Company
Portfolio Data
Back to Company SearchGREENTECHNOLOGIES, L.L.C.
UEI: L6DAUMLFVBK5
Number of Employees: 7
HUBZone Owned: No
Woman Owned: Yes
Socially and Economically Disadvantaged: Yes
SBIR/STTR Involvement
Year of first award: 2015
2
Phase I Awards
1
Phase II Awards
50%
Conversion Rate
$198,169
Phase I Dollars
$649,875
Phase II Dollars
$848,044
Total Awarded
Awards
New reactive mineral layer coating technology for the production of biobased enhanced efficiency fertilizers
Amount: $649,875 Topic: 8.4
Project SummaryBiobased fertilizers are an under-utilized plant nutrient resource. Recycled biobasedfertilizers help conserve natural resources through protecting water quality improving soilhealth and promoting superior nutrient management practices. However they remainunderutilized in practice due to low nutrient content nutrient imbalance safety concerns relatedto storage and physical characteristics that limit compatibility with existing application methods.GreenTechnolgoies (hereinafter "GT") has identified a new untapped market opportunityleveraging its patented coating technology paired with underutilized biosolids to address currentlimitations associated with the use of recycled biobased fertilizers. This coating can be applied tobiosolids animal waste organic granular fertilizers and even some inorganic granular fertilizersto create a sustainable and affordable line of enhanced-efficiency fertilizers.During Phase I GT demonstrated the feasibility of a patented new technology for applying amineral coating onto biosolids pellets to address these inherent barriers. Coated biosolids withhigher nitrogen content better nutrient balance and variable composition were produced andcharacterized. Furthermore GT demonstrated that the coating prevents heating and smolderingwhen the coated product is stored in bulk.This Phase builds on the success achieved during Phase I. Phase II R&D andcommercialization activities will result in a unique line of enhanced efficiency fertilizerproducts. The technology has potential to greatly expand use of biosolids and manure-basedfertilizers by fulfilling producers' needs in a cost-effective and environmentally sound manner.Having demonstrated the feasibility of the technology in Phase I GT will continue itsresearch on and development of the coating method to manufacture enhanced efficiencybiosolids and manure-based fertilizer products for commercialization in agriculture-relatedmarkets. Phase II Technical Objectives are identified specifically to overcome key technicalchallenges that must be addressed to move the product to commercialization. Objectives include:1. Develop commercial pilot manufacturing. Phase II will carry out the research needed to adaptthe batch processes demonstrated in Phase I to a Pilot scale continuous production process offive targeted coated biosolids fertilizer products.2. Demonstrate safety and quantify the physical characteristics of the new fertilizercompositions. Phase II will quantify and document self-heating characteristics of the coatedfertilizer products and compare results to uncoated bio-based organic fertilizers. Phase II willalso measure and document the physical characteristics of the coated fertilizers includinghardness bulk density and product uniformity.3. Conduct field studies of the new coated organic fertilizers. Field studies will target entrymarkets of turfgrass and citrus to demonstrate the efficacy of the new product line.4. Adapt the patented coating process to other biobased sources in particular manure-basedfertilizers.GT's commercialization plan has identified the specialty agriculture market as having thegreatest potential for market entry. The commercialization strategy will take advantage of GT'sestablished presence in the biosolids fertilizer industry by engaging its current distributionpartners providing immediate access to turfgrass citrus and related horticulture markets.Commercialization efforts will benefit from early product availability as a result of commercialpilot manufacturing putting the products in the hands of early adopters. The proposal includesletters of commitment from several current GT customers. Longer term commercializationactivities will establish strategic partnerships and licensing opportunities expanding applicationof the technology.
