Universal Fuel Technologies (Unifuel) has announced the successful completion of a five-month pilot project demonstrating the viability and effectiveness of its innovative Flexiforming technology in producing sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from diverse renewable feedstocks. Conducted at RPD Technologies’ facilities in Crosby, Texas, from August to December 2024, the pilot yielded nearly 100 liters of SAF, showcasing the technology’s readiness for large-scale production.

The pilot focused on converting methanol and ethanol into SAF, as well as blending ethanol with paraffinic renewable naphtha derived from hydroprocessed esters and fatty acids (HEFA) to produce SAF. The resulting SAF samples are currently undergoing Tier 0 screening, the initial step of the ASTM International certification process, at Washington State University’s Bioproducts, Sciences, and Engineering Lab (BSEL).

A key highlight of the pilot was the production of two distinct SAF forms: Synthetic Aromatic Kerosene (SAK), a crucial aromatic blend component that ensures compatibility with conventional jet fuel, and a 100% drop-in, fully synthetic SAF, containing the necessary aromatic content for commercial use, pending ASTM certification.

Joshua Heyne, director of BSEL at Washington State University, emphasized the significance of Unifuel’s technology, stating, “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 Flexiforming process offers a significant advantage by allowing the aromatic component of SAF, produced from HEFA and Fischer-Tropsch (FT) naphtha, to be blended directly with the primary paraffinic SAF stream from these units. This eliminates the need for complex logistics and reduces costs, facilitating faster industry adoption of SAF.

Alexei Beltyukov, CEO of Universal Fuel Technologies, highlighted the technology’s potential to revolutionize the aviation industry. “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, Unifuel’s SAK can be blended with paraffinic SAF from HEFA or FT and sold directly to airlines without the need for blending with another fuel.”

The pilot campaign successfully validated ethanol-to-jet (ETJ), methanol-to-jet (MTJ), and renewable naphtha-with-ethanol-to-jet (NETJ) production routes, demonstrating the technology’s adaptability to various renewable fuel scenarios. Unifuel estimates that Flexiforming requires half the energy and hydrogen compared to current ETJ processes, significantly reducing production costs.

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