Planes could run on Cambridgeshire and Suffolk waste by 2050

Waste has been used to generate energy for homes and industry in the UK since the mid-1990s.

As the nation came to terms with the detrimental impact that landfills make on the environment, refuse derived fuel (RDF) and solid recovered fuel (SRF), which usually come from municipal waste, have supplemented traditional energy generation and reduced greenhouse gas emissions.

And according to a new independent report commissioned by the UK government, energy from waste (EfW) plants could soon switch to focus on generating sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).

This means that the nation’s waste, including rubbish SunSkips manages from Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, could be the basis of pioneering new plans for net zero air travel.

A cleaner future for UK aviation

The report was written by Philip New, former chief executive of not-for-profit organisation Energy Systems Catapult, which helps UK businesses in their transition to cleaner energy.

New’s conclusion is that the UK has the potential to play a leading role in the development of environmentally friendly aircraft fuel derived from waste.

SAF not only means a cleaner future for air travel, but could also create around 60,000 jobs in the UK by 2050, according to a separate independent analysis by Sustainable Aviation.

So far, most of the world’s second-generation SAF capacity is UK-based. To build on this global lead, the government is investing £165 million into the Advanced Fuels Fund (AAF), an initiative to develop several UK SAF projects, four of which plan to use black bin bag waste.

MORE: SRF vs RDF: What’s the difference between the alternative fuels?

And what’s more, the technology isn’t too far away. Because while fueling something as huge as a plane with waste may sound like the stuff of science fiction, New claims that it’s “close to deployment readiness”.

However, it’s not just a simple case of stuffing any old junk into the fuel tank. Waste-derived fuels need to be properly processed and may require supplementation from hydrogen to be used in planes.

And while the technology for waste-powered aircrafts is just around the corner, it’s going to take a concerted effort to make it a reality.

Renewed interest in EfW plants

Convincing industry and governments to move quickly on adopting greener alternatives has been an historically tricky task.

But the future seems bright for SAF, with both government and industry leaders showing a keen interest in getting the waste fuel off the ground.

New said that enthusiasm for SAF extends across the stakeholder community to an extent he’s never seen in other energy transitions.

He added, “It offers a clear opportunity for leverage that should not be wasted.”

But winning hearts and minds isn’t the only obstacle to using domestic rubbish to fuel air travel.

One of the main barriers for a thriving EfW industry in the UK so far has been the lack of infrastructure for it, seeing large amounts of waste exported to other countries.

Another huge challenge in developing the UK’s SAF capacity is an already strained construction industry, which has suffered from a combination of labour shortages and inflation driving up the price of both materials and energy.

But fresh buzz around SAF could spark a swift change in direction as to where future UK waste lands, as long as national cooperation to tackle all the issues keeping SAF grounded maintains momentum.

The Jet Zero Council

The Jet Zero Council is a partnership between the government and industry to reach the target of Jet Zero by 2050 – and SAF advocacy is a big part of its mission.

The council recently met to lay out a two-year plan, which includes £1 million in government funding for important research into speeding up the development of liquid hydrogen aviation technology. On top of funding, the government has also pledged a 600,000 tonne residual waste-to-fuel plant in Cheshire for SAF R&D.

Transport Secretary Mark Harper said that the government is poised to invest millions into first-of-their-kind SAF plants, supporting crucial scientific research on a larger scale and helping to drive down production costs.

He said, “The government is a determined partner to the aviation industry and committed to helping accelerate new technology and fuels, modernise operations, and work internationally to remove barriers to progress.

“Together, we can set aviation up for success, continue harnessing its huge social and economic benefits, and ensure it remains a core part of the UK’s sustainable economic future.”

Emma Gilthorpe, Jet Zero Council CEO, agreed that the recent thrust generated by government and industry was a vital part of the journey to decarbonise aviation.

She added, “Building on recent government commitments to secure demand for SAF in the UK will ensure we continue to accelerate progress and achieve the Jet Zero Council’s objectives of delivering 10% SAF in the UK fuel mix by 2030 and zero emission transatlantic flight within a generation.”

Meanwhile, Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero Grant Shapps said boosting investment in sustainable aviation fuels marks a landmark step in spearheading technologies that will keep passengers flying “guilt-free”.

A full policy position on SAF has been promised for the coming months.

SAF supply is key

Sustainable fuels are already in use in other industries, but availability for SAF is limited by competition for feedstocks across the wider energy and transport sector.

The most viable types of SAF are:

• HEFA (hydrogenated esters and fatty acids), made from waste oils and fats.
• Waste/biogenic, made from other carbon-containing sustainable feedstocks (close to maturity).
• Hydrogen (the least mature of the three).

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While the success of SAF does rely on there being a ready supply of waste and hydrogen, according to New, waste fuel could surpass the demand for HEFA in the coming years, creating an exciting new market for the UK.

In order to reach the level of supply necessary, New suggests that waste and other biogenic feedstocks should be first offered to the aviation industry, where reducing carbon emissions is harder. This would essentially place SAF higher up the waste hierarchy than SRF and RDF used for other purposes.

Energy from waste falls under “other recovery” in the waste hierarchy

Both the US and EU have also announced subsidies for SAF supply and technology development.

New also recommends repurposing former chemical processing plants for SAF production to meet demand.

SunSkips managing director Mat Stewart has previously spoken out about the value of energy from waste and believes we have a duty to designate rubbish to be used as fuel domestically, especially notoriously difficult-to-recycle materials like plastic.

He said, “My view is that if these plastics can be used as fuel, then we have a moral responsibility to do that. You can spend forever trying to break down all the different polymers, but even with the most sophisticated recycling methods, it often still ends up as fuel anyway.”

SunSkips is excited about the future of EfW and is proud to be part of this innovative solution to overstuffed landfills and carbon emissions.