Clean technology
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KiOR ran out of fuel
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Advanced biofuel company, KiOR, Inc. has finally waved the white flag and filed for Chapter 11 in the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware after several months of dire warnings during earnings calls that the company has been running out of funds and still has over two hundred million dollar debts to pay to…
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AkzoNobel in cyanobacteria-based chems
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AkzoNobel has partnered with cleantech company Photanol to develop a process via Photanol’s modified cyanobacteria technology that uses light to directly convert CO2 into chemicals. The aim is to produce “green” chemical building blocks that will eventually replace raw materials AkzoNobel currently obtains from fossil-based production. AkzoNobel’s chemicals are used extensively by the chemicals, detergent,…
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Siluria bags $30m funding from Saudi Aramco
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Siluria Technologies closed a $30 million Series D financing round led by Saudi Aramco Energy Ventures (SAEV), the venture investment subsidiary of Saudi Aramco. With this initial Series D financing, Siluria has raised just under $100 million since its inception. Siluria is currently in discussions with additional strategic and financial investors to complete a total Series D…
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New catalyst converts CO2 to fuel
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Scientists from the University of Illinois at Chicago have synthesized a catalyst that improves their system for converting waste carbon dioxide into syngas, a precursor of gasoline and other energy-rich products, bringing the process closer to commercial viability. Amin Salehi-Khojin, UIC professor of mechanical and industrial engineering, and his coworkers developed a unique two-step catalytic…
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Maverick Synfuels, Petrostar in GTL JV
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There has been a significant increase in companies looking to convert methane-rich feedstock especially coming from natural gas, flare gas or even biogas (although this one is particularly expensive to do) into biofuels and chemicals. Some uses synthetic biology and others use thermochemical conversion such as gasification. Examples include Calysta Energy, Intrexon, Enerkem, Siluria, Maverick…
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Enerkem starts commercial waste-to-biofuels plant
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Enerkem officially commissioned last week its first commercial biorefinery in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, that will produce biofuels and chemicals using municipal waste. The facility, operated by Enerkem Alberta Biofuels, will have a capacity of up to 38 million liters/year initially producing biomethanol. A module converting the biomethanol into advanced ethanol will be added by the…
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Siluria partners with Linde on ethylene tech
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Siluria Technologies and The Linde Group have entered into a collaboration agreement based on Siluria’s oxidative coupling of methane (OCM) technology, which catalytically converts methane directly to ethylene. The companies have formed joint teams, which will fully integrate the companies’ respective technologies and collaborate through the final scale-up and demonstration of the OCM technology at the…