As part of the plan to use more ecologically friendly engines in 2026, Formula 1 has successfully synthesised a sustainable fuel.
The pinnacle of motorsport has set out a plan to become carbon neutral by 2030, and this involves the engine emitting the carbon that was taken directly out of the atmosphere, so what is being put out is no different to what is going in.
2026 will form the next major milestone for F1 having switched over to turbo-hybrid engines in 2014.
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Synthesising the fuel is a manual process during which engineers create the fuel in such a way that it will not burn or emit any more carbon than it is fed into it.
Part of the process set to culminate in 2030 took place this season too; the fuel blend transitioned over to 90 percent fossil fuels and 10 percent ethanol.
Fuels can only be considered carbon neutral is there is no carbon involved in making the fuel itself, because the point is to ensure that there is no more carbon in the atmosphere than there was before the fuel is burned.
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A source close to F1 is quoted by the BBC as suggesting that the 2026 fuel will be “zero-emission.”
Synthetic fuels can also be used in normal road cars, and the development of sustainable fuel and technology has helped, and will continue to help inform practices on the road that help road users produce less emissions in everyday life.
Other achievements from F1 in their bid to become carbon neutral include remote broadcast operations to reduce travel, newly designed containers so that freight can be transported more efficiently, and a policy of 100% renewable energy being used in its offices.
At last year’s British Grand Prix, the sport managed its first-ever carbon neutral broadcast, which is easier in the United Kingdom given that this is where many of the sport’s operations are based.
As such, they are aiming to do the same at this weekend’s race in Silverstone.