The Lufthansa Group has signed a letter of intent to partner
with the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH Zurich) and its
spin-offs Climeworks and Synhelion to accelerate the market launch of
Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAFs) made using sunlight.
The researchers and engineers at ETH Zurich have developed processes
that make it possible to extract CO2 from the atmosphere and, together with
water and the help of concentrated sunlight, convert it to a synthetic gas that
can be used to make jet fuel. According to the team, this fuel releases on as
much CO2 as was extracted from the atmosphere to make it.
Under the partnership, initiated by the Lufthansa Group’s
Swiss and Edelweiss subsidiaries, will see the firms work together to prepare
the technology for later production on an industrial scale.
“In contrast to other modes of transport, air transport will
depend on sustainable liquid fuels in the foreseeable future. Their market
launch requires a joint effort by fuel manufacturers and airlines,” said Dr
Aldo Steinfeld, professor for renewable energy carriers at ETH Zurich.
Christina Foerster, executive board member of Deutsche
Lufthansa AG responsible for customer and corporate responsibility, added: “With
the planned cooperation, we are once again underlining the importance of
Sustainable Aviation Fuels for the goal of achieving aviation with a balanced
CO2 sheet.”
The Lufthansa Group has made a number of investments in the
research, testing and use of SAFs, including the launch of its Compensaid
platform, which allows passengers to choose to offset the emissions from any
flight, regardless of which airline they fly with, through the purchase of
SAFs.