World's first industrial solar fuel plant, DAWN, manufactured by Synhelion — a spin-off from Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zurich) — produces carbon-neutral solar fuels, aiming to replace conventional fossil fuels.

World's first industrial solar fuel plant, DAWN, manufactured by Synhelion — a spin-off from Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zurich) — produces carbon-neutral solar fuels, aiming to replace conventional fossil fuels.

Synhelion, a Swiss company, has announced the launch of the DAWN Project, a groundbreaking initiative aimed at industrial-scale production of solar fuels. The mission of Synhelion is to replace fossil liquid fuels with sustainable liquid fuels, and the DAWN Project is a significant step towards achieving this goal.

The project aims to produce fuels on a large enough scale that they can power carbon-intensive industries such as cement manufacturing, with a goal of producing around 100,000 tonnes by 2030 and 1 million tonnes by 2033. This could potentially revolutionise the energy landscape, significantly reducing planet-warming carbon emissions.

Synhelion's approach to harnessing solar power is different from the more familiar use of photovoltaic cells. Instead, the company uses biomass, specifically agricultural waste products, as a carbon source. The process creates a synthesised gas of carbon monoxide and hydrogen, which is then liquefied into liquid hydrocarbons, effectively mimicking the combustion process of jet fuel but in reverse. This synthetic fuel aims to close the carbon cycle and reduce carbon emissions.

The process emits some carbon, but compared to traditional jet fuel, it results in a significant reduction of 85 to 90 percent in emissions. This makes it a promising solution for industries that currently rely on carbon-intensive fuels but struggle with electrification due to the need for high energy density, such as marine and aviation transportation.

Solar fuel production from biomass and sunlight involves two main methods: solar-driven biomass pyrolysis and direct photochemical conversion (photocatalysis). Solar pyrolysis systems use concentrated solar heat to thermally decompose biomass in the absence of oxygen, producing fuels like biochar, oil, and syngas. Photocatalytic conversion, on the other hand, uses sunlight directly to convert biomass-derived organic materials in water into hydrogen fuel.

Matt Bauer, program manager for the Concentrating Solar-Thermal Power Program at the U.S Department of Energy, states that a denser fuel source is more efficient for the process of extracting CO2. This makes Synhelion's approach particularly promising, as the resulting liquid hydrocarbons have an energy density as much as 50 times greater than the most advanced current lithium-ion technology.

Synhelion's progress is being watched closely by those pushing for a suite of approaches to more rapidly bring us to a carbon-neutral world. The company's partners include Cemex, one of the largest building materials companies in the world, as well as aviation-specific companies such as the Lufthansa Group and Zurich Airport.

In 2014, Synhelion demonstrated the feasibility of the process on a small scale, producing a test tube of jet fuel in the lab using sunlight, water, and CO2. With the launch of the DAWN Project, Synhelion is poised to take this technology to the next level, contributing approximately half of Europe's synthetic aviation fuel demand by 2040 and continuing to grow.

[1] "Solar Pyrolysis: A Review of Recent Developments". International Journal of Hydrogen Energy. 42.10 (2017): 6041-6054. [2] "Photocatalytic Water Splitting". Chemical Reviews. 117.16 (2017): 9181-9265. [3] "Artificial Photosynthesis: A Review of Recent Developments". Progress in Energy and Combustion Science. 54 (2016): 35-54. [4] "Solar-driven biomass conversion: A review". Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 70 (2016): 1053-1067. [5] "Efficiency of Solar-driven Biomass Conversion: A Review". Journal of Cleaner Production. 183 (2018): 145-156.

1. The DAWN Project, initiated by Synhelion, targets the industrial-scale production of solar fuels, either replacing or significantly reducing the use of fossil liquid fuels in various carbon-intensive industries, contributing to a healthier environment and fighting climate-change.
2. Synhelion utilizes a unique approach to renewable energy by employing biomass, such as agricultural waste products, as a carbon source, facilitating the production of synthesized gas, which is later liquefied into high-energy density liquid hydrocarbons, simulating the structure of jet fuel but in reverse, aiming to close the carbon cycle and reduce carbon emissions.
3. Synhelion's ambition is to produce approximately 1 million tonnes of these fuel alternatives by 2033, potentially revolutionizing the energy sector and significantly decreasing planet-warming carbon emissions.
4. Solar fuel production from biomass and sunlight largely falls under the categories of solar-driven biomass pyrolysis and direct photochemical conversion, with solar pyrolysis systems and photocatalytic conversion being the two main methods.
5. The energy density of Synhelion's resulting liquid hydrocarbons is as much as 50 times greater than the most advanced current lithium-ion technology, making their approach exceptionally promising in the quest for a carbon-neutral world.
6. Partners of Synhelion include some of the world's largest cement manufacturers and aviation companies, showcasing industry's interest in backing promising green energy technologies and contributing to societal concerns related to the environment, climate-change, and the planet.

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