Symbios Technologies

current Symbios technologies projects

Advanced Integrated Biorefinery

250,000 gallon per year demonstration plant in Pacific Northwest

Scaling to 600 ton per day, 25 million gallon per year commercial facility

Production of cellulosic ethanol and biobased chemicals

Leading advanced hybrid biochemical and thermochemical technology

Highest yield in industry

Hybrid poplar and other biomass feedstocks

Construction complete in 2011 on $75 million project

Symbios sourced $25 million DOE grant funding for project construction

Developed technical proposal, work plan, and financial model

Technology and engineering review

Hog Manure Biogas Waste to Energy Facility Study

Client: USDA NRCS Northeast Colorado Resource Conservation & Development
Conducted Colorado Dept. of Agriculture-funded feasibility study, 2010
Engineering, cost analysis, carbon footprint, carbon markets, and economic analysis
$4 million, 283 kW power plant
Opportunity to improve profitability, water footprint, and carbon footprint of 3 hog farms
Financial modeling including scenario analysis and sensitivity analysis

Symbios Lignocellulosic Biomass Membrane Reactor™

Portfolio technology developed by Symbios Technologies in collaboration with Colorado State University
Proprietary membrane reactor technology that would enable cost-competitive production of cellulosic ethanol and related biofuels and other high-value bioproducts
Prepared and submitted Phase I STTR proposal to DOE in collaboration with Colorado State University
Strong commercial partnership interest
Technology would hydrolyze cellulose at high speed and low cost
Eliminates rate-limiting and costly enzymes, reducing the biomass pretreatment and hydrolysis process from three steps (pretreatment/saccharification/co-fermentation) to one step, which would allow the process to proceed 100x faster than the enzymatic hydrolysis process
Would enable the utilization of diverse feedstocks and greatly improve the economics of producing higher alcohols such as biobutanol and next-generation cellulosic biofuels such as biogasoline and HMF, a biofuel and chemical precursor for bio-plastics and bio-paints
Project success would significantly impact the nation’s ability to rapidly meet the federal goal of 60 billion gallons of biofuels usage per year

DOE Phase I and II SBIR for Algae Oil Extraction and Refining

Client: Colorado R&D company and technology developer
Techno-economic modeling for Phase I SBIR, 2008
Experimental design and proprietary process modeling and cost estimation software
Symbios’ Phase I report won Phase II award for client
Phase II scale-up studies and system design, 2009-2010

Integrated Solar Thermal Electrical Generating Station Design

Client: solar thermal power startup
Integrated solar thermal with biogas turbine power generation
Techno-economic modeling and system design, 2008
Proprietary process modeling and cost estimation software
Provisional patent application filed and DOE proposal submitted

Evaluation of Data Storage Energy Efficiency Incentives

Client: VC-funded energy-efficient data storage equipment manufacturer
Investigated carbon offset markets, utility incentives, state and federal incentives for energy-efficient data centers, 2008
Calculated percent savings on installed costs for various incentives
Prepared report for client
Waste to Energy Distributed Generation Projects

Working with major municipalities, food processing companies, financing partners, and industry partners, Symbios Technologies is developing a number of Clean Energy Park projects in the Western U.S. utilizing its “industrial symbiosis” approach. Industrial symbiosis is a new paradigm in industrial production and waste management. In the old paradigm, fossil fuel resources are used by the animal and food production industries in a linear or “cradle to grave” model that produces large amounts of waste and greenhouse gases (GHG):

In the new industrial symbiosis paradigm, waste products are recycled for energy and fertilizer production in a resource recovery or “cradle to cradle” model, resulting in less waste, reduced use of fossil fuels, cleaner surface and ground water, and reduced greenhouse gas emissions:

Rocky Mountain Innovation Initiative
By Brian Larson / Jeff Nuttall (2009-10-08)
GREELEY, CO (KUNC)

Listen to the interview from KUNC

Greeley Clean Energy Park

The City of Greeley is dedicated to creating the nation’s first fully integrated, waste to energy facility utilizing biogas production and solar power generation, while also considering the future possibility of adding research and demonstration capabilities for cellulosic and algae bio-fuels refining, to produce clean electric power and fuels for industrial processes. The intended long-term result is a self-contained, zero-waste, greenhouse-gas-reducing, 100% Greeley Clean Energy Park (GCEP). The GCEP will spur additional economic growth by becoming the premier research and demonstration facility for integrated, clean energy parks around the world and a test bed for next-generation agriculture-based clean technology development.

Symbios Technologies was chosen as the contractor to complete the feasibility study and write the report through the City of Greeley’s RFP process. Symbios has completed the report and it is available upon request. Please email us from the Contact Us page if you would like to receive the report.