Supply chain configuration of sustainable aviation fuel: Review, challenges, and pathways for including environmental and social benefits

Abstract

The efficient configuration of supply chains is a current challenge for deploying sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), a key element of the decarbonization of the aviation industry. Despite advances in the modeling of biorefinery location siting, transportation network design, and co-products use, current supply chains and business models for renewable fuel production do not result in costs that are competitive with fossil fuels. Various elements for process efficiency enhancement, risk mitigation, total cost reduction, and profit maximization have been studied in supply chain design. In this work, we study the conceptual components needed for the design and analysis of supply chains. We emphasize the impact that monetization of environmental and social services could have on the overall viability of SAF production. The current state of the supply chain configuration of SAF is compared with other supply chain and value-chain strategies, mainly: (1) lean, used for staple commodities, (2) agile, intended for innovative products and services, (3) green, meant to reduce the environmental impacts, and (4) risk-adverse, used to minimize supply risk disruptions. A summary of models and simulation approaches used to synthesize and solve supply chain problems is included. Our review highlights the uniqueness of the supply chain for SAF and proposes ways to enrich the existing approach with methods used by other industries. The SAF business model could be improved by including ecosystem and social services to generate additional revenue. New strategies accounting for the dynamic interactions between the components of the supply chain of SAF, including services, are needed.