Development of Greener Vehicles, Aircraft and

Ships
Chapter 7

LOGS341
Lecture 13
 Air freight

u The air freight is the most damaging to the environment

among all other modes
u Over the past 40 years, the average fuel efficiency of
commercial aircrafts has risen by 70 % with new aircrafts
75% quitter than 20 years ago
u The uptake of new, more environmentally friendly
technology is even slower in those sectors of the air freight
market
u The use of former passenger aircraft converted into
freighters at a later stage in their life is also contributing to
increase emissions
 Air freight

u It can take 10 years to design a new aircraft, which will

then be manufactured for around 20–30 years, with each
aircraft having a typical lifespan of 25–40 years
u The investment cycle can be as long as 55 years
u It is estimated that by 2026, approximately two-thirds of
the global fleet of 4,200 dedicated air-cargo aircraft will be
converted from passenger aircraft.
u It is also predicted that 27 per cent of the airfreighter fleet
of 2006 will still be in service in 2026 (Airbus, 2008).
 Increases in capacity

u As with other transport modes, load consolidation in aviation reduces

energy consumption and externalities per tonne-km.
u An Airbus 380 freighter, for example, will carry a maximum payload
of 150 tonnes by comparison with a maximum of 124 tonnes on a 747–
400.
u The Boeing 787 Dreamliner, for instance, will have 47 per cent more
revenue-earning cargo space than previous aircraft of its type
 Improvements in fuel efficiency
The three main sources of fuel efficiency gains in aviation are:

The airframe

The engine

The air traffic management

system (ATM
 Airframe

u This determines the weight and aerodynamic efficiency of the

aircraft.
u Aircraft with a given carrying capacity can be made lighter by
increased use of special alloys and composites.
u The switch to ‘fly-by-wire’, involving the replacement of
hydraulic controls by wiring, has also reduced aircraft weight.
u Advances in aerodynamic profiling are also improving fuel
efficiency Retrofitting ‘winglets’ to the ends of aircraft wings can
also improve fuel efficiency by an average of 4–6 per cent
 Airframe

u Current B787 Dreamliner is 20% fuel efficient than earlier

models
u Research for the Committee on Climate Change :
u suggests that ‘evolutionary changes in airframe
technology could conceivably deliver 20–30 per cent
improvement in the efficiency of new aircraft’ in 2025 as
compared to 2006.
 Engine technology

u The application of a series of engine-related technologies:

u Could cut the specific fuel consumption (SFC) of new
aircraft by around 10 per cent between 2000 and 2010,
u With further 5–10 per cent savings over the following
decade.
u This is broadly in line with estimates quoted by the
Committee on Climate Change
u which indicate that ‘evolutionary changes in engine
technology could deliver another 15–20 per cent
improvement’ in fuel efficiency between 2006 and 2025.
 Air traffic management

u This includes the airborne routing of the aircraft as

well as its taxiing on the ground.
u For example, following an IATA (2004) initiative,
improvements have been made to 350 air routes
worldwide:
u Saving a total of 6 million tonnes of CO2 in 2006.
u Routings through congested European airspace still
carry a significant environmental, as well as economic,
penalty.
u In 2007, such congestion added an average of
approximately 50 km to the length of each flight .
 Air traffic management

u Estimates that between 13 per cent and 15 per cent

of fuel is consumed through excessive holding either
on-ground or in-flight and through indirect routing and
non-optimal flight profiles.
u It has set a target of 5–10 per cent fuel savings from
‘radical changes to the air traffic management system’.
u These changes will be at least as dependent on
international collaboration as on technological
upgrading of ATM systems
 Reduction in externalities

u Four environmental targets for

aviation by 2020 It wants the industry to
reduce:
u Fuel consumption and CO2 emissions
(per passenger/tonne carried) by 50 per
cent;
u Perceived external noise by 50 per • 1977-2003
cent; • Heathrow to JFK $8,000
• Less than half time of
u NOx emissions by 80 per cent; other aircrafts
u Environmental impact of manufacture,
maintenance and disposal of aircraft and
parts.
 Reduction in externalities

§ No alternatives to kerosene so far

!!!

§ New electric aircraft by NASA

§ SolarImpulse; the iconic journey

around the world powered by

solar energy without a single drop

of fuel