Synhelion converts sunlight into fuel on industrial scale

Synhelion is the first company in the world that can produce solar syngas on an industrial scale. According to a press release, the solar fuel pioneer from Lugano in the canton of Ticino has now demonstrated this at the multifocus solar tower of the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in Jülich, North Rhine-Westphalia. 

This means that the spin-off from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) is the first company in the world to be able to industrially produce solar diesel and solar kerosene using solar syngas. CTO Philipp Good commented: “By successfully producing solar syngas, we have made the dream of turning sunlight into fuel ready for industrial use. The last major technical milestone in scaling our technology has been achieved. Now the way is paved for the industrial production of carbon-neutral jet fuels, which we plan to start next year in Jülich.”

A plant is now being built for this. Once it is put into operation, the company will be able to demonstrate the entire process chain of its Sun-to-Liquid technology from concentrated sunlight to liquid fuels on an industrial scale. According to the information provided, the first taker for the solar kerosene will be Swiss International Air Lines. The plant will be commissioned by Synhelion Germany within the context of the SolarFuels project, which is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK).