The ClearFlame solution

Diesel fuel consumption accounts for approximately 26 percent of overall CO₂ emissions from the U.S. transportation sector. While electric powertrains face significant barriers for heavy-duty applications, ClearFlame’s technology using low-soot renewable fuels can meet heavy-duty performance requirements while reducing lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions by nearly 61% more than electric vehicles.

CTO Julie Blumreiter and CEO BJ Johnson co-founded ClearFlame in 2016, after dedicating their doctoral research at Stanford University to transformative solutions that make pragmatic bottom-line sense while also achieving carbon reduction goals.

“We are gaining significant momentum with our technology that heavy-duty equipment users can deploy to more quickly and affordably to meet critical environmental, social and governance (ESG) targets.

Federal Department of Energy funding moved us from concept to patent. Series A funding propelled us from patent to pilot. Our Series B investment, with the support of Mercuria can accelerate us from pilot to proven product in multiple markets, starting with long-haul trucks.”

BJ Johnson, CEO & co-founder, ClearFlame Engine Technologies

Clean fuels matter

While ClearFlame’s technology is fuel adaptable and can operate on a range of clean-burning liquid fuels, its current engines are running on ethanol, which, in the US, offers the infrastructure needed to drive rapid scalability.

In addition to being widely available across America – more than 17 billion gallons annually – ethanol is a much greener fuel compared to diesel. According to Argonne National Laboratory’s GREET model, ethanol reduces lifecycle CO2 by 40-50 percent compared to diesel and it is also ripe for additional decarbonization. As new process efficiencies such as on-site carbon capture at ethanol plants and improved farming practices become more widespread, they will contribute to carbon intensity reduction and can ultimately result in carbon negativity.

In addition to ethanol, ClearFlame’s solution can also be powered by green methanol, a renewable fuel that offers rapid scalability and multiple renewable pathways globally.

The road ahead

For its pilot testing, ClearFlame’s technology has been retrofitted onto a Cummins 500hp, 15L heavy-duty engine, commonly used for long-haul truck and off-highway applications. Last year, the company named Reviva as its initial engine remanufacturing partner, and Vander Haag’s, Inc. as the vehicle integrator, who will reinstall the ClearFlame-enabled engines into trucks.

Four ClearFlame trucks have been running with our partners, and are continuing to accumulate road miles. Additional pilots are scheduled for the second half of 2023 with five of the ten largest fleet operators in North America. It is also exploring partnerships and applications for the mining, agriculture, and power generation sectors. ClearFlame expects to achieve commercialization of its engine modification technology as a retrofit solution by the end of this year and is currently working with the EPA to achieve all environmental approvals.

Mercuria was an early adopter of various environmental products in its portfolio and has committed more than fifty percent of all new investments to the energy transition. The strategic investment that Mercuria has made in ClearFlame reflects the company’s continued commitment to renewable fuels as part of the energy transition and the belief that ClearFlame’s technology can economically decarbonize the heavy-duty industry by utilizing the existing liquid fueling infrastructure.

“The effort to achieve a sustainable clean energy and fossil-free future has to be inclusive and comprehensive,”

“With partners like Mercuria, our innovation can help drive forward rapid decarbonization of heavy-duty industries, meeting tomorrow’s climate goals today.” 

Julie Blumreiter, CTO & co-founder, ClearFlame Engine Technologies