The ‘aha’ moment: Krystal Wrigley

In any scientific endeavor, coming up with the idea is just the first step in the journey to a breakthrough. The finish line of innovation requires the curiosity, patience and resolve to keep working through unexpected setbacks and technical challenges.

This is especially true as ExxonMobil researchers work together on researching and developing the next generation of lower-emission transportation fuels. Reducing emissions from ships and planes and on the roads is essential to meeting climate goals, as the transportation sector accounts for nearly one-quarter of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions.

In this series, we spoke with some of ExxonMobil’s top scientists to find out what they’ve learned, what surprised them, and how they define success in the long game of scientific inquiry.

Krystal Wrigley is a Fuels Technology Chief at ExxonMobil’s Technology Center in Clinton, New Jersey. She’s spent her 16-year career as a chemical engineer for the company, beginning as a researcher and then advancing into her present role as a leader in technology strategy and product development to implementation. She has been uniquely placed to see the ways in which big ideas in the lab translate to commercial applications in the real world.

High-performance fuel has been Krystal’s area of expertise, with early work in quality testing and logistics for Formula 1 racing vehicles. Today, she focuses on lower-emission fuels for the commercial trucking, shipping and aviation sectors.

Krystal recently spoke with us about the process that leads to those breakthrough moments.

Explore more

Can ships run on biofuel?

Can ships run on biofuel?

Key takeaways:

  • The shipping industry produces around 3% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and our biofuels are helping reduce emissions in what is a hard-to-decarbonize sector.
  • Biofuels – lower-emission fuels from renewable sources such as plant and waste biomass – are important to reducing emissions in the industry.
  • In 2022 and 2023 we delivered very low sulphur fuel oil to ships in the Port of Singapore.
Expert spotlight: Brianne Kanach - from intern to advancing lower-emission fuels

Expert spotlight: Brianne Kanach - from intern to advancing lower-emission fuels

Key takeaways:

  • The American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers featured Brianne in their We Make Progress campaign, celebrating her contribution to the industry.
  • Some of the LEFs we've tested can potentially reduce lifecycle GHG emissions by 20-75% vs conventional fuels.
  • Liquid fuels can pack more energy than other options and can be used in existing vehicles.
Fueling America's future with Toyota

Fueling America's future with Toyota

Key takeaways:

  • Lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emission liquid fuels hold promise.
  • They seamlessly integrate with existing infrastructure and vehicles.
  • With supportive policy, they could complement electric vehicles.
Co-processing:Making tomorrows fuel with todays facilities

Co-processing: Making tomorrow’s fuel with today’s facilities

Key takeaways:

  • Co-processing can accelerate the path to a lower-carbon future.
  • This technology can use our existing infrastructure to produce more lower-emission fuels (LEFs).
  • With policy support, co-processing can help meet rising demand for LEFs.
Lets deliver sustainable aviation fuel  with our existing infrastructure in France

Let’s deliver sustainable aviation fuel – with our existing infrastructure in France

Three key takeaways:

  • Global air travel demand is increasing.
  • Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) presents an opportunity to reduce emissions.
  • Co-processing can help accelerate the energy transition.
Strathcona: The road to renewable fuel

Strathcona: The road to renewable fuel

Renewable fuel production is ramping up at the Strathcona refinery. With hundreds of employees and contractors, and the capacity to fill 500,000 vehicles per day, this facility could deliver more than 6 million barrels of renewable diesel per year.