Further Aerospace Industry Genius Required to Secure Reduction in Aircraft Emissions

(April 30, 2008) -- The Society of British Aerospace Companies (SBAC) has published the fifth in its series of eleven briefing papers looking at the technological progress being made by the aviation industry to reduce its impact on the environment. This fifth paper explains the difficulties behind reducing aircraft engine emissions and what the industry is doing to achieve such reductions.

Combustion in aircraft engines is a complex process involving hundreds of reactions that generate a massive amount of heat and, as a by-product, emissions. Some of these emissions affect local air quality while others affect the global atmosphere. To reduce these emissions requires trading off conflicting engine design requirements. For example, achieving relight at altitude requires a large combustor. However, this increases oxides of nitrogen (NOx) emissions and the aircraft's weight, which then also increases fuel burn to keep the aircraft airborne - producing more CO2 emissions.

To establish which emissions are the most important to be targeted their relative environmental impacts must be assessed. Research that will increase the understanding of the impacts of aviation emissions and into cleaner engine technology to reduce the most important emissions is being carried out by the industry and is examined in the briefing paper.

Ian Godden, SBAC Chief Executive, said:

"The UK aerospace industry designs and manufactures some of the most reliable, complex and technologically advanced products in the world. The challenge going forward to reduce environmentally harmful emissions from aircraft is to harness this creative genius to deliver more effective, cleaner combustion.

"This is no easy task and certain conditions to reduce one emission conflict with those required to reduce another. However, with an annual research and development budget of GBP2.5 billion the industry is working hard to achieve the seemingly impossible.

"It is also important to bear in mind that the industry is being proactive in seeking these solutions but also that emissions from aviation make up a very small amount of global greenhouse gas emissions - around 2 per cent of global man-made CO2 emissions for example."

Source : SBAC