The Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program, authorised by the United States Congress under the Energy Policy Act of 2005, requires fuel that is sold in the U.S. to contain a certain percentage of renewable fuels. This was done to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and reliance on foreign oil, while incentivising the development of the country's renewable fuels sector. Shell Catalysts & Technologies offers its customers solutions to create renewable jet and diesel fuel, as well as other low-carbon fuel alternatives.
The Shell Renewable Refining Process is one such solution that takes renewable feedstocks, such as vegetable and animal-based oils, and upgrades them to products such as renewable diesel, sustainable aviation fuel or renewable naphtha. This is an important technology because it can produce renewable biofuels from replenishable feedstocks that reduce the quantity of CO2 emissions compared to fossil-based fuels.
Co-processing, another option for complying with the Renewable Fuel Standard program, uses existing hydrotreaters to process renewable feedstocks in blends of up to 10% without significant revamps.
