Development and Application of Novel Life Cycle-based Framework: Towards a Sustainable Aviation Fuel Strategy for Canada

要评估新兴能源技术的可持续性，必须采用包含技术、环境和社会经济成分的系统级方法。尽管在研发和部署过程中分析潜在的净效益很重要，但对能源系统的前瞻性分析仍然存在问题。对运输部门可持续性的关注主要集中在轻型车辆上，对航空部门的研究相对较少，因为航空部门面临着独特的挑战，而且完全依赖化石燃料。促使对替代航空燃料进行批判性评估的原因是：1)燃料成本约占航空公司运营成本的1/3；2)燃油需求的增长超过了飞机效率的提高；3)国际航空运输协会雄心勃勃的替代燃料使用和温室气体（GHG）减排目标；4)预计将出台限制温室气体排放或为温室气体排放定价的法规。目前航空燃料的全球市场规模为每年212亿美元，生物燃料因其国内生产潜力、低温室气体排放和可用于现有飞机而被许多人视为最有前途的替代燃料。然而，航空生物燃料并非没有挑战，包括开发的早期阶段、成本、供应和不确定的环境影响。关于哪种燃料和技术（如果有的话）在适度规模下是可行的，存在相当大的争论。迫切需要制定一个改进的系统级框架，以严格评估加拿大航空部门的能源供应选择，并了解航空生物燃料的主要国内原料和生产过程。为了推动最新的系统分析和改善航空部门的可持续性，拟议的研究将；a)开发一个广义的基于系统的决策支持框架，以评估生物能源系统的可持续性影响；b)通过将该框架应用于生物喷气和传统喷气燃料，提高我们对加拿大背景下航空燃料的原料、供应链和转化过程选项的可持续性影响的理解；c)从可持续性的角度调查航空生物燃料可以发挥的作用，更重要的是，应该在加拿大的能源未来中扮演重要角色。拟议的研究项目具有创新性，预计将通过更全面、更准确的分析，显著改善我们评估生物能源技术可持续性的方式，从而产生变革性的影响。通过促进科学和工程进步，改善交通、能源和航空部门以及政府的决策，以及在新兴领域培训HQP，该计划的结果有可能影响社会及其可持续性。

Systems level approaches encompassing technical, environmental, and socio-economic components are necessary to evaluate the sustainability of emerging energy technologies. In spite of the importance of analyzing potential net benefits during R&D and deployment, prospective analyses of energy systems continue to be problematic. The majority of focus on transportation sector sustainability has been on light-duty vehicles, with comparatively little examination of the aviation sector with its unique challenges and complete reliance on fossil fuels. Motivating a critical evaluation of alternative aviation fuels are: 1) that fuel cost represents ~1/3 of airlines' operating costs; 2) fuel demand growth is exceeding aircraft efficiency improvements; 3) International Air Transport Association's ambitious alternative fuel use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction goals; and, 4) expected regulations that will limit or put a price on GHG emissions. Aviation fuels currently represent a $212 B/y global market and biofuels are viewed by many as the most promising alternative due to their potential for domestic production, low GHG emissions and ability to be used in current aircraft. However, aviation biofuel are not without challenges, including early stage of development, cost, supply and uncertain environmental impacts. There is considerable debate as to which, if any, fuels and technologies are viable at moderate scale. Development of an improved systems level framework to critically evaluate energy supply options for Canada's aviation sector, and an understanding of key domestic feedstocks and production processes for aviation biofuels, are urgently needed. With the overall aim of advancing the state-of-the-art in systems analysis and improving the sustainability of the aviation sector, the proposed research will; a) Develop a generalized systems-based decision support framework to evaluate sustainability implications of bioenergy systems, b) Improve our understanding of the sustainability implications of feedstock, supply chain and conversion process options for aviation fuels in the Canadian context, through applying the framework to biojet and conventional jet fuels, and c) Investigate, from a sustainability perspective, the role aviation biofuels could, and more importantly, should play in Canada's energy future through examination of plausible scenarios. The proposed research program is innovative and expected to have a transformational effect by significantly improving how we evaluate the sustainability of bioenergy technologies through more comprehensive and accurate analysis. The program results have the potential to impact society and its sustainability through facilitating scientific and engineering progress, improved decision making in the transportation energy and aviation sectors and government and the training of HQP in an emerging field.