In Sarnia, Ontario (ON), Bioindustrial Innovation Canada (BIC) has announced that it will work with Aduro Energy Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Aduro Clean Technologies Inc. to support the engineering and construction of a revenue-generating pilot-scale unit at the Western Sarnia-Lambton Research Park to process and demonstrate the company’s patented "Hydrochemolytic" technology.
Bioindustrial Innovation Canada (BIC) is a nationally focused not-for-profit business accelerator that provides critical strategic investment, advice, and services to business developers of clean, green, and sustainable technologies.
In 2015, BIC established the Centre for Commercialization of Sustainable Chemistry Innovation (COMM SCI) initiative, which acts as a hub for the commercialization of sustainable chemistry and bio-based innovation.
With support from the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario), BIC has developed the Ontario Bioindustrial Innovation Network (OBIN).
OBIN will continue to support BIC in providing its advice, services, knowledge, and experience to develop high-performing clusters that generate jobs, create economic value, and build clean technology companies. As part of this initiative, BIC will provide financial support, technical advice, and services to Aduro Energy Inc.
Hydrochemolytic conversion technology
Established in 2012, Aduro Energy uses hydrochemolytic’s, a highly flexible smart chemistry platform approach featuring three water-based technologies developed by the company. According to Aduro Energy, its proprietary solutions – Hydrochemolytic Plastics Upcycling (HPUTM); Hydrochemolytic Renewables Upgrading (HRUTM); and Hydrochemolytic Bitumen Upgrading (HBUTM) – leverage unique properties of water to upgrade renewable oils as well as waste plastics and rubber to higher-value products – cheaply and quickly.
The approach is significantly more environment-friendly than established alternatives like energy-intensive pyrolysis, gasification, and decades-old methods applied to petroleum. It bypasses traditional methods’ reliance on high temperatures from 400 ºC to as high as 1 100 ºC and on hydrogen produced by conversion of natural gas at between 700 ºC and 1 000 ºC.
Although hydrochemolytics operate at only 260 ºC – 390 ºC, it achieves the same benefits by activating and tuning water to beneficially transform diverse feedstocks.
Pilot at BIC
BIC will work with Aduro to support the engineering and construction of a revenue-generating pilot-scale unit at the Western Sarnia-Lambton Research Park to process and demonstrate the company’s patented Hydrochemolytic technology.
This demonstration unit will allow Aduro Energy to conduct trials, testing, and technology optimization on several feedstocks including heavy oil and end-of-life post-consumer waste polymers.
