NASA Study Reveal Biofuels Reduce GHG Emissions by 50%

In California, NASA researchers used DC-8 and other aircrafts to study the effects on emissions and contrail formation of burning alternative fuels in jet engines.

This follow-up set of Alternative Fuel Effects on Contrails and Cruise Emissions flight tests, known as ACCESS II, repeated similar tests from 2013, while also adding a few new tests to get more and better data. ACCESS II was a joint project involving researchers at the Armstrong, Langley, and Glenn research centers. The research supports NASA aeronautics' goal of enabling transition of the industry to low-carbon fuels and alternative propulsion systems.

A look at the ACCESS II data confirmed the results from ACCESS I, showing at least a 50 percent reduction in soot emissions from the DC-8 when it burns the blended fuel.