Universal Fuel Technologies (Unifuel) has completed a five-month pilot project that the company says 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.

Flexiforming is a single-stage all gas-phase reaction across established zeolite catalyst at modest pressure and temperature (10 atm, 400 C). The chemistry of Flexiforming process can be regulated by the operator to produce drop-in SAF, gasoline, or BTX from various feeds.

The project was conducted at the facilities of RPD Technologies in Crosby, Texas, from August through December of last year. It produced nearly 100 liters of SAF sample material under stable process conditions, signaling readiness for the technology to scale up.

The campaign focused on converting methanol and ethanol to SAF and ethanol with paraffinic renewable naphtha made via Hydroprocessed Esters and Fatty Acids (HEFA) to SAF. Samples of Unifuel’s 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.

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% drop-in, fully synthetic SAF that contains the correct aromatic content for commercial use, pending certification by ASTM International.

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

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. 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.

—Joshua Heyne, Director of the Bioproducts, Sciences and Engineering Lab (BSEL) at Washington State University

Flexiforming provides several options for SAF production, making it especially adaptable for various renewable fuel scenarios. 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. Due to the technology’s substantially lower energy and hydrogen requirements, Unifuel estimates Flexiforming to be half the cost of current ETJ processes. Moreover, Flexiforming allows renewable fuel plant operators to upgrade low-value byproduct naphtha from existing HEFA or Fischer-Tropsch (FT) processes to create high-value aromatic SAF that can be blended into fully synthetic drop-in-ready jet fuel.

The samples of Unifuel’s Flexiforming SAF candidates show promise to proceed to full certification as aviation turbine fuel.

—Harrison Yang, Research Assistant Professor of the BSEL at Washington State University

Unifuel’s team has completed more than a decade of research and extensive testing on its Flexiforming technology. As Unifuel 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.