CO2-derived Alternative Jet Fuel

Opus 12 is building electrochemical devices that transform carbon dioxide (CO2) into petrochemical building blocks. This technology can produce syngas (carbon monoxide and hydrogen gas), which can be used to produce jet fuel. The USAF has already certified an alternative jet fuel called Fischer Tropsch-Synthetic Paraffinic Kerosene (FT-SPK) to produce jet fuel from syngas through the Fischer-Tropsch (F-T) process. Today, the feedstock for this fuel is coal and biomass, which is gasified to produce syngas – Opus 12 can produce syngas directly, and drop into this existing process to create a domestic carbon-neutral jet fuel. This can help further the USAF’s stated intent to utilize alternative fuels in order to improve energy security by decreasing dependence on foreign oil, increase choice in fuels, and address environmental concerns. To date, Opus 12 has raised nearly $20 million in venture capital, federal grants, and state grants. It is releasing its first commercial syngas unit in mid-2019, and is expected to launch its first industrial-scale unit in 2021. This commercialization timeline is in line with a full-scale pilot and industrial production of alternative jet fuel production for the USAF within 5 years.