Tagged as:
SBIR
Phase II
2022
USDA
New Reactive Mineral Layer Coating Technology For The Production of Biobased Enhanced Efficiency Fertilizers
Amount: $99,780 Topic: 8.4
Project SummaryBiobased fertilizers are an under-utilized plant nutrient resource.Although recycledbiobased enhanced efficiency fertilizers help conserve natural resources through protecting waterquality improving soil health and promoting superior nutrient management practices keyfactors leading to their underutilization include low nutrient content nutrient imbalance safetyconcerns related to storage and lack of compatibility with established application methods.GreenTechnologies (hereinafter "GT") proposes to develop a patented new technology forapplying a mineral coating onto biobased pellets to address these inherent barriers to expandeduse of biosolids and manure-based fertilizers that will result in a unique line of enhancedefficiency fertilizer products fulfilling agricultural producers' needs in a cost-effective andenvironmentally sound manner.GT's Phase I technical objectives and work plan include: 1) Demonstrate the feasibility of anew coating process and show it is scalable and generalizable to a pallet of enhanced efficiencyfertilizers.2) Establish a range of mineral enhanced coatings with controllable composition thatwill satisfy anticipated applications.Coatings will be targeted to fill a range of needs includingenhancing essential macro and micronutrient content and overcoming safety concerns byreducing combustibility; 3) Analyze successful coatings for their physical and chemicalcharacteristics. Optical and electron microscopy analyses together with X-ray diffraction will beused to determine physical attributes such as thickness and uniformity and whether the coatingsbond strongly to the biosolid particles.Standard chemical analyses and microanalyses will beconducted to determine composition of the coated fertilizers; and 4) Demonstrate enhancedperformance of the new coating technology relative to uncoated biosolid fertilizer.The nutrientrelease profiles of the coated biosolids will be evaluated to demonstrate the process adds benefitrelative to uncoated biosolid pellets.GT's proposed mineral layer coating technology will expand on the capabilities of existingtechnologies by providing for even greater flexibility in nutrient content and ratios providing formore efficient release of nutrients and solving the problems associated with physicalcharacteristics such as bulk density and combustibility inherent in biobased fertilizers. At theconclusion of this project GT envisions utilizing the mineral layer coating technology tomanufacture and market an innovative line of enhanced efficiency biobased fertilizer productsfor commercialization in agricultural and specialty fertilizer markets.
Tagged as:
SBIR
Phase I
2021
USDA
Phosphorus Removal and Recovery through Newly Developed Adsorption Technology
Amount: $98,389 Topic: 14-NCER-4A
Much attention has been focused of late on phosphorus pollution and algae blooms. However, the problems of phosphorus mining and consumption are much more complex and can be categorized into two distinct areas of concern: (1) phosphorus’ critical role in food production and the dwindling supply of phosphate rock reserves; and (2) the mining and use of phosphate and the environmental impact of phosphate runoff and leaching. The environmental problem that this SBIR program addresses is the need for the development of technologies for sustainable phosphorus removal, recovery and conversion into reusable phosphorus products. Enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR) and chemical precipitation are the two most widely employed phosphorous removal methods. However, these technologies struggle in reducing phosphorous concentrations below algal growth limits and generally require infrastructure that limits their use to large installations. In contrast, adsorption technology has the ability to effectively remove phosphorus from dilute waste streams to levels below algal growth limits. Furthermore, adsorption methods require less infrastructure than other methods so they can be used locally, at the point of generation, thereby affording alternative approaches for limiting phosphorous entry into the environment. GreenTechnologies intends to develop prototype phosphate adsorption systems that will be able to treat wastewater or phosphate-rich runoff on scales of several hundred gallons/day to tens of thousands of gallons/day. The technology, which is the intellectual property of the University of Florida and which has been optioned by GreenTechnologies, has demonstrated the high affinity and selectivity for phosphate. The phosphate can be released by treatment with added base, regenerating the adsorbent and allowing for nutrient recovery, thereby reducing the capital and operating costs of phosphorus recovery, which has been cost prohibitive for application in a number of industries. The adsorption technology can be used in phosphate filters, batch reactors, or other phosphate sequestration tools. Commercial applications for phosphate filters include municipal water and wastewater treatment for removal of phosphorus in waste streams, removal of phosphorus from animal waste streams to reduce runoff and leaching related to agricultural operations, filtration of golf course water hazards where eutrophication and phosphorus pollution often run rampant, and smaller niche markets such as the aquarium and pool industry to control algal build up. The recovered phosphorus will be