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Few industrial chemical processes have a history as winding as that of the Fischer–Tropsch (FT) synthesis, which was reported by Franz Fischer and Hans Tropsch1 100 years ago in Brennstoff-Chemie. This catalytic process converts syngas — a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen gas — into hydrocarbons. Initially used to synthesize liquid fuels from coal, it now holds promise as a way to make hydrocarbons, including aviation fuel, from renewable sources of carbon.

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doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-026-00808-1

References

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Competing Interests

The author declares no competing interests.

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100 years of synthetic fuels