Honeywell unveils ‘breakthrough’ biomass technology to boost SAF production 

Honeywell has introduced a new process to convert agricultural and forestry waste into renewable fuels, including sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). The US company describes it as a technological breakthrough and a major step toward lowering carbon emissions in hard-to-decarbonize industries such as aviation and shipping. 

Announced on October 28, 2025, the new Honeywell UOP (Universal Oil Products) Biocrude Upgrading process transforms inexpensive biomass feedstocks — such as wood chips, crop residues, and plant waste — into a renewable biocrude that can be refined into finished fuels. The company said the technology enables cost-effective production of “drop-in” fuels that meet existing performance and infrastructure requirements. 

Honeywell described the process as capable of producing SAF, renewable gasoline, and lower-carbon marine fuel more cheaply than most current biofuel production. The resulting biocrude can be refined at standard petroleum facilities, potentially allowing refiners to adapt portions of existing operations to produce renewable fuel without major equipment overhauls. 

“As demand for SAF continues to grow, the aviation industry is challenged by limited supplies of traditional SAF feedstocks such as vegetable oils, animal fats and waste oils,” said Ken West, President & CEO of Honeywell Energy & Sustainability Solutions. “When combined with the existing Fischer-Tropsch process, our new technology will expand the feedstock options available in the industry to sources that are more plentiful, ultimately helping improve our customers’ ability to produce SAF.”

The process begins with biomass waste — non-food organic matter such as forest trimmings, agricultural stalks, and sawmill residue. At or near collection sites, this feedstock is converted into a biocrude, a heavy renewable oil with similar handling properties to conventional crude. The biocrude is then shipped to major refineries or renewable fuel plants, where Honeywell’s upgrading modules convert it into finished products such as SAF, the company said. 

The process turns waste that would otherwise be discarded into fuel, creating a new renewable source without relying on food crops. Honeywell said its approach produces “high-yield renewable fuels” while keeping transportation costs low by enabling distributed feedstock conversion and centralized refining. 

Competition in a crowded field 

The announcement places Honeywell squarely in competition with a growing roster of renewable-fuel technology developers. Neste, based in Finland, remains the world’s leading SAF producer, using waste oils and fats as feedstock. LanzaJet, backed by LanzaTech and major airlines, has pioneered ethanol-to-jet conversion at its Freedom Pines facility in Georgia. Other competitors include Fulcrum BioEnergy, which converts municipal solid waste into synthetic crude, and Alder Fuels, which relies on forest residues and agricultural by-products. 

Honeywell’s claim of a lower-cost, modular process could differentiate it from these players, particularly if it enables refiners to add SAF capacity incrementally rather than through billion-dollar plant builds. The company emphasized that its UOP division — long a cornerstone of refining and petrochemical process technology — can deliver the new system as a prefabricated modular plant, reducing construction time and project risk. 

Honeywell already markets several renewable-fuel technologies, including Ecofining, developed jointly with Eni S.p.A., which converts fats and oils into renewable diesel and SAF; Ethanol-to-Jet (ETJ) technology, which upgrades ethanol into synthetic paraffinic kerosene; and Fischer-Tropsch Unicracking, which refines synthetic gas into liquid fuels. The new Biocrude Upgrading process, the company said, complements these existing platforms by expanding the range of usable feedstocks to include low-cost lignocellulosic biomass. 

While the company has not disclosed specific yields or lifecycle carbon data, analysts say the modular design and ability to use regional feedstocks could make the process a breakthrough for SAF scalability — a persistent challenge for the industry. Current global SAF production represents less than 1% of aviation fuel demand, hindered by high costs, limited feedstock supply, and the need for new refining capacity. 

If Honeywell’s process performs as claimed, it could give refiners and energy companies a new pathway to produce certified SAF at lower cost and higher volume, supporting airline commitments to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. The post Honeywell unveils ‘breakthrough’ biomass technology to boost SAF production  appeared first on AeroTime.

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