

Source: FlightGlobal.com

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