European renewable fuel production pioneer Synhelion has inaugurated DAWN, the world’s first industrial solar fuel plant, in Jülich, Germany.
Founded in 2016 as a spinoff from ETH Zurich, the company has expanded its technology from a mini-refinery on the roof of the public research university in 2019. Synhelion has worked since then to apply its sun-to-liquid process on an industrial scale.
One of the main considerations in the power-to-liquid or eFuels production equation is the need for large amounts of renewable energy to drive the process and further its sustainability and carbon emissions reduction benefits.
The Jülich plant uses a mirror field surrounding a 20-meter (65-foot) solar tower that includes a solar receiver, a thermochemical reactor, and a thermal energy storage unit that allows cost-efficient production 24 hours a day. This pilot plant will produce several thousand liters of synthetic crude oil a year, which can then be processed into a variety of fuels including SAF (sustainable aviation fuel).
Next year, the company expects to begin construction on its first commercial plant, to be located in Spain. It will have an output of around 1,000 tons of fuel annually. Future applications are planned on a larger scale, and Synhelion anticipates its annual production of solar fuel to exceed one million tons a year over the next decade.
“The inauguration of DAWN marks the beginning of the era of solar fuels—a turning point for sustainable transportation,” explained company co-founder and CEO Philipp Furler. “Our founding dream of producing renewable fuels from solar energy is becoming a reality.”