LanzaTech to partner with Mitsui on gas fermentation technology
09 June 2011
LanzaTech has signed a memorandum of understanding with Mitsui Global Strategic Studies Institute (MGSSI), part of Mitsui and Co. Ltd, for the introduction of LanzaTech’s proprietary gas fermentation technology (earlier post) throughout Mitsui. LanzaTech will concurrently execute a MOU with Mitsui & amp; Co Plant Systems Ltd (MPS)—Mitsui’s engineered plants business group.
MGSSI and MPS will play a strategic role leveraging Mitsui’s global position in a variety of industrial sectors, identifying value-added opportunities for the application of LanzaTech’s process. LanzaTech says that the commercial deployment of its technology will be accelerated by utilizing Mitsui’s portfolio of capabilities in engineering, project development, financing and product off-take contracts.
LanzaTech uses bacterial fermentation to convert carbon monoxide into fuel grade ethanol and key chemical building blocks used to make polymers, plastics and hydrocarbon fuels, including drop-in jet fuel.
Turning CO2 into ethanol is a neat trick, if they can scale this up it could help.
Posted by: SJC | 10 June 2011 at 11:52 AM
Read the last paragraph again.
Posted by: Engineer-Poet | 10 June 2011 at 02:59 PM
First let me cross link it to Bacterial enzyme converts carbon monoxide to hydrocarbons, http://www.greencarcongress.com/2011/05/seefledt-20110529.html
If we look at it from a systems perspective, it´s another way of fixing carbon into hydrocarbons, competing with natural "calvin cycle" pathway used by plants and photosynthesis (first step to sugars, starch, ethanol, ...).
This is not the source of primary energy (where the CO comes from?), but a way to transform matter into more useful forms.
To evaluate the process is valuable one would have to assess the whole biorefining landscape to compare with other possible pathways, their cost and tradeoffs.
This may be an opportunistic approach where otherwise polluting CO waste is converted into useful fuel solving two problems at once, even if not cost effective in other situations.
Posted by: CelsoS | 10 June 2011 at 03:32 PM
oops ... to evaluate IF the process is valuable ...
Posted by: CelsoS | 10 June 2011 at 03:34 PM