Universal Fuel Technologies’ pilot demonstrates new SAF production pathways

Universal Fuel Technologies announced March 25 that it has completed a successful five-month pilot project to support sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production goals and increase feedstock availability.  

According to Universal Fuel Technologies, the campaign demonstrated the effectiveness and viability of the company’s Flexiforming technology in producing SAF that is chemically comparable to conventional jet fuel from various renewable feedstocks.  

The project was conducted at the facilities of RPD Technologies in Crosby, Texas, from August through December.  

It produced nearly 100 liters (26.4 gallons) of SAF sample material under stable process conditions, signaling readiness for the technology to scale up, the company said.  

The campaign focused on converting methanol and ethanol to SAF and ethanol with paraffinic renewable naphtha made via the hydroprocessed esters and fatty acids (HEFA) to SAF pathway, according to Universal Fuel Technologies.  

Samples of Universal Fuel Technologies’ Flexiforming SAF have been thoroughly tested and are now being analyzed at Washington State University’s Bioproducts, Sciences and Engineering Lab for Tier 0 screening—the initial step of the SAF-certification process. 

“As an industry, it’s crucial that we continue to support and explore new technologies to advance SAF to match the functionality of petroleum-derived jet fuel,” said Joshua Heyne, WSU’s BSEL director. “The capability to make aromatic molecules and process various feedstocks through a single technology platform not only streamlines SAF production but also significantly lowers production costs, making it more economically viable and accessible for producers and airlines.” 

The pilot yielded two distinct forms of SAF: synthetic aromatic kerosene (SAK), an essential aromatic blend component for maintaining compatibility of paraffinic SAF with the composition of fossil kerosene, and a 100 percent drop-in, fully synthetic SAF that contains the correct aromatic content for commercial use, pending certification by ASTM International, the leading global technical-standards organization.  

As a result, the aromatic component of SAF produced through Flexiforming, made from HEFA and Fischer-Tropsch naphtha, can be blended with the primary paraffinic SAF stream from these units.  

This, according to Universal Fuel Technologies, creates the opportunity to produce drop-in SAF directly at HEFA and FT units, reducing the costs and complexity of the logistics and aiding in industry adoption.  

“The impact of this pilot project reaches far beyond technical validation,” said Alexei Beltyukov, CEO of Universal Fuel Technologies. “A considerable value of Flexiforming is that it contributes to making SAF fully interchangeable with fossil jet fuel once ASTM approved. Because of its aromatic properties, which are essential for compatibility with today’s aircraft, Universal Fuel Technologies’ SAK can be blended with paraffinic SAF from HEFA or FT and sold directly to airlines without the need for blending with another fuel. As the aviation industry faces increasing pressure to reduce its environmental impact and contain costs, technologies like Flexiforming could be crucial in scaling up sustainable aviation fuel production to keep pace with demand.” 

Flexiforming provides several options for SAF production, making it especially adaptable for various renewable fuel scenarios, the company stated.  

The pilot campaign validated ethanol-to-jet (ETJ), methanol-to-jet (MTJ) and renewable naphtha-with-ethanol-to-jet (NETJ) production routes, offering flexibility in feedstock selection.  

According to Universal Fuel Technologies, due to the technology’s substantially lower energy and hydrogen requirements, it estimates Flexiforming to be half the cost of current ETJ processes.  

The company said in the ETJ mode, Flexiforming uses 75 percent less energy and 33 percent less hydrogen than other ETJ processes, cutting processing costs by up to 50 percent. 

Moreover, Flexiforming allows renewable fuel plant operators to upgrade low-value byproduct naphtha from existing HEFA or FT processes to create high-value aromatic SAF that can be blended into fully synthetic drop-in-ready jet fuel. 

“The samples of Universal Fuel Technologies’ Flexiforming SAF candidates show promise to proceed to full certification as aviation turbine fuel,” said Harrison Yang, a research assistant professor at WSU’s BSEL. 

Universal Fuel Technologies said its team has completed over a decade of research and extensive testing on its Flexiforming technology.  

As the company transitions to the next stage, samples of the Flexiforming SAF produced during the campaign are being prepared for ASTM-certification submission.  

This certification process is essential for validating the fuel’s safety and performance characteristics, ultimately determining its viability for commercial-aviation use.