Aviation and Greenhouse Gas (GHG)

Pollution
Understanding the Greenhouse Gas (GHG)
The physical science of Greenhouse Gas

GHG pollution from Aviation emissions

The effects of GHG pollution

Mitigation actions

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The discovery of the
Greenhouse Gas

Nils Gustaf Ekholm

Joseph Fourier 1768 - 1830 1848-1923

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 GREENHOUSE

A greenhouse is a building designed to protect tender or out-of-season plants against excessive cold or heat

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 Residence times of GHG in the atmosphere

Methane = 12 years

Nitrous Oxide > 100 years

Carbon dioxide > 100,000 years

The CO2 is the principal GHG and contributes 85% of the total emissions, making it the most dominant GHG emitted globally.

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 100-year GWP
Greenhouse Gas Formula (AR4)
Carbon dioxide CO2 1
Methane CH4 25
Nitrous oxide N2O 298
Sulphur hexafluoride SF6 22,800 F Gas
Hydrofluorocarbon-23 CHF3 14,800 F Gas
Hydrofluorocarbon-32 CH2F2 675 F Gas
Perfluoromethane CF4 7,390 F Gas
Perfluoroethane C2F6 12,200 F Gas
Perfluoropropane C3F8 8,830 F Gas
Perfluorobutane C4F10 8,860 F Gas
Perfluorocyclobutane c-C4F8 10,300 F Gas
Perfluoropentane C5F12 13,300 F Gas
Perfluorohexane C6F14 9,300 F Gas

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Energy Budget

A greenhouse gas is a gas that

absorbs and emits radiant energy in
the atmosphere, thus causing the so-
called greenhouse effect on Earth.

Without the greenhouse effect

caused by the gases, the temperature
on Earth would be much lower, and
life in general — much colder (about
−19°C on average, in fact).

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 O2 and N2
H2O and CO2
O2 and N2 molecules don’t absorb much-infrared radiation, while CO2 and H2O do.

H2O and CO2 - This bending vibration is slower, so lower-frequency infrared radiation can
excite these vibrations. As such, CO2 and H2O preferentially absorb in the infrared.

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 Carbon
Footprint

Aviation globally contributes to 3% of total emissions of CO2 and is projected to increase between 200% to
900% by 2050.

The significant difference between commercial vehicles and aviation is that the aircrafts' exhaust gases are
emitted above the planetary boundary layer (2km), the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere.
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Layers of the atmosphere Contrails (condensation trails) caused by the aerosols

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CO2-eq
A carbon dioxide equivalent or CO2 equivalent, abbreviated as CO2-eq is a metric
measure used to compare the emissions from various greenhouse gases on the
basis of their global-warming potential (GWP), by converting amounts of other
gases to the equivalent amount of carbon dioxide with the same global warming

GWP
The Global Warming Potential (GWP) was developed to allow comparisons of the
global warming impacts of different gases. Specifically, it is a measure of how much
energy the emissions of 1 ton of a gas will absorb over a given period of time (100
years), relative to the emissions of 1 ton of carbon dioxide (CO2).

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 100-year GWP
Greenhouse Gas Formula
(AR4)

Carbon dioxide CO2 1

Methane CH4 25

Nitrous oxide N2 O 298

Sulphur hexafluoride SF6 22,800 F Gas
Hydrofluorocarbon-23 CHF3 14,800 F Gas
Hydrofluorocarbon-32 CH2F2 675 F Gas
Perfluoromethane CF4 7,390 F Gas
Perfluoroethane C2 F6 12,200 F Gas
Perfluoropropane C3 F8 8,830 F Gas
Perfluorobutane C4F10 8,860
F Gas
Perfluorocyclobutane c-C4F8 10,300 F Gas
Perfluoropentane C5F12 13,300 F Gas
Perfluorohexane C6F14 9,300 F Gas
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SECTION 2 GHG pollution from Aviation emissions

Jet Fuel – The Burning Problem

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Gas Turbine Engine Emissions
Fossil means “obtained by digging” in Latin. Commonly used fuels are Jet A-1, Jet A, Jet B, JP-8 and AVGAS

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 Gas Mass (kg) Percentage(%)

