Honeywell's UOP and PetroChina Produce Green Jet Fuel for China's First Biofuel Flight

    Oct. 31, 2011
    The companies jointly produced aviation biofuel from locally grown jatropha feedstock to power an Air China biofuel demonstration flight.
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    BEIJING, Oct. 28, 2011 -- UOP LLC, a Honeywell (NYSE: HON) company, announced today that Green Jet Fuel, produced jointly with PetroChina, powered China’s first biofuel demonstration flight.

    The Air China demonstration flight, which took off and landed in Beijing today, used a 50 percent blend of petroleum-based fuel and Green Jet Fuel made from the inedible plant jatropha in one engine of a Boeing 747-400 aircraft. The jatropha used to produce the fuel was grown on PetroChina's jatropha plantation cooperation base in southwest China.

    The flight is a result of a broader effort kicked-off in 2010 by China’s National Energy Administration and the U.S. Trade and Development Agency to address the technical, economic and institutional factors required for the development of a new biofuels industry in China. The team, which include Honeywell’s UOP, PetroChina, Boeing, Air China and other government agencies and associations, was to address feedstock harvesting and processing, the establishment of refining capacity for commercial production, and the development of the infrastructure to store, deliver and dispense biofuels.

    “Developing the aviation biofuels industry is a high priority for China to address increasing concern over greenhouse gas emissions and to enable sustainable economic growth,” said Shane Tedjarati, president and CEO for Honeywell China and India. “Today’s Air China flight is a significant step toward establishing the biofuels industry in China. We are proud that our technology played such an important role, and we are excited for continued collaboration to enable affordable and safe biofuel solutions for Chinese aviation.”

    At the 15th United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in 2009, the Chinese government committed to a 40 to 45 percent reduction in overall carbon dioxide emissions per GDP unit by 2020 compared to the 2005 emissions level. Additionally, the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) has committed to a 22 percent reduction in aviation emissions within this same time period.

    “Today’s successful demonstration flight shows the world that China has resolved the key technology bottleneck in the development of the bio jet fuel industry, and has established a competitive new industrial chain using non-edible jatropha as the feedstock, which is in line with China’s reality,” said Diancheng Shen, Deputy General Manager of China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC). “PetroChina will continue to cooperate with feedstock production and processing enterprises, aircraft manufacturers, airlines, airports, and related universities and research institutes to jointly promote the commercialization of bio jet fuel in China.”

    Honeywell’s UOP process technology produces Honeywell Green Jet Fuel™ from natural oils and wastes such as jatropha, camelina and algae. The fuel meets all specifications for flight and, when used up to a 50 percent blend with petroleum-derived jet fuel, is a drop-in replacement that requires no changes to the aircraft or engine.

    To date, more than 700,000 gallons of Honeywell Green Jet Fuel have been produced for use in more than 20 test and commercial flights on military and commercial platforms. In each flight, the biofuel performed as well, if not better, than traditional petroleum-based fuels. The fuel received ASTM approval for commercial flight in July 2011.

    Honeywell’s Aerospace business has successfully applied Green Jet Fuel on Honeywell engines and auxiliary power units (APUs), including the 131-9 APU, which is used on the majority of the Air China fleet. Only a week ago, Honeywell signed a master contract with the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC) to provide an improved model of APU with less carbon emissions for China’s first domestically-developed jumbo jet C919.

    Honeywell’s UOP, a recognized global leader in process technology to convert petroleum feedstocks to fuels and chemicals, is developing and licensing a range of processes to produce green fuels from natural feedstocks. The company also offers the UOP/Eni Ecofining™ process to produce Honeywell Green Diesel™ fuel from natural oils and wastes.

    PetroChina, the largest subsidiary of China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), is the largest oil and gas producer and distributor in China. PetroChina engages in wide range of activities related to oil and natural gas, including oil and gas exploration and development, oil refining and petrochemical production, marketing, pipeline transportation, and natural gas sales and utilization. More information please visit: www.petrochina.com.cn"

    UOP LLC, headquartered in Des Plaines, Illinois, USA, is a leading international supplier and licensor of process technology, catalysts, adsorbents, process plants, and consulting services to the petroleum refining, petrochemical, and gas processing industries. UOP is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Honeywell International, Inc. and is part of Honeywell’s Specialty Materials strategic business group. For more information, go to www.uop.com

    Honeywell International (www.honeywell.com) is a Fortune 100 diversified technology and manufacturing leader, serving customers worldwide with aerospace products and services; control technologies for buildings, homes and industry; automotive products; turbochargers; and specialty materials. Based in Morris Township, N.J., Honeywell’s shares are traded on the New York, London, and Chicago Stock Exchanges. For more news and information on Honeywell, please visit www.honeywellnow.com