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It looks like a modified Fischer-Tropsch, so they're likely concentrating CO2, blowing off one O to make pure carbon monoxide, and then adding hydrogen gas (fro
by photochemsyn 5y ago
It looks like a modified Fischer-Tropsch, so they're likely concentrating CO2, blowing off one O to make pure carbon monoxide, and then adding hydrogen gas (from water) under pressure over a catalyst to generate long-chain hydrocarbons.
Now, what would be nice to see as a proof-of-concept is an entire oil tanker's worth of jet fuel made by this process. How far off is that?
- adrian_b 5y agoThe Germans used this process during WW2 to cover a part of their fuel needs. That is enough of a "proof of concept". So there is no doubt that it works. It was abandoned after the war only because it was more expensive than extracted petroleum. Almost a century later after its invention, it should be possible to have better efficiencies than in the past.
- philipkglass 5y agoSasol of South Africa has made liquid fuels via the Fischer-Tropsch process for decades. The synthesis gas comes from coal or natural gas. Clean synthesis gas from water, CO2, and clean electricity should be a drop-in replacement for fossil derived syngas. But it's relatively expensive to make liquid fuels this way even when starting with cheap coal. I only expect synfuels to be used for performance critical applications and niches like keeping collectible classic cars running.
- dredmorbius 5y agoSince the 1950s. https://www.sasol.com/media-centre/media-releases/sasol-produces-15-billion-barrels-synthetic-fuel-coal-fifty-years https://www.sasol.com/media-centre/media-releases/sasol-prod...
- bobthepanda 5y agoYup. For the Air Force, their particular need is to avoid billions of dollars in contractor expense for reliably supplying fuel to remote bases in hostile territory.
- kwere 5y agoshouldnt itself manage fuel logistic or it is contracted away?
- pstrateman 5y agoregardless of who is doing the logistics it's expensive. synthesizing fuel also means nuclear powered aircraft carriers would be vastly more self sufficient
- spockz 5y agoI read elsewhere on hacker news that the us military runs through 20 million barrels of fuel per day . I can imagine there is a great desire to be less dependent on suppliers both in terms of quantity and logistics. Imagine a nuclear powered aircraft carrier being able to generate fuel for its planes and support ships.
- nradov 5y agoYes the US Navy has been researching synthesizing aviation fuel onboard nuclear powered carriers since at least 2013. The goal is to reduce fleet dependence on vulnerable tankers. https://www.autoevolution.com/news/us-navy-aircraft-carriers-could-soon-use-innovative-fuel-made-from-seawater-161519.html https://www.autoevolution.com/news/us-navy-aircraft-carriers... https://www.autoevolution.com/news/us-navy-aircraft-carriers-could-soon-use-innovative-fuel-made-from-seawater-161519.html https://www.autoevolution.com/news/us-navy-aircraft-carriers...
- pm90 5y agoAmazing. At what point do these carriers become totally self sufficient.
- tastyfreeze 5y agoWhen they can make food from waste.
- adolph 5y agoIs what the AF attempting much different from plans to make methane on Mars? https://www.space.com/future-astronauts-methane-rocket-fuel-mars https://www.space.com/future-astronauts-methane-rocket-fuel-...
- dredmorbius 5y agoThe Mars process is the Sabatier process, rather than Fischer-Tropsh, and reuslts in methane (and water) rather than heavier alkanes (petroleum-analogue hydrocarbons). (Corrected from earlier misstatement of methanol production, thanks to philipkglass.)
- philipkglass 5y agoThe Sabatier process yields methane, the lightest member of the alkane series. Methane also has the best gravimetric energy density of the alkanes. But for ease of handling, heavier alkanes that liquefy at above-cryogenic temperatures are better.
- dredmorbius 5y agoThanks, corrected.
- barney54 5y agoThe problem isn’t the proof of concept, it’s reducing the energy penalty. It takes a lot of energy to reverse combustion.
- bagels 5y agoInstead of shipping hydrocarbon fuel, they will have to ship solar/wind/geothermal power plants, or some other dense source of energy such as nuclear reactors.