Advanced Hardwood Biofuels Northwest: Commercialization Challenges for the Renewable Aviation Fuel Industry

Abstract

A bioenergy summit was organized by Advanced Hardwood Biofuels Northwest (AHB) to debate the barriers to the commercialization of a hybrid poplar biofuels industry for the alternative jet fuels market from the perspective of five years of AHB research and development and two recent surveys of the North American cellulosic biofuels industry. The summit showed that: (1) Growing and converting poplar feedstock to aviation fuels is technically sound, (2) an adequate land base encompassing 6.03 and 12.86 million respective hectares of croplands and rangelands is potentially available for poplar feedstock production, (3) biofuel production is accompanied by a global warming potential that meets the threshold 60% reduction mandated for advanced renewable fuels but (4) the main obstruction to achieving a workable poplar aviation fuels market is making the price competitive with conventional jet fuels. Returns on investment into biomass farms and biorefineries are therefore insufficient to attract private-sector capital the fact notwithstanding that the demand for a reliable and sustainable supply of environmentally well-graded biofuels for civilian and military aviation is clear. Eleven key findings and recommendations are presented as a guide to a strategic plan for a renewed pathway to poplar alternative jet fuels production based upon co-products, refinery co-location with existing industries, monetization of ecosystem services, public-private financing, and researching more efficient and lower-costs conversion methods such as consolidated bioprocessing.