Estimating Takeoff Thrust Settings for Airport Emissions Inventories

TRB’s Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP) has released ACRP CD-161: Estimating Takeoff Thrust Settings for Airport Emissions Inventories that offers guidance designed to help airport practitioners include the effects of reduced takeoff thrust in their emissions inventory calculations. When calculating air quality emissions inventories for airports, modelers frequently assume that aircraft takeoff uses maximum engine thrust. However, many airlines routinely use lower takeoff thrust levels to prolong the lives of the engines.

ACRP CD-161 includes the Takeoff Thrust-Setting Estimator Tool (TTREAT), which calculates takeoff thrust for departures from an airport and produces outputs suitable for use with the Federal Aviation Administration Aviation Environmental Design Tool (AEDT). Validation of TTREAT has shown that it successfully captures the distributions of thrust seen in the airline data, and that the takeoff flight profiles calculated by AEDT are closer matched to those from the airline data than are calculations assuming a maxim thrust takeoffs.

Included in ACRP CD-161 includes the TTREAT tool, a practitioner guidebook, and a final technical report.


The CD-ROM is also available for download from TRB’s website as an ISO image. Links to the ISO image and instructions for burning a CD-ROM from an ISO image are provided below.

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CD-ROM Disclaimer - This software is offered as is, without warranty or promise of support of any kind either expressed or implied. Under no circumstance will the National Academy of Sciences or the Transportation Research Board (collectively "TRB") be liable for any loss or damage caused by the installation or operation of this product. TRB makes no representation or warranty of any kind, expressed or implied, in fact or in law, including without limitation, the warranty of merchantability or the warranty of fitness for a particular purpose, and shall not in any case be liable for any consequential or special damages.