Posted on 03/01/2012 8:36:24 PM PST by U-238
In case you haven’t seen this, the Air Force is flying F-16s on biofuel derived from the camelina plant. Yup, years after the air service certified most of its aviation fleet to fly on coal-derived synthetic fuel (stuff that was pioneered by the Nazis and apartheid-era South African governments because no one liked them and the world cut off their oil supplies) it is now certifying its jets to fly on something a little more environmentally friendly.
(The Navy has been working to get its ships and planes certified to run on biofuels for a while now, too.)
Its plan to certify its aviation fleet to run biofuel is very similar to its previous effort with coal-based fuels. The F-16s are being checked out to fly on a 50/50 blend of camelina oil and regular JP-8 jet fuel. The service has long said that it wants to use its status as the government’s biggest energy buyer t drive the market for alternative fuels that are produced in the United States. This would reduce the military’s reliance on foreign oil, service officials have argued.
Here’s what the service has to say about the effort.
In a joint effort by Airmen from the Air Force Research Laboratory at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, and Airmen from the Ohio Air National Guard’s 180th Fighter Wing, the F-16 Fight Falcon is currently undergoing a field service evaluation of biofuel.
As the largest consumer of energy in the Defense Department and $8 billion spent on fuel in fiscal 2011, Air Force officials are working toward making the fleet a little “greener” by researching, testing and ultimately implementing the use of alternative fuels.
(Excerpt) Read more at defensetech.org ...
Can they get biofuels to work in Moochelle’s broom too?
Big freaking deal. Is it any cheaper?
Flame-outs, the new problem to overcome I guess...
Wanna bbet that it's actually more expensive? By several orders of magnitude?
And that one of Obama's donors owns the company that got the contract?
biofuels... like ethanol?
loads of ethanol from corn eating the seals in our cars... what will 5+ years of that stuff do to a jet?
Currently biofuels are running at 10 times the cost of jetfuel at $35 per gallon but as technology improves and more commonly used the price will go down.
The Ohio Air National Guard has using the fuel since December and there has been no reports of trouble. Its mentioned in the article.
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the largest energy consumer in the Department of Defense (DoD).Volatile oil prices force the USAF to divert money from training budgets and weapon system procurement accounts in order to cover increased costs due to unbudgeted fuel expenses
It’s at least 700% more expensive, for now. They’re doing this to the Navy, also, and all the leading companies are big contributors to the Muslim Bisexual.
Well, that’s a relief. Now I guess it will just be if they can afford it. Other problems may occur later... I really hate the government mandating certain fuels since they seem to be so environmentally correct in their selections, regardless of the consequences.
It’s just a contingency plan.
You don’t want to be caught with your drawers down if JP8 goes dry
Like any technology the costs are high but over time the cost drops.
Remember calculators were very expensive at the beginning and as time progressed the cost fell
I agree
This is wise, and has been going on far before Zero began his rule.
Historically, denial of fuel = denial of forces. Anything that makes our forces more flexible makes them more dangerous.
Something like 2 million gallons worth of pond scum, as I recall.
Well, we’re borrowing 40 cents of every dollar the government is spending...
Trading dependency on foreign oil for dependency on foreign banks...Custer had a plan, too, I guess...
What is the point of wasting our money on this?
Well, I’m glad that you have so much confidence in our government’s decisions. I hope you are right, but really the costs are not appropriate for now. Change is required when needed, not for environmental made up reasons.
We are just adding to the cost of maintaining the military today instead of waiting until it is necessary. Sorry, but if you take into the equation the cost and pollution necessary to produce substitute fuels, the environment loses anyway.
Camelina sativa, usually known in English as camelina, gold-of-pleasure, or false flax, also occasionally wild flax, linseed dodder, German sesame, and Siberian oilseed, is a flowering plant in the family Brassicaceae which includes mustard, cabbage, rapeseed, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, brussels sprouts. It is native to Northern Europe and to Central Asian areas, but has been introduced to North America, possibly as a weed in flax.
Native to Northern Europe and Central Asia. Wonderful.
The Ohio National Guard are not complaining.
How well I remember. I took a statistics class in college using a Versalog slide rule while nearly everyone else in the class had one of those big expensive calculators. I got an "A" BTW.
The original plan of the 1876 was a three pronged attack. General John Gibbon showed up a day late.General Crook never showed up to help Custer.Historians debate whether Crook’s pressing on could have prevented the killing of the five companies of the 7th Cavalry Regiment led by George Armstrong Custer at the Battle of the Little Bighorn.
I prefer an old fashioned slide rule.
Unless I am mistaken tax money is being taken from ME to pay for their salary and benefits and NOW also be wasted spending money on wasteful Al Gore stuff like this.
WTF do I care if they don't care?
‘
I remember when the (one) electronic calculator for my sophomore engineering class was glued to the lab table
and one signed up to use it. i then purchased an hp-21
circa ‘76. 300 bucks.
If the Germans were using this to power their war machine for five years I give a little slack to see it works.
If it does not work, then dump it.
They’ve been ordered not to.
The Germans used similar tech to back track a little
Only 126 dollars a gallon. What a deal!
Where is your link?
Again when tech is new its always high its expensive but when its in wider use the price drops. Cars were expensive at first then when it was massed produced it fell. Similar to of Moore’s Law
Except the Germans were NOT using biofuels, they were using carbon fuels made from coal even dirtier than oil.
Do you even know what biofuel means?
The Army’s assumptions were based on inaccurate information provided by the Indian Agents that no more than 800 hostiles were in the area.
The Germans didn't use biofuels. They developed synthetic liquid fuels, derived from coal.
Read post number 33
Right, any g.d crazy ass thing they think of is worth it if we pretend it’s for our defense.
“something a little more environmentally friendly. “...has to be true, its got ‘bio’ in it.
You posted and hawked an article pushing biofuels yet your comments indicate that you have NO idea what a biofuel is.
I guess you did not read post 33. Do you need help?
I have a secret. Biodiesel has been around longer than handheld calculators. I wouldn’t count on that price dropping anytime soon.
I still have my Versalog.
I usually give new tech some leeway to prove itself. Again if it does not work move on.
When there is an EMP attack we may to bring them back
I was in Computer Science. We got time on the mainframes at 1 AM. Your program had to work the first time, cause you might not get a second run. Spent a lot of time in evenings hand checking code. I still have card decks, coding sheets, a 7tk tape, and other relics fron the late 60’s and early 70’s.
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