Swiss scientists are making jet fuels from sunlight and air (www.weforum.org)

The business of making sustainable jet fuel is challenging. Harnessing the power of nature could be one solution to making hard-to-electrify transport sectors sustainable.

Researchers, led by Aldo Steinfeld, Professor of Renewable Energy Sources at ETH Zurich, have developed an industrial plant that extracts carbon dioxide (CO2) and water from the air. Solar energy is then used to split these compounds and produce syngas – a mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide. This is then further processed to create kerosene and methanol which can be used as a substitute for traditional fuels.