The airline has launched a scientific test programme with engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce to find practical alternatives to kerosene, with the potential to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from aircraft.
Fuel samples will be tested on a Rolls-Royce engine from a BA Boeing 747 within the Rolls-Royce facility in Derby.
Rolls-Royce said that testing the engine in a test bed enables more accurate data to be gathered than on an actual flight because additional instrumentation can be used, and also no external factors will have an effect on the outcome.
After this process, up to four alternative fuels will be selected, which will undergo laboratory testing before being delivered to Rolls-Royce in the New Year.
This will be followed by intensive trials comparing performances with conventional kerosene. Testing is expected to be complete by the end of March 2009.
Jonathon Counsell, British Airways’ head of environment, said: ‘BA was the first airline to set fuel efficiency targets, leading us to improve our fuel efficiency by 28% since 1990. We are now well on our way to our target of a 30% improvement by 2010.
‘Should the tests we are undertaking with Rolls-Royce be successful, the potential for bringing us closer to a greener fuel alternative that will help the aviation industry reduce its carbon footprint is enormous.
‘The results of the study will be made public so the whole industry, its customers and most importantly, the environment, can benefit.’
Ric Parker, Rolls-Royce research and technology director, added: ‘The key criteria for the selection of the alternative fuels will be their suitability, sustainability and industrial capability.
‘It is critical that the fuel can not only do the job required of it, but can also offer a CO2 benefit and be produced without a detrimental impact to food, land or water.
‘There must also be clear evidence of the potential for mass production and global distribution of an alternative fuel to support the world’s aviation industry.’
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