commercialized and marketed as a fertilizer for resale in already established fertilizer markets for crop production. On a global scale, the monetary value of fully exploiting nutrient recovery opportunities is estimated to be $6 billion, with potential phosphorus recovery accounting for $4.2 billion (Algeo and O’Callaghan, 2012). Economic opportunity in conjunction with environmental concerns provides strong motivations for the development and refinement of reliable and effective phosphate filter technology. Potential investors and commercial partners include private equity firms focused on green technology, existing equipment manufacturers already established in the wastewater treatment industry and private/public partnerships (PPPs). According to the EPA, phosphorus pollution from municipal wastewater discharges, runoff from agricultural operations, and other sources is on track to becoming one of the most expensive and arduous environmental challenges of the future (EPA 2011). Over the next 20 years, phosphorus recovery is projected to become a widespread and established practice throughout industrialized nations (Sartorius, Von Horn, and Tettenborn, 2012). Commercialization of the innovative adsorption technology would culminate in a scenario where phosphorus can be sequestered from the environment and recycled by incorporating the recovered material into environmentally friendly, slow release fertilizer products. Adsorption technology is capable of removing phosphorus from both dilute and concentrated waste streams resulting in effluent water that easily meets or exceeds quality requirements in a wide range of applications and treatment scales. Markets for such technology include the industrial and municipal wastewater treatment industry, the agricultural industry, and the aquarium and pool industry and further markets such as filtration of golf course water hazards and privately owned lakes and ponds. The value of these markets totals in excess of $50 billion per year. Increasing regulatory pressures is one of the most influential catalysts behind the growing interest and demand for phosphate filtration devices. Cost savings from reduced maintenance and repair expenditures, a multi-million dollar expense each year, cost savings from the utilization of recycled material and goodwill stemming from investments in environmentally sustainable practices are additional motivations prompting the demand for adsorption technology. Laboratory tests have shown the adsorbent to be highly effective, reducing phosphate concentrations from 5-10 mg/L to 0.005 mg/L in test batch reactions, and to be reusable. Major barriers to development currently include lack of data at larger scales and with non-synthetic wastewaters. A functional prototype capable of demonstrating operation at larger scales is needed as a stepping stone to commercialization of a product based on these adsorption principles. To this end, a fluidized bed reactor utilizing the new adsorbent will be developed as part of this project to test performance. This reactor will then be used to determine critical parameters for optimization, such as breakthrough capacity for phosphorus adsorption, hydraulic retention time, flow velocity and particle sizes for optimal phosphorus removal. A combination of synthetic and natural wastewaters will be used to determine performance under the possible conditions required for specific markets. Regeneration of the adsorbent must also be assessed prior to commercialization, and will be performed by dilute washing with sodium hydroxide. The amount of sodium hydroxide necessary to clean the resin surface will be determined and reported, as the chemical inputs are critical for a complete life cycle analysis and cost analysis of the process. The capacity of the filter after several subsequent regeneration cycles will be monitored to assess feasibility of the device for commercialization. Recovery of the phosphorus from the regeneration solution will be explored using chemical precipitation as a means for conserving phosphorus resources. Compared with the prevalent technologies available for removing phosphorus today, this new technology removes a significantly larger portion of phosphorus from incoming effluent. Even the most stringent water quality phosphorus limits can easily be met using this technology. Compared with EBCR and chemical precipitation methods, this adsorption process requires less infrastructure and a smaller footprint, making it a viable technology even for niche applications and smaller water treatment operations where traditional water treatment methods would be prohibitive. In contrast to currently available ion exchange technologies, the new adsorption technology is highly selective towards phosphate, significantly improving removal efficiency and allowing it to be used in a broader range of contaminated water types. It is also resistant to chemical attack, allowing for multiple regeneration cycles with reduced loss of capacity compared with other types of ion exchange resins. As an added benefit, phosphorus removed from the contaminated water can be recovered from the regeneration solution and used as a valuable fertilizer. Overall, the new adsorbent technology will provide a complement to entrenched technologies by providing phosphorous removal and recovery at locations and on scales that are not now effectively served. Furthermore, it could be used in series with current technologies to meet increasingly stringent effluent phosphorous levels.
Tagged as:
SBIR
Phase I
2015
EPA