Efficient conversion of syngas into sustainable aviation fuel.
7 affiliations
- 1State Key Laboratory of Low Carbon Catalysis and Carbon Dioxide Utilization, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
- 2University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
- 3School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China.
- 4Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
- 5Shanxi Research Institute, Huairou Research Laboratory, Taiyuan, China. [email protected].
- 6State Key Laboratory of Low Carbon Catalysis and Carbon Dioxide Utilization, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China. [email protected].
- 7University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China. [email protected].
Abstract
Fischer-Tropsch synthesis to paraffinic kerosene is a crucial pathway to obtain sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), but a more efficient catalyst is needed for practical applications. Here, we report a cobalt-manganese catalyst supported on tetrapropylammonium hydroxide-etched Beta zeolites that breaks the long-standing activity-selectivity trade-off. The obtained catalyst achieves 82.8% CO conversion and 67.5% C₈₋₁₆ selectivity, yielding a high productivity. It also exhibits remarkable stability and strong tolerance to CO₂-rich feeds, thus enabling it to process real-world syngas feedstocks. The observed Co⁰-isolated Mnδ+ dual-site configuration identified by operando spectroscopies, along with the support's hierarchical porosity and moderate acidity, is responsible for the highly efficient synthesis of jet fuel. In our pilot-scale test, the shaped pellet catalyst delivers a productivity of 5.154 g gCo⁻¹ h⁻¹ with 78.9% C₈₋₁₆ hydrocarbons in liquid products. Excellent performance in industrial test and techno-economic analysis further demonstrates the strong potential of this catalyst for scalable production of SAF.
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BibTeX
@article{han2026efficient,
title = {{Efficient conversion of syngas into sustainable aviation fuel.}},
author = {Jian Han and Shenggang Li and Guofei Shen and Wei Liu and Jian Zhang and Dong Fang and Bohui Ye and Yifan Sun and Haofan Wang and Xianni Bu and Chengguang Yang and Hao Wang and Haiyan Yang and Jiong Li and Yuhan Sun and Peng Gao},
journal = {Nature communications},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1038/s41467-026-77708-5},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42893981},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Efficient conversion of syngas into sustainable aviation fuel.
AU - Jian Han
AU - Shenggang Li
AU - Guofei Shen
AU - Wei Liu
AU - Jian Zhang
AU - Dong Fang
AU - Bohui Ye
AU - Yifan Sun
AU - Haofan Wang
AU - Xianni Bu
AU - Chengguang Yang
AU - Hao Wang
AU - Haiyan Yang
AU - Jiong Li
AU - Yuhan Sun
AU - Peng Gao
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/11
JO - Nature communications
DO - 10.1038/s41467-026-77708-5
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42893981
AB - Fischer-Tropsch synthesis to paraffinic kerosene is a crucial pathway to obtain sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), but a more efficient catalyst is needed for practical applications. Here, we report a cobalt-manganese catalyst supported on tetrapropylammonium hydroxide-etched Beta zeolites that breaks the long-standing activity-selectivity trade-off. The obtained catalyst achieves 82.8% CO conversion and 67.5% C₈₋₁₆ selectivity, yielding a high productivity. It also exhibits remarkable stability and strong tolerance to CO₂-rich feeds, thus enabling it to process real-world syngas feedstocks. The observed Co⁰-isolated Mnδ+ dual-site configuration identified by operando spectroscopies, along with the support's hierarchical porosity and moderate acidity, is responsible for the highly efficient synthesis of jet fuel. In our pilot-scale test, the shaped pellet catalyst delivers a productivity of 5.154 g gCo⁻¹ h⁻¹ with 78.9% C₈₋₁₆ hydrocarbons in liquid products. Excellent performance in industrial test and techno-economic analysis further demonstrates the strong potential of this catalyst for scalable production of SAF.
SN - 2041-1723
ER -