CO2 8,500 71.8

H 2O 3,300 27.9

NOx 30 0.25

SO2 2.5 0.02

CO 2.0 0.017

HC 0.4 0.003

PM + soot 0.1 0.008

Mass of anthrophonic gas emissions from the Gas Turbine Engine combustion

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 Section 3 -Effects of Carbon Dioxide (CO2) on the environment
• Sixty-five million years ago, the CO2 concentration was 1250ppm – sea levels were 73 m higher than now

• Thirty-two million years ago – CO2 decreased to 500ppm. Sea level subsided 28m higher than the present

• Twenty-one thousand years ago – at maximum glaciation point, the sea level was 130m lower than now

• The loss of Greenland's complete ice sheet will cause a rise of sea level by 7m.

• If the CO2 emission continues at the same rate till the end of this century, the sea level rise will be about
1 meter high.
• At the present rate, it is estimated that the temperature will increase by 3O C by 2050, which will cause
the death of 99% of the corals in the tropical ocean.

• An increase in the CO2 concentration leads to an increase in the sea's carbonic acid (H2CO3)
levels, which lowers the seawater's pH, thus becoming more acidic with severe biological
consequences.
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Section 4 - Mitigation Actions

The ICAO recommends four different ways to achieve CO2 reduction:

(i) Technological innovations (airframe, propulsions, etc)

(ii) Operational procedures to reduce fuel burn - Improvement of infrastructure, including Air Traffic
Management (ATM)

(iii) Use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) and other clean energy

(iv) Implementation of Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International

Aviation (CORSIA).

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 Fully composite airframe – Lightweight
fiber

Technological Advancements

The Beech Starship I (in the early 1980s) was the first all-composite airplane to obtain FAA certification.

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 Technological Advancements

Ultra-High Bypass turbofan

engines (UHB) and Geared
Turbofan (GTF)

In service since 2014 (GTF‐1000 by P&W), it is a technology demonstrator for ultra‐high bypass (UHB)
turbofan engines designed with bypass ratios over 12.

The combination of UHB and GTF reduces the Effective Perceived Noise in Decibels (EPNDb) up to 25, Low
Temperature Oxidation (LTO) NOx by 75% and fuel burn up to 25%.
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Technological Advancements – Electric Propulsion (EP) System

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 Weight reduction
Advanced Air Traffic Management (ATM)

Flight Management System

Required Navigation Precision (RNP)

RNP capable aircrafts can calculate its position within

a circle radius of x nautical miles and have an accuracy
of almost 95% of Total System Error (TSE).

Operational Improvements
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Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF)

One of the pillars of sustainability is a renewable energy source which currently has a market
share of 5 % and is projected to be 10% by 2030. SAFs do not contain hydrocarbons or sulphur,
thus reducing the soot and particulate matter (PM) as byproducts of combustion. This causes
fewer ice crystals to form at higher altitudes.

First Gen – food crops, vegetable oil, soybeans. Readily available

Second Gen – Non-food sources – Algae, jatropha, halophytes. More complex and
costly. More sustainable and reduces GHG more than the First Gen

Third Gen – Bio-engineered bacteria, algae, hydrogen from biomass or synthetic

methane. Still under R&D and the most promising area

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 The Working Group I contribution to the Assessment Report is the
most up-to-date physical understanding of the climate system and
climate change, bringing together the latest advances in climate
science, and combining multiple lines of evidence from paleoclimate,
observations, process understanding, and global and regional climate

IPCC simulations.

WORKING The Working Group II contribution to the Assessment Report assesses

the impacts of climate change, looking at ecosystems, biodiversity,

GROUPS
and human communities at global and regional levels. It also reviews
vulnerabilities and the capacities and limits of the natural world and
human societies to adapt to climate change.

The Working Group III report provides an updated global assessment

of climate change mitigation progress and pledges and examines the
sources of global emissions. It explains developments in emission
reduction and mitigation efforts, assessing the impact of national
climate pledges in relation to long-term emissions goals.

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20
Is CO2 really
BAD?

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Conclusion
The planet will surely be a better place if all the
airlines and operators take responsibility for
achieving net-zero carbon by 2050. The dream
of a clean sky is never an individual effort. As
the saying goes, "no man is an island”, similarly
only through deep collaboration can we achieve
the real goal - together, we are stronger.