Pursuit by Hydrogen, Enea, and Polymers for Eco- Friendly Jet Fuel Alternatives
In a significant move towards reducing carbon emissions in the aviation sector, Enea, an Italian energy research organisation, has announced plans to conduct research and testing on the production of e-kerosene, a synthetic fuel designed to be carbon-neutral.
Claudia Bassano, a researcher at the Energy Storage Laboratory, will lead the analysis of state-of-the-art e-fuel production technologies for aeronautical applications, focusing on their implementation in the national context. The project will identify some plant configurations with relative economic analyses, aiming to estimate the specific production cost, calculated as a function of the cost of electricity and CO2 in the ETS emissions market.
The project forms part of Enea's broader renewable energy and decarbonization initiatives, which are strongly oriented towards emission reductions and strengthening national energy supply. This includes modernizing fossil fuel plants, expanding renewables, and significant investments in gas-steam power units and renewables, as outlined in Enea's 2035 strategy.
The challenges in this project include the production, storage, distribution, and final uses of green hydrogen. To address these challenges, the project is part of the Operational Research Plan (Por) on renewable hydrogen, coordinated by Giulia Monteleone, head of the energy production, storage, and use division at Enea. The Por hydrogen project is funded by the Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security with Pnrr funds for a total of 110 million euros.
Research and testing will be conducted in a pilot plant, and the data collected will be used in a commercial process simulator to optimize the production process in terms of both plant layout and operating conditions. Among the technological solutions for the decarbonization of the aviation sector, e-kerosene stands out due to its high energy density, existing market, and infrastructure.
The European Union's new environmental targets (Fit for 55 and REPowerEU) require the aviation sector to use at least 2% of green fuels by 2025, increasing to 85% by 2050. Enea, in collaboration with the Politecnico di Milano, has launched an initiative to produce e-fuels (green fuels) for aircraft, which could play a crucial role in helping the aviation sector meet these ambitious targets.
However, a direct, publicly available, detailed update specifically on this Enea-led research project focused on e-fuels for aircraft, particularly e-kerosene, was not found in the recent search results. For the most current and precise details on the Enea-led e-fuel project for aviation, a specialized inquiry to Enea or related EU aviation biofuel research consortia might be necessary.
- Claudia Bassano's research project under Enea involves analysis of renewable energy technologies, specifically e-fuel production technologies for aeronautical applications, with a focus on their implementation in the national context.
- The project's economic analyses aim to identify plant configurations and estimate specific production costs, calculated as a function of electricity cost and CO2 in the ETS emissions market, to support renewable energy and decarbonization initiatives.
- Enea's long-term strategy, as outlined in the 2035 vision, includes modernizing fossil fuel plants, expanding renewables, and investing in gas-steam power units and renewables to reduce emissions and strengthen national energy supply.
- To address challenges in green hydrogen production, storage, distribution, and use, Enea's project on renewable hydrogen is part of a larger Operational Research Plan (Por), which is funded by the Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security with Pnrr funds for 110 million euros.
