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Search results for: โ€œaviationโ€

  • Commercial aviation: fuel economy of planes?

    Commercial aviation: fuel economy of planes?

    This data-file calculates the fuel economy of planes from first principles, using physics to calculate lift and drag, and comparing with actual data from aircraft manufacturers. The typical fuel economy of a plane is 80 passenger-mpg to carry 400 passengers, 8,000km at 900kmph, using jet fuel with 12,000 Wh/kg energy density. What sensitivities and decarbonization…

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  • Biogas-to-liquids: decarbonize aviation fuels?

    Biogas-to-liquids: decarbonize aviation fuels?

    This 15-page report evaluates a pathway for sustainable aviation fuels, feeding biogas into a Fischer-Tropsch reactor. Bio-GTL will likely cost 3x more than conventional jet fuel, for a 75% reduction in CO2, giving an abatement cost of $550/ton. We still prefer nature-based carbon offsets to decarbonize aviation.

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  • Commercial aviation: air travel economics?

    Commercial aviation: air travel economics?

    This data-file estimates the economics of a passenger jet, over the course of its life: i.e., what ticket price must be charged to earn a 10% IRR after covering the capex costs of the plane, fuel costs, crew, maintenance and airport and air traffic charges. Decarbonization is challenging.

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  • Jet fuel demand: by region and forecasts to 2050?

    Jet fuel demand: by region and forecasts to 2050?

    Jet fuel demand ran at 8Mbpd in 2019, the last year before COVID, and could rise to 18Mbpd by 2050, as global population rises 25%, jet fuel demand per capita doubles and fuel economy per aviation mile rises by 20%. This data file breaks down jet fuel demand by region, including our forecasts through 2050,…

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  • US vehicle ownership and fuel economy?

    US vehicle ownership and fuel economy?

    This data file assesses US vehicle ownership over time. Improving fuel economy has been muted by rebound effects, such as greater mobility and larger vehicles. Oil prices influence the types of vehicles being purchased, their masses and their fuel economy. EV ownership has also been rising and is cross-plotted against incomes and other variables.

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  • Biofuel technologies: an overview?

    Biofuel technologies: an overview?

    Biofuels are currently displacing 3.5Mboed of oil and gas. But they are not carbon-free, and their weighted average CO2 emissions are only c50% lower. This data-file breaks down the biofuels market across seven key feedstocks, to help identify which opportunities can scale for the lowest costs and CO2, versus others that require further technical progress.

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  • Global CO2 emissions breakdown?

    Global CO2 emissions breakdown?

    Global CO2 emissions rose from 32GTpa of CO2-equivalents in 1990 to 54GTpa in 2024, and are seen optimistically declining to 30GTpa by 2050, on a gross basis. This global CO2 emisisons breakdown covers 33 sources that each explain over 0.5% of global CO2e emissions, as a way of tracking emissions by source, by year, and…

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  • US decarbonization: energy and CO2 emissions?

    US decarbonization: energy and CO2 emissions?

    The US consumes 25,000 TWH of primary energy per year, which equates to 13,000 TWH of useful energy, and emits 6GTpa of CO2. This model captures our best estimates for what a pragmatic and economical decarbonization of the US will look like, reaching net zero in 2050, with forecasts for wind, solar, nuclear, hydro, oil,…

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  • Power-to-liquids: the economics?

    Power-to-liquids: the economics?

    Liquid transport fuels with almost no CO2 emissions could be created from renewable energy, by electrolysing water and CO2, then combining the hydrogen and CO, e.g., via Fischer Tropsch. This simple models stress tests the economics. Our base case estimates are for costs between $400-600/bbl ($10-14/gallon).

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  • LanzaTech: biofuels breakthrough?

    LanzaTech: biofuels breakthrough?

    LanzaTech aspires to “take waste carbon emissions and convert them” into sustainable fuels (and bio-plastics) with a >70% CO2 reduction. We have assessed its patents but concluded we cannot yet de-risk the CO2-to-fuels pathway in our energy transition models.

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