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Life cycle CO2e intensity of commercial aviation with specific sustainable aviation fuels

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  • Bell, Aron
  • Mannion, Liam Anthony
  • Kelly, Mark
  • Ghaani, Mohammad Reza
  • Dooley, Stephen

Abstract

An original life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology is developed to account the total carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions embodied in (i) specific hydroprocessed esters and fatty acids (HEFA) sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) derived from used cooking oil, expressed in gCO2e/MJ and (ii) for the first time, the CO2e emissions of Aviation Activity, defined as the operation of a commercial flight and expressed in the industry standard reporting metrics of gCO2e per revenue-passenger-kilometre (gCO2e/RPK) and gCO2e per revenue-tonne-kilometre (gCO2e/RTK). The HEFA-SAF production is modelled to take place in Finland, while three locations of feedstock sourcing (Finland, Germany, and China), two hydrogen sources (grey and green hydrogen), and three energy sources (grid electricity, onsite wind electricity, and a mixture of 95 % natural gas and 5 % grid electricity) are analysed. The methodology employs actual aircraft flight data, thus accounting for operational detail of the specific Aviation Activity, such as mass of fuel used, aircraft type, and aircraft load factor. The CO2e emissions from Airport Operations are also included, comprising of non-fuel related activity that is necessary for the operation of the flight. The methodology is demonstrated on a specific real world Aviation Activity of a Ryanair flight from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, Netherlands to Dublin Airport, Ireland using Boeing 737–800 and 737 MAX 8 aircraft with varying blend fractions of the HEFA-SAF. The CO2e intensity of the HEFA-SAF is calculated to range from 2.9 to 22.1 gCO2e/MJ across all scenarios evaluated, representing a 76–97 % reduction in CO2e compared to the fossil aviation fuel baseline in a European context. It is shown that the well-to-wake CO2e intensity of the Aviation Activity is in the range of 117.8–96.6 gCO2e/RPK for the load factor range of 82–100 % when operated by a Boeing 737–800 with fossil aviation fuel. This is reduced by approximately 20 % to 93.8–77.1 gCO2e/RPK with the new generation Boeing 737 MAX 8. Finally, the use of the modelled HEFA-SAF at the current maximum 50 % blend fraction, operated with a Boeing 737 MAX 8 and 100 % load factor yields intensities of 48.0–39.8 gCO2e/RPK depending on the scenario details of the SAF. For the same scenario, the HEFA-SAF at 100 % blend fraction yields intensities of 2.5–18.9 gCO2e/RPK. A Monte Carlo uncertainty analysis shows that the CO2e intensity of the Aviation Activity is uncertain to approximately ±12 % due to uncertainties in input data and variabilities in the scenario specifics. The results of this LCA calculation highlight that specificity and rigorous supply chain analysis is crucial to the accurate determination of the life cycle CO2e that is embodied in SAF and emitted during Aviation Activity.

Suggested Citation

  • Bell, Aron & Mannion, Liam Anthony & Kelly, Mark & Ghaani, Mohammad Reza & Dooley, Stephen, 2025. "Life cycle CO2e intensity of commercial aviation with specific sustainable aviation fuels," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 382(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:appene:v:382:y:2025:i:c:s0306261924024590
    DOI: 10.1016/j.apenergy.2024.125075
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