Electrochemistry
Liquid Light's core technology is centered on low-energy catalytic electrochemistry to convert CO2 to multi-carbon chemicals. It is backed by more than 100 patents and applications, and extends to multiple chemicals with large existing markets, including ethylene glycol, propylene, isopropanol, and methyl-methacrylate.
Liquid Light's investors include VantagePoint Capital Partners, BP Ventures, Chrysalix Energy Ventures, and Osage University Partners.
Pyrolysis
Cool Planet is commercializing a technology to create green fuels and soil amendments in a way that can change the world for good. Their green fuels are chemically identical to fossil fuels and can be blended into the current fuel supply without sacrificing performance or increasing prices at the pump while their CoolTerra® products sequester carbon and deliver transformative benefits to industries as diverse as agriculture, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals. With technology that allows them to build smaller, significantly less expensive facilities closer to biomass feedstock, they can expand rapidly, achieve lower scale-up risk and continuously innovate and improve with each distributed facility.
Cool Planet's strategic investors include BP, Google Ventures, Energy Technology Ventures, and the Constellation division of Exelon.
Portfolio
Fermentation
ZeaChem has developed a novel fermentation biorefinery platform capable of producing both chemicals and fuels C5 and C6 sugars with an approach that leapfrogs the yield and carbon dioxide losses associated with traditional and cellulosic based processes.
ZeaChem's patented process to acetic and propionic Acid offers the highest yield, at the lowest cost, with the lowerst carbon footprint of any known biorefining method. Incorporated in 2002 is headquartered in Boardman, Oregon where it operates a 450,000 liter biorefinery and research institute.
They are currently partnering with other startups to bring sustainable chemicals to market faster and cheaper.
Computational Biology
Arzeda harnesses the power of computational and synthetic biology to create new enzymes and chemical products that can compete on perform-ance, cost and sustainability.compete in organic acids, amino acids, and fuels.
Arzeda’s proprietary synthetic biology platform leverages new advances in protein design and computing to develop the complex genetic instructions required to build highly-customized proteins and enzymes. These instructions are then inserted into the DNA of yeast or similar microorganisms, transforming them into “cell factories” that harness the process of fermentation to produce a wide range of industrial molecules. Capitalizing on ever-expanding cloud computing power, the platform can pick successful protein sequence combinations from trillions of possibilities, which are then validated and optimized in Arzeda’s laboratory.
Portfolio
Acquired by
Synthetic Biology
Green Earth Institute Co. Ltd has developed a novel fermentation platform featuring growth-arrested Coryneform bacteria strains that achieves near theoretical maximums of chemical production for valuable specialty chemicals. Their strain incorporate pentose transport (including arabinose) and extremely high tolerance to the classic cellulosic inhibitors and integrated a pentose transportto compete in organic acids, amino acids, and fuels.
Green Earth Institute is currently going to market with their first strain producing L-Alanine with a strategic partner. GEI is a Tokyo-based startup from the Research Institute of Innovative Technology for the Earth (RITE) founded in 2011 by Dr. Hideki Yukawa.