Power-to-Liquid E-Fuel EROI Calculator

Benchmark synthetic e-fuel designs by translating electricity, thermal utilities, and CO₂ capture energy into an energy return on investment ratio.

Useful energy released per kilogram of finished e-fuel.
Electricity consumed by electrolysis, synthesis, and auxiliaries for each kilogram of fuel.
Steam or other thermal utilities required. Defaults to 0 when blank.
Additional energy for direct air capture or point-source CO₂ conditioning. Defaults to 0 when blank.

Screening tool. Pair with detailed process simulations before making investment decisions.

Examples

  • Fuel LHV 44 MJ/kg, electricity 18 kWh/kg, thermal 8 MJ/kg, capture 2 MJ/kg ⇒ EROI ≈ 0.59 with net energy −30.80 MJ/kg.
  • Fuel LHV 32 MJ/kg, electricity 12 kWh/kg, thermal left blank, capture 1 MJ/kg ⇒ EROI ≈ 0.72 and net energy −12.20 MJ/kg.

FAQ

Why use lower heating value (LHV)?

Power-to-liquid plants typically condense water in exhaust streams, so LHV better reflects usable energy without latent heat recovery.

How should I treat upstream hydrogen production?

Include electrolyser electricity within the electricity-per-kilogram input. If importing green hydrogen, convert its embodied energy into MJ/kg and add it under thermal or capture as appropriate.

What EROI threshold is bankable?

Current PtL pathways often yield EROI below 1.0, so bankability hinges on policy credits and offtake premiums. Use the ratio trend to compare technology improvements rather than a universal cutoff.

Additional Information

  • Result unit: EROI is dimensionless; net energy is presented in MJ/kg for mass-specific comparisons.
  • Electricity is converted to megajoules using 1 kWh = 3.6 MJ before aggregation with thermal inputs.
  • A negative net energy indicates the process consumes more energy than the finished fuel provides.

Related calculators