Boeing has completed what it says is the world's first flight using green diesel, a biofuel with a blend of 15% green diesel and 85% petroleum jet fuel in the left engine.
The sustainable fuel, made from vegetable oil, waste cooking oil and waste animal fat, powered the company's ecoDemonstrator 787 flight test airplane.
Finland-based Neste Oil supplied the green diesel, which was blended by EPIC Aviation. The flight test was coordinated with the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, Rolls-Royce and Pratt & Whitney.
With a wholesale cost of about $3/gallon, green diesel is chemically distinct and is a different fuel product than biodiesel, the company explains. It is among more than 25 new technologies being tested by Boeing's ecoDemonstrator Program aboard 787 Dreamliner ZA004. The program accelerates the testing, refinement and use of new technologies and methods that can improve aviation's environmental performance.
