US Navy undertakes biofuel test

The US Navy has undertaken a large demonstration of the effectiveness of biofuel by using the alternative energy to power a ship.

Around 20,000 gallons of biofuel were used to fill the Paul F Foster, with the fuel made from a mixture of algal oil and petroleum.

It will sail off the Californian coast, from Point Loma in San Diego on Wednesday night to arrive in Port Hueneme the following morning.

"Today's event marks a major milestone in our progress toward a great green fleet," said Jackalyne Pfannenstiel, assistant secretary of the Navy for energy, speaking at the Point Loma Naval Base pier, Signonsandiego.com reported.

It test was part of an effort to take a leap into green energy, with the armed services hoping to cut its consumption of fossil fuels by 50 per cent by 2020.

This is not the first major venture into biofuel, as a number of airlines including Air China and Alaska Airlines have also undertaken test flights with the green fuel.

Posted by Posted by Joseph Hutton