ALTERNATIVE FUELS — Delta Air Lines’ refining subsid- iary Monroe Energy will use synthetic crude feedstock made from waste plastic at its 185,000 barrel per day Trainer refin- ery in Pennsylvania. Under a Nov. 15 agreement, environ- mental technology and development company Agilyx will supply roughly 2,500 b/d of mixed plastic-to-crude (MPC) feedstock by 2020. “This is a major step forward in the search for a cost-effective low-carbon aviation fuel,” said Agilyx backer, and Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson. “The beauty of the Agilyx process is it will take waste plastics, which are a major problem for the environment, and turn it into something useful. I am excited by the opportunity and pleased that Monroe Energy and Delta are looking to collaborate on this groundbreak- ing project,” he added. Branson’s Virgin Atlantic has a partner- ship with Delta and is working on its own jet fuel plant in the UK making sustainable aviation fuel from waste industrial gases (JFI Sep.17’18). Agilyx’s MPC process turns difficult-to-recycle mixed waste plastic streams including polystyrenes into a range of hydrocarbon products. “This is a capstone achievement for Agilyx,” said the Oregon-based firm’s CEO, Joe Vaillancourt. “As we advance the number and types of products we are able to make from waste plastics, this project marks the first truly com- mercial-scale facility that will advance the new plastics econo- my,” He added. Monroe Energy CEO Jeff Warmann said, “I am proud that our company can play such a significant role in con- verting waste plastics into useful jet fuel for Delta.” The agree- ment is one of many initiatives at Delta to minimize its environ- mental impact and improve sustainability. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) still hasn’t decided how jet fuel made from lower carbon feedstocks like MPC will be treated under its upcoming Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA) (JFI Nov. 12’18).
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