Sustainable Aviation Fuel

• Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), also known as ‘aviation biofuel’, shares similar chemical and physical characteristics with Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF).
• It can be sourced from municipal solid waste, oils and fats (such as oilseeds and algae oils), agricultural residues (including Sugarcane bagasse, husk, and corn), and wood wastes.
• It can also be produced artificially using a method that collects carbon out of the air.

Benefits of SAF:

• Green energy: With the Aviation Sector accounting for 2.5% global GHG emissions, SAF can reduce them by 80% in the future. Then it can decarbonise aviation by up to 60%, enabling an energy transition.
• Adoption: SAF can be adopted without making any modifications to existing aircraft engine designs or fuel infrastructure.
• Cleaner Skies: SAF produces significantly less particulate matter, and hence, clouds formed from condensation are cleaner. Thus, it mitigates the existing issue of soot and NOx emissions from ATF.
• Imports: India’s massive potential in SAF can reduce dependence on imports for ATF and can shield from price fluctuation.
• Affordability & Accessibility: Being Atmanirbharta in the aviation sector can make air travel less costly and reach various sections of society.

Challenges Associated:

• High Cost: Production cost of SAF is double that of the conventional fuel.
• Infrastructure: Production, Storage, and supply require the installation of new infrastructure.
• Feedstock: Issue of year-round availability of the feedstock source.