Joule awarded patents for 'fuel from sun' innovation

Joule Unlimited Technologies, which is working to produce “Liquid Fuel from the Sun,” has been awarded its first two US patents for its new ethanol production method.

The patents relate to Joule’s methods for increasing the ability of a photosynthetic microorganism to produce ethanol. According to the company, its “platform microorganism” is engineered to produce and secrete ethanol in a continuous process, converting more than 90 percent of the CO2 it consumes directly into fuel without relying on biomass feedstocks.

Using that process, Joule aims to ultimately produce 25,000 gallons of ethanol per acre per year … 10 times more than production rates for cellulosic ethanol and 100 times that for corn ethanol. Upon achieving full-scale commercial production, the company expects to produce ethanol for as little as $0.60/gallon.

Based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Joule is currently producing ethanol at pilot scale, and says it’s achieved nearly 50 percent of its ultimate productivity target in the lab.