Going Against the Promise to End Oil Dependency, Experts Claim Synthetic Gasoline Pollutes as Much as Regular Gasoline

Various Entities in the Automotive Sector Have Claimed That Synthetic Gasoline Is Cleaner Compared to Petroleum Derivatives. However, Recently Studies by Experts Have Found That Synthetic Fuel Pollutes Just Like Regular Gasoline

Presented as another solution to electric vehicles, synthetic fuels may not be as sustainable as advertised. This is the conclusion of some tests conducted by the European publication Transport & Environment (T&E). According to the analysis, new emissions tests showed that vehicles powered by synthetic gasoline emit roughly the same amount of NOx as models using petroleum-derived fuels. In summary, synthetic gasoline is chemically similar to regular gasoline and diesel and has been presented by the automotive and fossil fuel supply industry as a way to prolong the use of combustion cars amid the energy transition.

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Use of Synthetic Gasoline Will Not Have a Significant Impact on Reducing Pollutants

However, converting clean energy into fuels that do not utilize petroleum is a process that incurs significant efficiency losses; moreover, the production cost is very high, and it has now been discovered that despite the entire process, synthetic gasoline is not as clean as it seems.

T&E concludes that the use of petroleum-free gasoline in vehicles will not lead to a significant reduction in gases that cause air quality problems in cities. Emissions from a car using petroleum-derived gasoline and three different mixtures of synthetic gasoline were compared in laboratory tests.

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Essentially, a model running on synthetic fuel emits high levels of toxic NOx in the same proportion as cars with regular gasoline engines. Furthermore, when considering the standard E10 gasoline in the European Union, synthetic gasoline releases three times more ammonia and carbon monoxide, according to the research organization IFP Energies Nouvelles.

Production of Synthetic Gasoline Is Less Efficient Than Electric Car Energy

According to the analysis, the automotive sector’s proposals to make room for and incorporate synthetic fuels into the CO2 emissions targets for cars sold in Europe will increase final costs for motorists.

Thus, driving a model that uses synthetic gasoline rather than regular gasoline will cost €10,000 more than a similar electric car over a five-year period.

Finally, the manufacturing of fuels that do not use petroleum has much lower efficiency than electric car energy. Achieving a 10% market penetration of new cars running on synthetic gasoline instead of electrifying them will require 23% more electricity from clean sources, according to an independent T&E study.

Electric Cars Are the Best Option for Sustainability

Petroleum-free fuels have lost the race for sustainable mobility; however, they never came close. Battery electric vehicles offer drivers the cleanest, most accessible, and efficient solution for decarbonization, while synthetics are more suitable for airplanes, where electrification is still not an option.

While brands like Mercedes-Benz have already announced that this type of fuel is not part of their plans to reduce emissions, manufacturers like Porsche, although betting on electric vehicles, have been investing in the production of synthetics.