ABOUT THIS EPISODE
What if the world’s next breakthrough in sustainable aviation fuel started with 14,000 cows on a Uruguayan dairy farm?
In this episode of F+L Webcast, host Vicky Villena-Denton speaks with Trevor Best, CEO and co-founder of Syzygy Plasmonics — the company behind the world’s first light-driven chemical reactor and the first commercial production of SAF from biogas.
Built on more than two decades of nanophotonics research from Rice University, Syzygy’s technology uses renewable electricity and photocatalysis to convert cattle manure into ASTM-compliant, ISCC-certified sustainable aviation fuel — trade-named NovaSAF™ — with 90% lower lifecycle carbon emissions than conventional jet fuel.
Trevor walks us through the full story: a name inspired by a solar eclipse, four failed startups, 80 evaluated ideas before finding the one that refused to die, and a 4-step process that takes biogas all the way to synthetic paraffinic kerosene. He also breaks down why they chose Uruguay for NovaSAF-1, how a six-year binding offtake deal with Trafigura validates the technology, and the three-step roadmap to jet fuel price parity within a decade.
First commercial fuel is targeted for early 2028. The clock is ticking.
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