Ohio Soybean Council, Logos Technologies to Advance Biosurfactant Production
In Virginia, Logos Technologies announced a partnership with the Ohio Soybean Council to further develop the production process of NatSurFact, an environmentally friendly biosurfactant for personal care, household and industrial cleaning products as well as other applications.
The joint project, which aims to convert hundreds of liters of soy oil into similar quantities of NatSurFact, represents a critical stage towards the commercialization of the Logos Technologies biosurfactant.
The NatSurFact product line is based on rhamnolipids, a natural combination of sugar and fat, fermented by microbes in large vats similar to those used for making beer. The biosurfactant is a strong cleanser and foaming agent, yet unlike many conventional alternatives, it is also mild on the skin and has low eco-toxicity.
Logos Technologies has been producing NatSurFact at the 10-liter scale for nearly three years and has also previously contracted with 100-400 liter toll facilities. The goal now is to take the company’s patent-pending process to an even larger toll facility and, using soy oil as a feedstock, produce the biosurfactant on the 1000-2000 liter scale.
The project with the Ohio Soybean Council is scheduled to conclude next March. After that, still larger amounts of NatSurFact will be made to further validate the process on the path to full-scale implementation. According to projections, a single production plant will use millions of bushels of soybeans each year.
Category: Research
