Airplanes transport people, cargo and perform military missions, but the petroleum-based fuel that powers them is
"In chemistry, everything that requires energy forproduction, releases energy upon destruction", – says study lead author Pablo Cruz-Morales. When petroleum jet fuel ignites, it releases enormous amounts of energy. Scientists thought there must be a way to replicate this without waiting millions of years for new fossil fuels to form.
Jay Kisling, chemical engineer from CaliforniaUniversity of Berkeley synthesized a molecule capable of producing a lot of energy. The molecule Kisling recreated is called Jawsamycin, which is produced by the bacterium streptomyces. This molecule is formed as a result of the bacteria's natural metabolism when they digest glucose.
Cruz-Morales explains that the fuel producedbacteria, will work like biodiesel. It will need to be processed so that it can ignite at a lower temperature, but once ignited, it will be powerful enough to send a rocket into space.