Technology
AGATE Conversion and Biochemical Recovery Technology
Alternatives to petroleum have been pursued for several decades but have failed to address the larger reality of our petroleum addiction. These ventures have largely been economically unsuccessful because oil was cheap and abundant, and their technologies required a homogenous feedstock. The requirement of a single input to guarantee a single, low margin output (flawed, classic industrial thinking) was one of the factors for the recent failure of first generation biofuels.
Blue Marble Energy’s AGATE (Acid, Gas, and Ammonia Targeted Extraction) technology utilizes modified anaerobic fermentation (like brewing beer) and non-GMO bacterial consortia to produce biochemicals, biomethane, biohydrogen, and nitrogen compounds. BME scientists encourage bacterial conjugation between select strains that specialize in the breakdown of different feedstocks. The conditioning of these consortia creates flexible and resilient bacterial cultures that perform well in high nitrogen environments and can withstand shocks to the system (such as changes in pH, temperature, and feedstock). This allows AGATE to process nearly any organic biomass: food waste, yard waste, spent brewery grain, algae, milfoil, corn silage, etc. AGATE can handle both fresh and wet feedstock, and can be adjusted to meet changing economic opportunities and market needs.