Synhelion refuels car with solar gasoline for the first time

Zurich/Cham ZG – The cleantech company Synhelion has refueled a car with solar fuel for the first time. Without any changes to the engine, the Audi Sport quattro from AMAG used the solar gasoline during a test drive over Alpine passes. The drive was intended to demonstrate that solar fuel is compatible with existing combustion engines.

(CONNECT) The Zurich-based Synhelion has refueled a car with solar gasoline for the first time. According to a press release, the 1985 Audi Sport quattro from the AMAG Classic collection is the first car to be powered by solar gasoline from Synhelion's DAWN industrial plant in Jülich, Germany. AMAG CEO Helmut Ruhl was at the wheel.

The DAWN plant in Jülich converts solar energy into process heat at 1200 degrees Celsius. Using this heat, a thermochemical reactor converts biogenic carbon sources, such as agricultural waste, and water into synthetic drop-in fuels. Synhelion thus produces almost CO2-neutral solar kerosene, gasoline and diesel.

Synhelion's solar fuel has already been used in a motorcycle ride and in refueling a steamship. The drive of the Audi Sport quattro took place during the Supercar Owners Classic Andermatt and is now the third application of the fuel in the transportation sector. "This is an important milestone - not only for Synhelion, but for sustainable mobility as a whole. We have shown for the first time that solar gasoline can power a car under real-life conditions," said Phillip Furler, co-CEO and co-founder of Synhelion, in the press release. 

Synhelion will now scale up production of the fuel for wider use at the DAWN plant in Jülich and further expand its activities. ce/yes

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