Aviation can't afford to overlook on-the-ground emissions

The use of sustainable aviation fuels and future propulsion technologies feature heavily in plans to “Fly Net Zero”, which are being put in place by governments and airlines across the world.

Brian Lewis, RSK Managing Director of Air Quality, cautions that this focus could lead to a blind eye on a key, and easier-to-tackle emissions source: airports.

Maximising terminal efficiency

Many airports have to deal with extreme variations in temperature and humidity throughout the year. Maintaining the right temperature and humidity is vital, as inefficient buildings come with a huge energy cost. For example, at Chicago O’Hare airport, the impact of emissions has been reduced by incorporating vegetated roofs that combine efficiency and aesthetics for the airport buildings, and Denver International Airport’s concourse capitalises on natural daylight and solar power to reduce energy demands for heating and cooling.

CFCs and hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFC) are still present in many cooling and refrigeration systems in airport equipment and in preconditioned air units, and across passenger-focused airport operations such as catering services. All of these systems are likely to have some leakage, and while CFCs and HCFCs aren’t included in the letter of net zero, they have an impact many times that of carbon dioxide and in the spirit of net zero, their emissions need to be stopped or at least significantly reduced. In some cases, drop-in replacements are possible but in others, the equipment will require modification or replacement. Avoiding any leakage is the goal.

Electrification and on-site generation

One of the simplest changes is to install fixed electrical ground power (FEGP) and preconditioned air delivery to gates and parking aprons. This technology is well used across the world, with most larger airports already adopting it. Previously, aircraft had to plug into diesel ground power trucks or run the on-board auxiliary power unit (APU) and burn jet fuel while the main engines were off. Moving to FEGP has significant operational and environmental benefits for airport users and the local community and goes a massive way towards reducing emissions from airport vehicles, as well as from aircraft on the ground.

Along with this, switching to electric or hybrid ground support equipment is another easy change to make to reduce emissions, but it does require some investment. Current electric vehicle (EV) technology provides more than enough torque and charge to make EVs viable for passenger buses, pushback tugs, baggage trains and other airside vehicles; 40% of airfield ground support equipment at Gatwick Airport is now electric.

Commercial airports have large amounts of open space, and this can make them suitable locations for solar panel arrays. An efficient airport that has most services and equipment electrified can then make use of on-site solar power. Denver International has a solar panel array on the ground that provides 22 MW of power, as well as additional panels on the top of the concourse and covering the parking lot. In the UK, Edinburgh Airport has started building an 11-acre solar farm on the airfield that will provide up to 25% of the airport’s energy needs by 2030. In Ireland, Dublin Airport has approval for a 26.7-acre solar array that will provide about 8% of its electricity requirements.

Right here, right now

Naturally, we shouldn’t ignore new technologies that could revolutionise the industry. SAF and electric aircraft are likely to have significant roles to play in the aviation industry in the future, but waiting for the new technology should not stop us from acting now. There are opportunities across the world to improve efficiency and drastically reduce airport emissions by using technology that we have available currently, that we know works and that can deliver tangible results immediately.