bio-based-chemicals
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The Fuel Startup Betting a Molecule Can Just Float Out of the Tank
Most biofuels get stuck in the same trap: make the alcohol, then spend a fortune pulling it out of the water. A four-person Houston team engineered a yeast whose product simply volatilizes away - and they think that changes the math.
Industrial Microbes (iMicrobes)
Industrial Microbes (iMicrobes) is an Alameda, California synthetic-biology company that engineers programmable microbes to turn renewable, low-carbon feedstocks - primarily ethanol and methane - into drop-in chemicals and materials such as 100% bio-based acrylic acid, acrylonitrile and carbon fiber precursors. Founded in 2014, the company aims to give chemical producers and consumer brands a cost-competitive, lower-carbon alternative to petrochemicals, and has scaled its bioprocess to a pilot bioreactor producing 10+ kg per run.