15 replies to this topic

[FamilyTreeClimber]

This week Air Canada flew its first commercial flight on biofuel.  It was a blend made from recycled cooking oil.  The blend is expected to reduce emissions 40%.

According to the Air Canada spokesperson "Air Canada fully accepts its responsibility to reduce its footprint and our first flight using biofuel tangibly demonstrates our ongoing commitment to the environment."

The plane was an Airbus.  The trip was from Canada to Mexico.  The flight was done to coincide with the United Nations Conference in Rio.

The article doesn't say whether Air Canada plans more biofuel flights.  I have to wonder how much recycled cooking oil it would take to fuel an Airbus.  It must be quite a lot.

Read more: http://www.dailymail...l#ixzz1zKnnCIlF

[steph84]

That is quite amazing! I hope this sets the trend for more airlines. I can't wait for this to hit the automobile industry. I am tired of paying for gas!

[zararina]

That was nice and amazing for their effort on using a biofuel.
Here, there are some drivers especially drivers of public utility vehicles who are using recycled oil for fuel mainly because it is cheaper. Not all of them might be aware that they are helping the environment with that as well.

[FamilyTreeClimber]

Locally, there have been stories on the news about people who have converted their cars to cooking oil.  Evidently, restaurants are more than happy to give you their leftover cooking oil as that means they don't have to deal with it.

I wonder if it is feasible to produce fuel from cooking oil on a scale that an airline would need?  I'm not sure how much oil that is or what the costs are.  Still, I like the fact that they are thinking about it.  I can only imagine what the emissions on an airbus must be.

[MakingCents]

This is very cool!  Way to go air Canada.  Anything to reduce emissions.  I would be a little concerned that there needs to be extensive testing with how the biofuel effects the long-term performance of the airplane.  If it has no bad effects this could be HUGE for future air travel.  (would this lower the cost of airplane tickets or is that jsut wishful thinking?) :P

[artistry]

More than interesting. Some of my questions would be the same as others, what does the long term use of this type of fuel do to the plane and how  much does it take  to accomplish the feat? Also could unused oil be used as well, free versus a cost would be evident, but the effect of less emissions might be the same? Great idea, I read about a cab company in Canada doing the same thing.

[FamilyTreeClimber]

I would think the biggest problem would be getting enough fuel to do this on a regular basis.  If Canada has a system for cooking oil recovery and conversion, then maybe there is a source ready and willing to be used in airplanes.

MakingCents, The article doesn't say how the plane was modified for cooking oil biofuel.  But, wouldn't it be neat if they had a whole fleet of planes that worked this way?

[FlanneryCam]

Oh man, this is exciting. Maybe one day this will bring down the price of a flight? Nowadays we are paying pretty big fuel taxes and fuel surcharges.

I would be happy to pay a surcharge for more sustainable fuels. But I would also want to know that I was flying on a plane running on recovered fuel. That would be a kinda neat experience.

[Shortpoet-GTD]

Does this mean I'll be forced to eat more french fries for the good of the planet?

Thanks for that post FTC.

[Hardison]

Thanks for bumping this thread.

This is awesome. Recycled oil for fuel. It's a completely inspired and awesome idea.

[joeldgreat]

Here in my country, I heard that many of our public transport drivers (which runs on diesel fuel) are using recycled cooking oil as alternative to diesel. The move is simply to save some money for the high cost of fuel here. Both may not be environmentally friendly, but with a lower price on the re-use cooking oil, people are tempted to switch to it.

[ACSAPA]

Shortpoet-GTD, on 06 September 2012 - 11:51 AM, said:

Does this mean I'll be forced to eat more french fries for the good of the planet?

Thanks for that post FTC.

Don't worry, you won't be eating all those fries alone. My daughter and I are more than happy to step up and do our part, for the good of the planet, of course.
Seriously, it is very cool of Air Canada to lead the way in using biofuel for commercial flights and I hope other airlines follow their lead. Thank you for posting the article.

[artistry]

I think that the number of fast food places, could amply supply the used cooking oil for a good while, how lomg, that would be another question.

[bigvibes]

Planes use tons and tons of fuel. I'd be surprised if they could keep this up with all their flights... but then again we Canadian like our deep-fried foods!

[StevesWeb]

Good press for the airline, and it is good too to focus people's attention on things we need to do, but one flight is more like a nod in the correct direction than a significant achievement.  Still, each drop in the bucket is good.

I just started using a deep fryer a few months ago, and I have been saving the used oil rather than pouring it down the drain.  I should try to find a local business that accepts used cooking oil for this sort of purpose.

[R. Paradon]

Pretty amazing stuff!  I have not been a member here long enough to post links yet, but if you google How to run a car on cooking oil you will find some ways!