(Leuna) – The German Aerospace Center (DLR) has selected the Leuna Chemical Park in Saxony-Anhalt as a location for electricity-based fuel production. The research facility is intended to produce power-to-liquid fuels (PtL) and e-SAF (Sustainable Aviation Fuels) on an industrial scale. To this end, the DLR will work with companies and other research institutions to develop and test the necessary large-scale technologies and processes, the researchers explain.
Industrial scale technology
The facility, known as the “Technology Platform PtL” (TPP), will make a decisive contribution to “developing technologies for the industrial production of electricity-based fuels,” says Anke Kaysser-Pyzalla, CEO of DLR. Currently, e-SAF is “not yet available in sufficient quantities”. The TPP should help increase the efficiency of energy sources and pave the way for industrial production.
The Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport is making around 12,7 million euros available for the planning phase. The approval of the implementation phase, amounting to a mid-three-digit million amount, is expected to take place at the end of the year. The research facility is initially planned to operate until 2035, with continued operation beyond that planned. Around 100 jobs will be created in the areas of construction, plant operation and research. “The decision in favor of the Leuna chemical site will further accelerate structural change in the Central German lignite mining area,” says Reiner Haseloff, Prime Minister of Saxony-Anhalt.
Location selection in a multi-stage process
The DLR examined more than 60 locations in a multi-stage process. Three of them were shortlisted. The Leuna decision was based on several factors: the supply of renewable resources in the areas of electricity and CO2, the existing technical infrastructure on the site of the former Leuna works and the integration into the local research landscape with universities, colleges and non-university scientific institutions, says Project leader Manfred Aigner from the DLR Institute of Combustion Technology.
Research and production
The PtL technology platform consists of two strands that build on each other: In the research area of the facility, the DLR will test novel technologies and processes together with science and industry. The second strand focuses on operating “a semi-industrial plant for the production of electricity-based fuels” with a capacity of up to 10.000 tons per year. Construction is scheduled to begin in January 2024.
Class schedule
Graphical representation of the PtL (TPP) technology platform in Leuna: The research results will be incorporated into the industrial production of electricity-based fuels in the future. © DLR (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0)
