Washington State U. will be taking part in a multi-state, multi-corporation initiative to develop an efficient, ecologically sound aviation biofuel. WSU will combine research and resources with companies such as Boeing and Spokane International Airport, according to a news release from Alaska Airlines.

The project, called “Sustainable Aviation Fuels Northwest,” will assess options in the Northwest for the sustainable production of a biomass-based jet fuel.

The project will involve efforts from many WSU departments, said Ralph Cavalieri, director of the WSU Agricultural Research Center.

For example, a researcher at WSU Tri-Cities is trying to figure out ways of using waste wood or municipal waste to grow fungi. By doing so, the proposed biojet fuel could produce the necessary lipids.

The hurdles associated with the production of jet biofuel are unique to the airline industry, he said. Cavalieri said ethanol-based jet fuels have failed because they are inadequate for jet propulsion and unusable with current jet engines. Other forms of renewable energy, such as solar and nuclear power, are not viable for commercial flight. They hope to fill that void, said John Gardner, vice president for economic development and global engagement at WSU.

“We hope to deliver the very first commercial biojet fuel in 2013 if everything happens right,” Gardner said. He said fuel costs are approaching 40 percent of an airline’s operating expense, one of the main reasons airlines are so eager to find a sustainable and efficient biojet fuel.

A reliable source of such fuel would also reduce the price volatility airlines experience with petroleum-based jet fuel used today, Gardner said. “Airlines have turned to us because WSU is one of the leaders in assembling the supply chain for advanced biofuel production,” he said. Gardner says that regardless of other developments in transportation alternative energies, there is no substitute for aviation. He said WSU’s involvement in the project reflects on its relationship with the aviation sector.

“It really has given WSU a leg up in this whole development,” he said.