Link To Patent Info
The intellectual property was generated by a Director, David Van Alstyne and his then 5 year old daughter, Laylah. The methods and system were developed at a kitchen table in the beautiful village of Johnshaven, Scotland. The ideas stemmed from the notion that any technology would always be subordinate to the genius of the organism itself. The system would emmulate the best qualities of a natural environment; nurturing the microorganisms while allowing them to act and react in a normal way.
The initial experiments involved a symbiotic digester and photobioreactor for the production of ethanol and biofuels and other co-produts. The designs allow maximum efficiency of light, reduced size of components relative to other systems and low component costs. The system design permits harvesting the denser colonies thereby reducing the production and energy costs typically associated with algaculture.
Laylah had some particularly useful ideas regarding panel configuration and a system for increasing carbon dioxide exposure and internal surface cleaning of the units. She also came up with the configuration of the pallet mounted system.
The applications have a priority date in 2007 and are now published; see the link to the application on the IP page.
There is a desire within the organisation to collaborate and cross-license with other parties, including competitors and academic institutions.