Leading the way on Biofuel

an-2_arrivesinyard kopie

The European Union has deciced that all its airlines need to have cut their CO2 emissions with at least 2% in 2011 and 5% by the year 2012. The options to achieve this are limited: reduction of the number of flights, development of more fuel-efficient engines or development of biofuels. To cut the number of flights is, considering the continuing trend towards globalisation, an impossible and improbable method; to try and develop extremely fuel-efficient engines within that time frame is an extremely high risk and high cost strategy.

This is why Clean Tech Development Center BV, is focussing on the further development and practical introduction of Biofuels, starting with a mixture of Avgas and Biomethanol. Later to be followed with testing other bio masses like butanol, ethanol and algae oils

CTDC develops this Aviation Biofuel in partnership with BioMCN, Argus oil and the Technical University of Twente. BioMCN produces a Biomethanol that in comparison to other biofuels is more sustainable, provides a 70% CO2 reduction in the production chain and does not consume non-renewable resources.

To demonstrate beyond any doubt the reliability of this Biofuel in the harsh aviation environment, CTDC has set itself a real challenge.

CTDC has written aviation history by flying Transatlantic on Biofuel.

The CTDC crew was commanded by CEO/pilot Ben Cappelle and consisted of pilot Maik Feyen and flight/ground engineer Ruud Cappelle. And to add charm and glamour to this challenge, they flew across the Atlantic Ocean in the worlds largest operational biplane: the Antonov 2, with its big radial engine so ideally designed for unstable fuels.

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The world is worth saving must have thought the Innuits and Vikings when they landed in Greenland ages ago. The modern Homo Sapiens of this 2010 world makes it his ultimate goal to destroy this in a speed mother nature would have taken a century.

Ben Cappelle a former Dutch Air Force Officer and instructor pilot and Head of training of one of the largest flight school started in 2006 an innovative project. To establish a new way of using energy in airplanes whilst simultaneously follow his passion in aviation.

He followed several studies and talked to many scientists and with some help of the Venturelab University of Twente in the Netherlands he elected to build a rapid deployment project to allow bio fuels to penetrate the heavily regulated aviation industry.

With the help of close friends and specialists who got the same virus and worked two years for free to build the foundation of the current project Bio Fuel for aviation starting with Bio Methanol and Ethanol’s evolving further to Algae in Bio Diesel and Bio Kerosine.

For this purpose CEO Ben Cappelle erected the company Clean Tech Development Center BV from Air Center Europe and found an ideal place to prototype bio fuel on aeroplanes on a former Dutch Air Force Base Airfield Twente. Ben knew he took a gamble but it turned out to be a good gamble. The Dutch Government decided to free the ban on the airfield and it is since december 2010 elected to be one of the first green airfields in Europe. The dedicated team of CTDC has set its goals to be the first R&D Aviation test center to produce a bio fuel option and will erect the first business jet company flying on bio Fuels.

During their R&D testing last year they have achieved 7% Co2 reduction at the exhaust pipe from their Bio Test Bird the Antonov 2 SP FVB and with the use of the Bio Methanol from their partner Bio MCN 87% in the total chain of events. Being a specialist in Aviation they have sought a fuel distributor sponsor which became Argus oil. For the Bio Fuel testing of the monsters they have found a solid supplier in Intertek. Further sponsors are EKW Brouwers, Parkmobile, Techresources, ANWB, Venturelab to help the team of CTDC to set a world record. The world record attempt has succesfully landed in the Netherlands on 28 august 2010 and parked the aircraft for the time being in Germany on airport Nordhorn Lingen with a warm hospital welcome by the airfieldowners and other aviation enthousistic fellow pilots. The Antonov 2 was chosen for this project because the engines of these aircraft were particularly designed for unstable fuel usage in the early days after the WW2 have safely proven that bio fuels are a viable option to look at and can save the climate and if on a mass production can be cheaper than the current leaded Avgas fuels currently in use by all general Aviation aircraft worldwide

When the crew of CTDC has reached the coast of Europe they have flown 79 hours of which 35 hours on a bio blend that can meet the Kyoto agreements to reduce by 2% in 2011 and 55 in 2012 by far with their 7% right now.

To set a standard CTDC has donated their other static bio fuel test aircraft the SP FVB Bio Test Bird last year to Kenia, after the Bio Fuel test program, and with some help form future sponsors we challange to join us we will fly the aircraft rebuild as a green aviation ambulance aircraft to Kenia and hand it over to the Kenia red Cross to function as hospital aircraft with the many good causes projects of the Kenian Red Cross.

In this way CTDC aims to set a milestone in allowing third world countries reach an independency of costly energy suppliers but produce their own green energy and green usage of transport means instead and help preventing to pollute the world further which the Western World countries have become so successful in.

For further info, sponsoring or investment opportunities check in with www.ctdc.nl and contact the CTDC team direct.