Overview
Sustainable Fuels Initiative (SFI) is aimed at improving technology and reducing barriers to achieve widespread commercial production and utilization of sustainable, low-carbon fuels in California and beyond. SFI takes a multi-disciplinary, applied-research focused approach and collaborates with public and private stakeholders to develop, demonstrate, and deploy sustainable energy technologies.
Focus Areas:
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Sustainable Fuels Production Technologies
SFI is actively investigating thermochemical, biological, and power-to-gas pathways for the production on sustainable fuels, with particular emphasis on Renewable Natural Gas (RNG) and hydrogen. Besides production technologies, analysis also focuses on resource availability, collection and transportation challenges, economics, and commercialization potential.
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Clean Energy Deployment Pathways
SFI’s research focuses on technological and policy barriers to deploying new sustainable energy production and end use technologies, and solutions to expedite widespread adoption. SFI performs experimental and modeling work on technology choices and performance including infrastructure analysis, long term emissions forecasting, electric grid modeling, and policy analysis.
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Energy Systems Analysis
As new technology options become part of the energy mix and are deployed widely, the long-term costs and benefits of these processes must be clearly understood. Detailed analysis and evaluation of individual energy conversion processes and complex energy systems is critical for the successful development and implementation of optimal energy production and consumption strategies. SFI uses Techno-Economic Analysis (TEA), Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), electric grid modeling, and other techniques to evaluate technologies and pathways.
SFI Director
Arun Raju
More Information
Completed Research Projects
Associated Faculty
Kent Johnson
