Monday 18 May 2020

Lufthansa to fly with green fuel made from sunlight

The skies will soon see aircraft that will fly with fuels made from air and sunlight.

Lufthansa Group and Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH Zurich), with its spin-offs Climeworks and Synhelion, have signed a letter of intent for possible cooperation that could accelerate the launch of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF).

The researchers and engineers at ETH Zurich have discovered a way to extract carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and together with water and with the help of concentrated sunlight, convert it into a synthesis gas which can be used to produce jet fuel.

It says the letter of intent marks the intention of the collaboration between ETH Zurich and the Lufthansa to jointly address the need of the aviation sector to depend on sustainable fuels as a result of climate change.

Christina Foerster, Executive Board Member of Deutsche Lufthansa AG responsible for Customer & Corporate Responsibility, said: "With the planned cooperation, we are once again underlining the importance of SAF for the goal of achieving aviation with a balanced carbon dioxide sheet.

"The Lufthansa Group has been working hard for years to make flying ever more sustainable. Thanks to the forward-looking technologies and the cooperation with innovative partners in already two of our home markets, we are on the right track."