A team of researchers at the University of Oxford has revealed a cost-effective and efficient process of producing jet fuel from carbon dioxide.

This discovery means that one day we could take a holiday on the other side of the globe without the associated guilt of a large carbon footprint.

Forbes reports that the team including chemists Benzhen Yao and Tiancun Xiao, and led by professor of chemistry Peter Edwards successfully converted CO2 gas directly into jet fuel using an inexpensive iron-base catalyst. 

The Oxford researchers now believe that their low-cost method could make emission-free jet fuel more competitive with traditional fossil fuels.

“As you can imagine, we are really excited about these results and the impact they will have on sustainable aviation fuel,” researcher Benzhen Yao told Forbes.com. “Under the pressure of climate change, our discovery will contribute significantly to worldwide sustainable fuel production processes.”

Yao said that the method involves a small number of processes that always leads to higher efficiency and lower cost. 

In function, this fuel is identical to fuels used today in the aviation industry.

Although the aviation industry suffered greatly throughout the coronavirus pandemic, climate campaigners question the viability of large-scale air travel.

They say that passenger flights are simply not compatible with emission targets.

Perhaps the invention of these Oxford scientists proves them wrong.