May-2025

Unlocking the fuel of the future: integration strategies for eSAF

Collaboration between Johnson Matthey and Honeywell UOP demonstrates the potential of methanol-to-jet technology in producing sustainable aviation fuel.

Zinovia Skoufa Johnson Matthey
Leigh Abrams Honeywell UOP

Article Summary

As the world grapples with the pressing need for sustainable energy solutions, the aviation industry stands at a pivotal juncture. Integrating sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), particularly eSAF, into the fuel supply chain is critical to achieving ambitious climate goals. Recent legislative changes underscore the urgency of this transition, mandating higher blends of SAF in a number of different geographies, including the EU, UK, Brazil, Canada, Indonesia, and Japan. The EU SAF blend requirements are shown in Figure 1. The collaboration between Johnson Matthey (JM) and Honeywell UOP exemplifies the innovative approaches being adopted to produce SAF from diverse feedstocks, leveraging advanced technologies like Fisher-Tropsch (FT) and methanol-to-jet (MtJ) fuel pathways.

Legislative changes and the role of SAF
The EU has ambitions to reduce net greenhouse gases by 55% by 2030, with the ultimate goal of Europe becoming the world’s first climate-neutral continent by 2050. The aviation sector is an important part of this, and while alternative propulsion technologies are advancing, SAF will play a crucial role in decarbonising the aviation sector before 2050.

SAF demand is driven by government incentives and mandates, with long-term demand expected to grow to nearly 28.6 million tonnes by 2050 (European Alternative Fuels Observatory, 2025). eSAF-specific incentives and mandates are also significant, with ReFuelEU requirements increasing significantly over time from 1.2% in 2030 to 35% in 2050.

SAF production pathways
SAF can be made using a number of different synthesis routes utilising different feedstocks, as shown in Figure 2.

SAF production via the most popular hydroprocessed esters and fatty acids (HEFA) route has feedstock constraints as available volumes of waste oil, fats, and greases are far below the volume needed to meet global targets, with supply becoming more scarce by 2030. Other pathways are needed to meet 2050 targets, such as FT, MtJ, and ethanol-to-jet routes to enable the use of alternative feedstocks such as waste biomass, municipal solid waste, and CO2 from ethanol production.

The collaboration between JM and Honeywell UOP aims to produce SAF from various feedstocks. This initiative builds on an existing memorandum of understanding (MOU) on low-carbon hydrogen and carbon capture, expanding to include SAF production through the FT and MtJ fuel routes.

Methanol-to-jet value chain
Production of methanol
Methanol can be produced through various routes from different feedstocks, as shown in Figure 3. Renewable methanol made from waste, biomass, or green hydrogen can reduce the cradle-to-gate lifecycle emissions of methanol when compared with fossil-based methanol (Johnson Matthey, 2025) and is a key solution to decarbonising hard-to-abate transport sectors such as aviation and shipping.

JM’s eMERALD technology produces renewable methanol from green hydrogen and biogenic CO₂ and is engineered to maximise the feedstock efficiency of the highly valuable green hydrogen, contributing to the smaller electrolyser capacity needed upstream of the e-methanol plant.

The flowsheet is designed based on JM’s tube cooled converter (TCC). The methanol synthesis reaction is equilibrium-limited; therefore, a high circulation loop is key to maximising feed efficiency (Longland & Cassidy, 2023). JM’s TCC is well suited to a high circulation loop as it uses a catalyst in shell design, which facilitates high circulation rates while managing the pressure drop across the catalyst. The eMERALD flowsheet features a high degree of heat integration, reducing the need for external heating and helping to drive down operating costs while ensuring reliable production.

Together with eMERALD 201, a catalyst designed to enhance hydrothermal stability and extend catalyst life, the eMERALD flowsheet reduces the levelised cost of methanol production by 9% (compared with a baseline 100 ktpa plant in China), making sustainable methanol projects more financially viable.

Finally, the eMERALD flowsheet is well placed to cope with the additional demands arising from the intermittent nature of renewable electricity required for e-methanol production, seamlessly managing hydrogen intermittency and enabling flexible operation.

Technology in action
The world’s first CO₂-to-methanol plant was completed in 2012, with its first phase built under licence from JM and using JM catalyst focused on CO₂ utilisation. Since then, JM’s evolving technology has been selected in a number of e-methanol and biomass-based methanol projects of significant size across the world, totalling an announced capacity of 4,772 tpd of methanol production. Key projects are as follows:
• Built and operational since 2021, the Haru Oni pilot plant, located in Patagonia, Chile, leverages high-capacity wind power to generate green hydrogen and utilises biogenic CO₂ to produce methanol (Johnson Matthey, 2021).
• HIF Global’s Paysandu eFuels facility in Uruguay, one of the world’s largest planned e-methanol plants at 700 tpa, has chosen JM’s CO₂-to-methanol technology. The plant is expected to start construction in 2025 (Johnson Matthey, 2024).
• La Robla NE in Spain, one of Europe’s largest planned e-methanol plants at 140 ktpa, has also selected JM’s CO₂-to-methanol technology, with operations expected by 2027 (Johnson Matthey, 2025).
• ET Fuels’ e-methanol Texas plant, with a capacity of 120 ktpa, has selected JM’s CO₂-to-methanol technology and is planned for completion by 2029 (Johnson Matthey, 2024).

Methanol off-takes
There are three key areas for methanol off-takes, as shown in Figure 4:
υ Methanol as a fuel for shipping.
ϖ Methanol to produce olefins for plastics and petrochemicals.
ω Methanol to SAF, which is seen as an attractive route for customers.

Methanol-to-jet technology
In the UOP eFining process, methanol is converted to light olefins, which are then chained together in an oligomerisation process, ‘building up’ molecules of a desired length. The stepwise nature of the oligomerisation reaction means that the eFining process is inherently highly selective to isoparaffinic SAF-range molecules, with very few light or heavy byproducts.