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LEARNING PATH · Advanced

Sustainable Fuels & SAF

Compare sustainable aviation fuel pathways across feedstocks, process trains, logistics, carbon intensity, cost and scale-up.

4 h8 lessonsAdvanced
Start path →
Four distinct SAF starting streams—lipids, alcohol, lignocellulosic biomass and post-use plastics—follow separate process trains toward an aviation-fuel sample.SF&Resources → Outcomes

Prerequisites

Conversion and life-cycle basics recommended.

Learning objectives

  • Map major SAF pathway families and conversion steps.
  • Interpret carbon-intensity and TEA claims with boundaries.
  • Identify feedstock, infrastructure and market constraints on scale.

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Visual roadmap

Lesson sequence

246 min

01Feedstock characteristics and conversion fitBeginner · 26 minWhy moisture, ash, composition, particle form and variability often matter more than nominal resource labels.02Conversion pathways, mass and energy balancesBeginner · 26 minA pathway is credible when every input, product, coproduct, emission and loss is accounted for on a common basis.03Fermentation, catalysis and upgradingIntermediate · 30 minBiological selectivity and catalytic transformation are both powerful, but they impose different feed purity, operating and separation demands.04Sustainable aviation fuel pathwaysAdvanced · 34 minSAF is a specification- and certification-constrained system connecting feedstocks, molecules, hydrogen, refineries, airports and life-cycle accounting.05Supply chains, transport and storageIntermediate · 30 minThe physical chain between dispersed resources and steady industrial demand shapes cost, losses, emissions and reliability.06Life-cycle assessmentIntermediate · 36 minLCA connects a decision question to a functional unit, system inventory, impact assessment and interpretation across a product life cycle.07Techno-economic analysis, cost and cash flowIntermediate · 36 minTEA translates a process design and financing assumptions into cost, price and return metrics while exposing performance and scale drivers.08Scenario and sensitivity analysisIntermediate · 28 minSeparate alternative futures, influential assumptions and uncertain values.
TOOLS

Related tools

Argonne National Laboratory

GREET

A life-cycle model for energy use, emissions, fuels, vehicles and material pathways.

Use it when
How do fuel and vehicle pathways compare on a consistent life-cycle basis?
Limits
Results depend on pathway version, geography, allocation and counterfactual assumptions.
Inputs, outputs & scope
Inputs
Feedstocks, process energy, transport, conversion efficiencies and pathway assumptions.
Outputs
Life-cycle energy use, greenhouse gases and regulated air emissions.
Typical applications
Transport fuels, SAF, hydrogen, biofuels and materials comparisons.
Explore the official tool ↗
GreenDelta

openLCA

An open-source desktop platform for constructing life-cycle inventories and impact assessments.

Use it when
How can a product system, exchanges, allocation and impact methods be assembled and audited?
Limits
Software does not supply a defensible boundary or dataset license; modelling choices still require documentation and review.
Inputs, outputs & scope
Inputs
Process inventories, flows, databases, functional unit, system model and impact method.
Outputs
Inventory results, characterized impacts, contribution analysis and scenario comparisons.
Typical applications
Transparent teaching models, product LCA, hotspot analysis and critical-review packages.
Explore the official tool ↗
Brightway project

Brightway

An open-source Python framework for matrix-based LCA, scenario analysis and advanced computational workflows.

Use it when
How can reproducible LCA calculations be automated, parameterized and extended?
Limits
Requires programming and careful database management; computational flexibility can amplify undocumented assumptions.
Inputs, outputs & scope
Inputs
Technosphere and biosphere matrices, demand, characterization methods and scenario parameters.
Outputs
LCI/LCIA matrices, contribution tables, uncertainty and parameterized scenario results.
Typical applications
Research-grade reproducible LCA, Monte Carlo analysis and coupling with optimization or process models.
Explore the official tool ↗
U.S. Department of Energy

TECHTEST

A spreadsheet-based early-stage tool combining simplified techno-economic and life-cycle analysis.

Use it when
Which performance factors dominate the potential cost and energy profile of an emerging technology?
Limits
A screening tool does not replace a detailed process design, project finance model or critical review.
Inputs, outputs & scope
Inputs
Technology performance, lifetime, energy and cost assumptions, and a benchmark.
Outputs
Screening-level cost, energy and scenario comparisons.
Typical applications
Early R&D prioritization, benchmark comparison and scenario screening.
Explore the official tool ↗
SALib project

SALib

An open-source Python library for global sensitivity analysis, including Sobol, Morris and FAST methods.

Use it when
Which uncertain inputs drive model-output variation, interactions or screening priorities?
Limits
Method choice, sampling design, model cost and correlated inputs require deliberate treatment; rankings are conditional on specified ranges.
Inputs, outputs & scope
Inputs
A defined parameter problem, sampled input sets and corresponding model outputs.
Outputs
Method-specific sensitivity indices, confidence intervals and screening rankings.
Typical applications
Global sensitivity analysis for process, TEA, LCA and system models.
Explore the official tool ↗
CASE STUDIES

Examples from Wang Group

2023Resources

Van Krevelen diagrams based on machine learning visualize feedstock-product relationships in thermal conversion processes

Shows how machine learning and Van Krevelen space can make feedstock–product relationships legible without turning the model into the research question itself.

2024Conversion

A novel three-stage ex-situ catalytic pyrolysis process for improved bio-oil yield and quality from lignocellulosic biomass

Illustrates how staged catalytic process design can trade equipment complexity against product yield and quality.

2025Conversion

Breaking the yield–selectivity trade-off in polystyrene waste valorization via tandem depolymerization and hydrogenolysis

Provides a clear conversion example of a yield–selectivity trade-off and the value of tandem process design.

2026Conversion

Ambient-pressure conversion of plastic waste to jet fuel cycloalkanes by tandem hydropyrolysis and vapour-phase hydrogenation

A plastic-to-jet-fuel conversion case for separating molecular feasibility from feedstock supply, hydrogen, certification and deployment questions.

2022Outcomes

Pyrolysis of engineered beach-cast seaweed: Performances and life cycle assessment

A useful LCA case because engineered beach-cast seaweed makes collection, pretreatment and alternative management part of the boundary.

2025Deployment

Assessing the Techno-Economic Feasibility of Bamboo Residue-Derived Hard Carbon

Connects regional bamboo-residue supply, process assumptions and discounted cash flow to a deployability question for hard carbon.