News Summary

DAYTON — A joint project between the University of Dayton Research Institute and the Air Force Research Laboratory to build and operate a plant to produce jet fuel from coal and biomass materials will create about 230 jobs, according to the university.

That would include high-tech researchers and skilled labor, UDRI spokeswoman Pamela Gregg said on Tuesday, May 20. The hiring is to be done during the next two years, starting this summer.

The Air Force Research Laboratory is providing a $10 million grant for the project.

It is intended to provide the Air Force with a reliable, domestic source of fuel that will be an alternative to increasingly expensive petroleum-based fuel from foreign countries.

Researchers hope to create jet fuel with reduced carbon emissions. They also hope to make fuel with fewer additives that would still perform well, especially in extremely hot or cold environments.

The first two phases of the Alternative Aerospace Fuels Research Facility are to open in December of this year at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, according to UDRI's announcement. University officials said the final phase, to include design and construction of a unit for the production of up to 15 gallons of jet fuel per day from coal and biomass, is to start operation early in 2010.

Biomass is material from plants and animals that can be burned as an energy source.

The new facility will be made available for use by any research team in the country, said Dilip Ballal, head of UDRI's energy and environmental engineering division and director of the university's von OhainFuels and Combustion Center.

"Previously designed systems have concentrated on the production of diesel fuels and chemicals from coal and biomass," Ballal said. "Our objective is to define the optimal conditions under which jet fuel should be produced in order to maximize the amount of fuel that can be manufactured from these feedstocks."

Last week, Wright State University and the Air Force Research Laboratory announced they have formed the Center for Advanced Power and Energy Conversion. Its researchers are focusing on uses for plasma, an ionized or highly charged gas. Plasma can be used to clean paint, etch on a surface or test an airplane's aerodynamic properties, and can also have biomedical uses.

About the project

The $10 million grant extends a $31.5 million, five-year agreement begun in 2003 for improving aircraft fuels and combustion technology. That was the largest contract for UDRI in its 51-year history.

The latest grant was intended as seed money, so UDRI will seek additional funding from the Air Force, Ohio and other sources, university officials said.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2242 or jnolan@DaytonDailyNews.com.

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