Solugen joins with ADM to expand biobased chemical production

Abstract

As consumer pressure and government policies push chemical firms to reduce the use of petroleum feedstocks, the green chemistry company Solugen is planning to significantly increase production of its biobased chemicals with a new facility. The new plant will be located next to an ADM complex in Marshall, Minnesota, that produces dextrose, which Solugen will use as a feedstock. Its process coproduces hydrogen peroxide and the organic acids glucaric and gluconic acid. Solugen CEO Gaurab Chakrabarti says the companies will also work together to develop new products and new markets. “ADM has a lot of customers that we could sell the glucaric acid products into,” he says. Chakrabarti cofounded Solugen in 2016 to commercialize an enzyme he discovered while in an MD-PhD program. The company has since raised more than $640 million from investors. At an existing facility in Houston, Solugen produces about 12,000 metric tons (t) per year of