Science Teacher Tests Biofuel Plane
by Neil Remiesiewicz and Steve Nielsen (WPRI.com) Ross McCurdy, who teaches at Ponaganset High School, teamed up with other fliers to take their biodiesel-powered aircraft for a test flight Saturday.
McCurdy and the team modified a Cessna 182 aircraft to run on a mix of jet fuel and biodiesel made from used cooking oil.
“The biofuel component of this is made from used cooking oil, but it’s really come a long way from the deep fryer,” McCurdy said.
The plane is 30 to 40 percent more fuel-efficient than a conventionally-powered Cessna 182 and McCurdy hopes that the test will demonstrate the potential and the benefits of aviation biofuels.
The fuel was produced by SkyNRG, a Dutch company, and it has been successfully used in jet aircraft worldwide – McCurdy says this is the first use of the biofuel in a small piston-engined plane. READ MORE includes VIDEO