Firefly Green Fuels, Synagro team to produce SAF in US

The United States may soon benefit from sustainable aviation fuel made from human waste. British sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) producer Firefly Green Fuels recently announced it will collaborate with Baltimore-based waste capture and conversion provider Synagro Technologies to scale SAF production in the U.S. [caption id="attachment_57142803" align="alignright" width="300"] (Courtesy/Firefly Green Fuels)[/caption] Additional U.S. production of SAF was spurred by a $5.3 million investment Firefly received from Hungarian carrier Wizz Air in April for 525,000 tonnes of SAF to be delivered over the next 15 years. With global SAF feedstock availability limited and a looming net-zero deadline set by IATA for 2050, the two fuel makers have drafted a plan to bring biosolids — SAF produced from human waste — to the U.S. market to boost production, according to a July 23 release from Synagro. “The agreement between Synagro Technologies and Firefly Green Fuels has just been formulated and is in its early stages,” Synagro’s Pam Henson , communications manager, and Firefly’s Callum Stewart , marketing communications executive, told Air Cargo Next in a joint statement. “Both companies bring their respective talents and a shared commitment to transform biosolids into renewable energy.” Fuel makers produce SAF from biosolids through hydrothermal liquefaction, similar to “what happens under the Earth's crust over millions of years to produce crude oil,” Stewart previously told Air Cargo Next . “Heat and pressure are applied in just the right amount to chemically alter the wet sewage, turning it into biocrude. The biocrude is then put through a refining process to make SAF and a slate of other fuels.” Need for more SAF production The collaboration between Firefly and Synagro is still in the planning stages, and the funding and timeline for bringing Firefly’s SAF to the U.S. is unknown, Stewart and Henson said in the statement. “Any fuel production will entail startup expenses,” they said. “However, a known factor is that Firefly's technology is significantly more cost-effective than many other routes to SAF . This is due to the relatively low energy cost used in production, as well as the lower value of the waste feedstock it uses.” SAF produced from other waste feedstocks such as agricultural residues, unsalable animal fats and used cooking oil is about two to three times the cost of kerosene jet fuel, currently $2.16 per gallon . So why is SAF produced from biosolids more cost-effective? “To put it simply, it's very available and easy to collect — all human waste is flushed to one location and treated,” Stewart said. “It's also very consistent. We take what is known as 'post-AD sewage sludge' or 'biosolids,’ a material that has been through the full water treatment process,” he said. “It looks like wet soil and batch to batch is basically identical, which is important when producing a fuel that needs to meet very stringent standards. In the distant future as we scale, we may look to other waste streams, but for now human waste works perfectly for our needs.” Aviation accounts for 2% to 3% of global CO2 emissions, according to the World Economic Forum . Airlines and logistics companies around the globe have agreed to meet IATA ’s 2050 target of reaching net zero, which means that SAF production needs to increase significantly. And biosolids might be the answer, Henson and Stewart said. “There are new and emerging technologies that are working to convert biosolids into low-carbon SAF,” they said. “To reduce carbon emissions in the aviation industry, the U.S. and many other leading economies have established mandates requiring flights to use a percentage blend of SAF in their airplane fuel from 2030 onwards,” they said in the statement. “As these mandates drive global demand, the U.S. needs more SAF producers in order to meet increased demand.”

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