Waltham Technologies Inc. was launched by biotech industry veteran Una Ryan with the aim of using blue-green algae to treat wastewater. A number of other clean energy companies are also using algae to dispose of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, but Waltham Technologies’ system not only cleans wastewater of contaminants, it creates a revenue stream on the back end by yielding enzymes and waste algal biomass, which can be converted into biodiesel fuel and other products. According to the company’s website, “In a single step, the bioengineered algae recycle the waste into valuable materials such as industrial enzymes and oils for biodiesel.”
Waltham Technologies has seen initial success for its technology in the beverage industry and is reportedly testing the product with at least two Massachusetts-based breweries. The EPA estimates that beer breweries use approximately 1,500 gallons of water to produce one 31 gallon barrel of beer, with the difference being mostly wastewater. The Waltham Technologies System allows this waste to be recycled into oils for biodiesel and industrial enzymes that are used extensively to simplify material preparation and industrial cleaning.
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