Deploying Gas-to-Liquids Technology for Sustainable Aviation Fuel Production
Gas-to-liquids offers a pathway for decarbonizing transportation fuels. When applied to a syngas produced from biogenic sources, the Gas-to-Liquids (GTL) process results in a sustainable liquid fuel source with significant emission reduction potential. This approach is demonstrated in the Protos Biofuel Project. The project is being executed by Petrofac for Protos Biofuels Ltd, one of the competition winners of the UK Department for Transport (DfT) Green Fuels, Green Skies (GFGS) competition.
The project aim was to produce a design for the conversion of refuse derived fuel waste to bio-syncrude, which would be readily processed in a conventional petroleum refinery for production of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF). This waste to fuel process would thereby achieve an eligible SAF pathway with reduced greenhouse gas emissions compared to a fossil fuel-derived aviation fuel.
Key design challenges encountered include feedstock definition and variation in feedstock quality, facility size, maximising energy integration, and handling effluent waste from the process.
The paper also emphasizes the role of technology selection as a key factor in establishing the viability of this First-Of-A-Kind (FOAK) commercial pathway for SAF.
