the cycling and integration of all these fates. Among the B2.0 enthusiasts I know, I don’t hear unrealistic expectations of the reach, nor the capacity to produce biofuels. I do hear about the possibility of disruptive discoveries, like the ability to ‘milk’ synthetic microbes that exude hydrocarbons, but I don’t hear irreverence for environmental or economic reality.
Prioritizing Use
Given the finite nature of biofuel capacity, it only makes sense to set priorities for use. And this, I’ve learned, is what makes aviation a special case. Unlike most other modes of travel, planes don’t have viable fuel alternatives, and they have the safest, fastest platform for travel within the atmosphere we’ve ever devised. Even the improvements in fuel efficiency for aircraft have surpassed the rate achieved on the ground, and next generation planes and flight paths will achieve over 100 passenger miles per gallon. One can only hope the future of efficient transportation will involve allocating the appropriate sources of energy (petro, biofuel, electricity, etc.) among the transportation modes best suited for the task. Integrating airport hubs, rail corridors, truck, car, bus, bike, walking and other ways of getting around all need to be optimized.
Aviation’s fuel needs are also scaled and located in such a way to encourage regional biofuel supply chains to be efficiently planned and developed. Using only 10 percent of the nation’s transportation petroleum, the volumes are achievable. And unlike cars and trucks, the aviation industry is served by a very small number of filling stations, with 75 airports accounting for 80 percent of the nation’s fuel use. These hubs, with known fuel demand, serve as a logical geography to organize B2.0, and resolve issues concerning regional sustainability.
Public Sector Leadership
One can’t go to a B2.0 conference or meeting these days without hearing speakers lament the government’s habit of picking ‘winners and losers’. I take this as a good sign, a sign indicative of the talent and competition among technologies and firms inherent in B2.0. They hate to lose. But the fact is, governments have always been in the business of picking winners and losers, and I don’t know of a major industry sector that hasn’t started without some negotiation of the appropriate public/private interface. Picking doesn’t bother me if conflicts of interest are openly acknowledged and managed.
Still, there are technologies that have become government darlings, and public support should be based on principles and outcomes. In this vein, public support of research has been important, but one of the most powerful tools of government I’ve learned is procurement. In the case of biofuels, the military has proven surprisingly progressive. The technology making the first B2.0 biorefineries work (hydrotreated oils from oilseeds, algae, tallow, and other biosources) came from DARPA funded research. Fuel testing and verification to comply with the strict safety and quality standards for aviation came from the Air Force. And one of the first large users will likely be the Navy. On May 23, they put out a request for information from suppliers for the first 500,000 gallons of these new biofuels with delivery requested for Puget Sound. The large scale demonstration could happen in the Pacific Northwest within a year.
So, skeptics of biofuels for whatever reason, I’d ask you to look again at recent progress. Perhaps the ability to create a liquid transportation fuel from biology in near real time isn’t as much of a leap as we might have believed. I credit much of this progress to the diverse and sophisticated community that has come together around biofuels for a specific purpose – aviation. They challenged those of us who have trolled in this space as supply-side and technology pushers. It’s been good news for biofuels, and my hope for that elusive bioeconomy as well.
