SBIR-STTR Award

The synthesis of ammonia through nitrogen fixation is a vital component to all plant life and the world economy as a fertilizer and commodity chemical. The global industial production of ammonia exceeded 140MM tons in 2009 and is expected to grow to 160MM tons by 2020. Most ammonia,>90% is synthesized through the Haber-Bosch processThe Haber-Bosch process produces more than 90% of the industrial ammonia in the world and is energy intensive requiring high temperatures and pressures. Fulcrum Bioscience proposes to develop an electrosynthetic process to produce ammonia that uses electrocatalyzed biofilms of mutated cyanobacteria at 1 atm and 25°C. This process has been demonstrated at a laboratory-scale to increase ammonia production above basal rates.

The Haber-Bosch process is the dominant industrial method for nitrogen fixation in the world, with production exceeding 140MM tons in 2009. This process of converting nitrogen and hydrogen to ammonia is one of the great scientific achievements in the modern world. However, Haber-Bosch process is energy intensive requiring pressures >150 bar and temperatures >400? C to achieve 8-15% efficiency. In the Phase I project, Fulcrum BioScience demonstrated a nitrogen fixation process utilizing a bioelectrocatalyed biofilm with comparable efficiency at standard conditions. In this Phase II project, Fulcrum BioScience will develop the technology into a sub-scale prototype unit which requires only electricity, water and air. This effort includes optimization of the operating conditions, biological nitrogen fixing mechanism, biofilm stability and product extraction. A test stand that accommodates both biofilm growth and maintenance and electrochemical stimulation will be designed and built. By the end of the Phase II, a sub-scale prototype unit will be fabricated that generates ammonia at a commercially viable rate under standard conditions.

Keywords:
Ammonia, Biofilm, Cyanobacteria, Bioelectrocatalyzed, Haber-Bosch