Life Cycle Analysis of Power-to-X Aviation Fuels

The life cycle analysis of Power-to-X aviation fuels, including liquid hydrogen, liquefied natural gas, and liquefied petroleum gas, is presented in this paper. A combination of semi-empirical and empirical methods is utilized to calculate the resource consumption and greenhouse gas emissions across the entire well-to-tank pathway, including the production, distribution, storage, and delivery processes. The reactor performance is modeled using experimental results from the literature, including results from latest high-selectivity hydrogenation studies. The present study also considers two liquefaction scenarios: local liquefaction at the airport with onsite facilities, and non-local liquefaction requiring long-distance transport and a secondary liquefaction stage. A sensitivity study is also conducted to examine the influence of the key model parameters on the overall life cycle analysis results.