We've previously noted The University of Dayton(OH)'s participation in the Air Force's coal-to-jet fuel development program.
Herein a news release on the developments there.
Some excerpts:
"Phases one and two will facilitate the production of jet fuel using a process that starts with steam-reforming of methane, Ballal (Dilip Ballal, head of UDRI’s Energy and Environmental Engineering division and director of the University’s von Ohain Fuels and Combustion Center for education and research - whew! That's a title and a half ! - JtM) said. “Successful research in this area could have an added benefit if fuel producers would harness methane from landfills that would otherwise escape into the atmosphere.”"
(We have previously documented the researched potential for recovering biologically-generated methane, and other hydrocarbons, from coal mine wastes, and landfills, and documented the further potential for converting those hydrocarbons into liquid fuels. - JtM)
"With a $10-million seed grant from the Air Force Research Laboratory, the University of Dayton Research Institute will collaborate with AFRL to construct and operate the country’s first federal research facility designed to create jet fuel from coal and biomass in a program aimed at creating a viable, home-grown alternative to increasingly expensive foreign petroleum-based fuel. The award will also fund research into coal- and biomass-derived fuel technologies for greater fuel efficiency and reduced environmental impact."
"Reduced environmental impact" is, as we've been saying, a genuinely achievable benefit of coal-to-liquid fuel conversion processes.