Gevo, Inc. (Englewood, Colo.) announced that it has been awarded U.S. Patent No. 12,486,207 B2 from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The patent broadens protections for different catalyst combinations and explicitly protects the use of Ethanol-to-Olefins (“ETO”) technology to produce fuels.
Gevo is developing ETO with partner LG Chem, Ltd. to deploy Gevo’s next-generation ETO process for renewable chemical applications and with Axens and IFP Energies nouvelles (IFPEN) for fuel applications. The patented process produces light olefins from ethanol and can convert those olefins into transportation fuels using commercially proven Alcohol-to-Jet (ATJ) technologies. Olefins can be used to make cost-effective renewable chemical building blocks such as bio-propylene. ETO technology continues to advance and is expected to deliver up to 35% lower capital and operating costs compared to current technologies.
“We are actively developing the most efficient pathways to convert ethanol to fuels and chemicals,” said Dr. Paul Bloom, president of Gevo. “The effort by our team to secure this patent expands our proprietary technology position and enhances a pathway to renewable jet fuel that is more cost-effective for Gevo and our partners. We continue to build an intellectual property portfolio that we believe will put Gevo in a cost-leadership position on ATJ for years to come.”
Gevo is expected to pioneer the deployment of its ETO technology in North America, expanding economic development and creating jobs in rural areas, while Axens is expected to provide licensing, equipment, and engineering services globally.