Articles from Universal Fuel Technologies

As airlines work to reduce emissions while maintaining operational efficiency with existing aircraft and infrastructure, a critical barrier to 100% sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) adoption has been overcome. Independent testing by Washington State University has validated that Universal Fuel Technologies’ (Unifuel) Flexiforming technology successfully converts HEFA-derived naphtha into synthetic aromatic kerosene that, when blended with paraffinic SAF, creates a fully synthetic jet fuel meeting all essential performance standards. HEFA (Hydroprocessed Esters and Fatty Acids) is the most widely used SAF production process today, but produces only paraffinic fuel components.

As the global aviation industry faces mounting pressure to reduce emissions while demand for air travel continues to grow, Universal Fuel Technologies’ (Unifuel) Ethanol-to-jet sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) produced via the company’s Flexiforming technology has been accepted into the ASTM D4054 Clearinghouse, which supports the technical evaluation of new aviation fuels, for qualification. This acceptance positions Unifuel among an exclusive group of companies advancing toward ASTM qualification, the essential gateway for new fuels to enter commercial aviation markets.

To support Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) production goals and increase feedstock availability, Universal Fuel Technologies (Unifuel) has completed a successful five-month pilot project. 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 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.

With the demand for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) expected to increase tenfold by 2030, Universal Fuel Technologies (Unifuel) has closed $3 million in funding for its Flexiforming technology that cuts SAF production costs by up to 50%, and the related carbon emissions by up to 75%. The seed round, led by TO VC, with participation from Alchemist Accelerator, Claire Technologies, and World Star Aviation, will support the advancement of the company’s proprietary Flexiforming process and help establish lab space in Texas for SAF sample production. Flexiforming, which consists of a series of chemical reactions, converts various renewable materials—including byproducts of other SAF-making technologies—into high-quality SAF that is chemically comparable to conventional jet fuel, paving the way for a 100% synthetic replacement compatible with the existing aircraft fleet.