The Highway To Inexperienced Hydrogen Leads By SAF

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The inexperienced hydrogen subject is exhibiting a spark of life following a tough patch final yr. A few of that spark is coming from the aviation business, which has been looking for sustainable aviation fuels to switch petroleum-base jet fuels. Varied biobased SAF concoctions have appeared with out attaining vital scaleup, and now hopes are being pinned on inexperienced hydrogen and the e-fuels subject.

Inexperienced Hydrogen And E-Fuels

E-fuels (aka electrofuels) characterize a brand new path for SAF. E-fuels are artificial hydrocarbon fuels which are produced by combining captured carbon with inexperienced hydrogen, sometimes that means hydrogen pushed from water in an electrolysis system powered by electrical energy from wind, photo voltaic, and different renewable assets. Biomass is one other rising useful resource, however, to this point, a lot of the exercise has targeted on water electrolysis.

Right here within the US, an e-fuels gold rush of kinds has already surfaced in Texas, the place American Airways is collaborating on an e-fuel SAF initiative referred to as Venture Roadrunner, with the e-fuels stakeholder Infinium and different companions. CleanTechnica first took word of the undertaking again in 2023, reporting that American Airways contributed a agency offtake settlement assist make sure the success of the enterprise.

Final fall Venture Roadrunner earned a seal of approval from the agency Brookfield Asset Administration, which introduced itself as a $200 million strategic funding accomplice with Infinium for the Texas undertaking together with one other $850 million in funding geared toward distributing Infinium SAF and different e-fuels globally.

Roadrunner was nonetheless on monitor as of September 10, with American Airways affirming that it expects to buy SAF from the undertaking in commercial-scale portions starting in 2026.

Extra Inexperienced Hydrogen For e-SAF In Denmark

The rising e-SAF business additionally acquired a shot of adrenaline final week, when the Swiss e-fuels agency Metafuels introduced a brand new $9 million spherical of funding in help of an illustration website in Switzerland. In anticipation of a profitable demonstration, Metafuels additionally has a manufacturing facility in Denmark within the pipeline. The manufacturing facility is anticipated to generate 12,000 liters of SAF each day as soon as in operation.

The agency Celsius Industries spearheaded the funding, with new buyers RockCreek, Fortescue Ventures, and Verve Ventures additionally taking part. Present buyers Power Affect Companions and Contrarian Ventures signed onto the brand new spherical as properly, having contributed to an $8 million funding spherical in 2023.

As well as, the Swiss Federal Workplace of Power chipped in one other $5 million, primarily based on Metafuels’s sustainable methanal-to-SAF collaboration with the Swiss analysis institute PSI.

Metafuels is enjoying its proprietary e-fuels course of near the vest, however the firm does emphasize that its SAF is produced with electrical energy from renewable assets. “Metafuels’ differentiation is price management by the flexibility to transform its feedstock (e-methanol) into e-SAF with a considerably increased yield, making certain a extra environment friendly and cost-effective course of,” the corporate provides.

“Metafuels’ signature e-SAF, aerobrew, can change standard kerosene whatever the dimension, kind of plane, and short-haul or long-haul,” Metafuels explains. The corporate’s web site offers only a little bit of extra element, describing the aerobrew course of as an “an progressive catalytic system — the ‘lacking piece of the jigsaw’ for changing inexperienced methanol to SAF — with a excessive selectivity and yield.”

In a press assertion saying the brand new funding final week, Metafuels CEO and co-founder Saurabh Kapoor famous that the funding whole of $22 million allows Metafuels to finish the demonstration program and concentrate on the business market. “We might be implementing plenty of new sustainable aviation gas manufacturing websites and are already partaking with varied stakeholders as potential buyers or e-SAF off-takers,” he stated.

Who’s Gonna Pay For All This?

The massive impediment, after all, is price. Metafuels is leaning on the effectivity and scalability of its aerobrew course of to counterbalance the price of inexperienced hydrogen, which stays excessive relative to traditional hydrogen extracted from pure gasoline (see tons extra inexperienced H2 background right here).

Metafuels additionally notes that its services might be situated close to aviation gas hubs and aggressive renewable power assets, trimming transportation and electrical energy prices.

Excessive prices or not, legacy aviation stakeholders are additionally paying consideration. That features Honeywell, which was tapped by the Danish agency Power2X to contribute its new “eFining” system to a large-capacity eSAF hub taking form in Rotterdam, aiming at delivering greater than 250,000 tonnes (metric tons) per yr.

“The Rotterdam facility will use regionally produced inexperienced hydrogen and imported methanol produced from inexperienced hydrogen and biogenic carbon as feedstock to create electrofuels (eFuels),” Honeywell and Power2X defined in a press launch dated December 17.

“Honeywell’s eFining expertise will play a central position in manufacturing, enabling the conversion of methanol into eFuels with low emissions and excessive effectivity,” the 2 companies elaborated, including that the Rotterdam facility “underscores how expertise is shaping the way forward for aviation and the power transition, two megatrends that align with Honeywell’s portfolio.”

Earlier than you get too excited, the 2 corporations additionally point out that their eSAF might be blended with standard jet gas with a view to obtain the standing of a drop-in substitute. However, they point out that the lower in greenhouse gasoline emissions might be substantial.

“Honeywell UOP eFining can scale back greenhouse gasoline (GHG) emissions by 88% in comparison with standard jet gas,” they state.

Honeywell provides that its SAF expertise has been licensed at greater than 50 websites around the globe, for a mixed capability of 500,000 barrels each day if and after they turn out to be absolutely operational.

One other Inexperienced Hydrogen Startup To Watch

A fast search of the Intertubes simply reveals inexperienced hydrogen and e-SAF initiatives around the globe which were delayed or cancelled outright because of excessive prices and offtaker shortage, Uniper’s proposed “SkyFuelH2” undertaking in Sweden being one instance. Nonetheless, that doesn’t appear to have dampened enthusiasm in different places. For instance, the Sultanate of Oman is working with the Norwegian agency Nordic Electrofuel to turbo-boost e-SAF manufacturing within the Sultanate.

Control the Finnish startup Liquid Solar, which describes itself as a “carbon recoding” firm. “Our answer relies on low temperature electrolysis (LTE) expertise that transforms CO₂ and water into precious e-fuel feedstocks. The method is powered by renewable electrical energy,” Liquid Solar explains.

In November, Liquid Solar reported that it has nailed down virtually 4 million euros in seed funding, on high an an earlier €1 million funding spherical in 2023. With the funding in hand, Liquid Solar anticipates a easy path in the direction of scaleup.

The following step is a pre-commerical demonstration undertaking, to be housed in a delivery container.

The brand new spherical of funding was spearheaded by Voima Ventures, which additionally has the inexperienced hydrogen stakeholder Photo voltaic Meals beneath its umbrella, and co-led by the Finnish-American enterprise capital agency Failup Ventures. The agricultural waste recycler Enifer Oy additionally participated, together with the Swedish agency Cellfion AB.

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Picture: Inexperienced hydrogen stakeholders anticipate hitching a experience on the up-and-coming e-SAF subject, which leverages renewable electrical energy to provide artificial fuels (courtesy of Metafuels).