The Digest’s Multi-Slide Guide to SAF Contrail Modeling

This project, 33% complete with $400k in FY24 funding, aims to develop predictive chemistry and particle microphysics models for SAF contrail formation, a major climate impact driver (57.4 mW/m2 Effective Radiative Forcing). A multi-scale ice nucleation model is being constructed, using machine-learned molecular dynamics potentials that scale linearly for efficient simulation. The SAF Grand Challenge targets 36 billion gallons/year by 2050, emphasizing the urgency for these models to minimize total climate impact.