What Exactly Are Synthetic Fuels, And How Do They Work?

What exactly is synthetic fuel?

The first thing to point out is that synthetic fuels and E-85 or other types of ethanol/bio-ethanol fuel are not the same. The difference is that E-85 is created by the naturally occurring fermentation process, similar to how beer and other kinds of alcohol are made. Synthetic fuels are made by a process that was created by humans and does not exist by itself in the “natural world.” Hence the term ’synthetic’.

All types of modern synthetic fuels are made from the same general process, regardless of who makes them or what brand they are from.

A process called electrolysis separates water into hydrogen and oxygen. The oxygen is expelled, or simply released back into the air and the hydrogen is mixed with carbon dioxide taken from the atmosphere via carbon capture. That mixture of hydrogen and carbon dioxide creates a form of liquid methanol, which is then refined to create a liquid that has the same effect as gasoline or diesel.

Meaning you can fill up your car with synthetic fuel and simply drive around without any modifications. The cars will still produce the same emissions that they would from burning gasoline or diesel, but they are replacing the carbon dioxide that was first taken out of the atmosphere to create the fuel in the first place.

So, as long as green energy, for example, energy from hydropower or wind farms, is used in the production process, the entire thing is carbon neutral.

When will we be filling up with synthetic fuels at the gas station?

Probably not, at least not for a while until the production process and the fuel itself gets cheaper. People also need to be willing to accept synthetic fuels as a legitimate alternative to gasoline and diesel.

Only time will tell if it has the same effect as E-85 on engines, such as added corrosion and a lack of fuel economy.

However, there have been large pushes in recent years for the advancement of synthetic fuels, most notably from Porsche and interest from Lamborghini. The former has invested about $100 million in a synthetic fuel development center in Chile with the hope that it can produce 550 million gallons of the stuff in 2026.

That being said, the U.S. consumed over 600 billion gallons of gasoline in 2021, so there’s an argument over what difference it makes.

Perhaps synthetic fuels will be around for a long time but will be a niche market, sort of like hydrogen fuel. All the rich stock brokers will be able to get their hands on some synthetic gas to fuel their Lambos, but it will just barely out of reach for us normal people.