US company aims to build ‘entirely new classes of materials’
29/04/2019
Its materials, which so far have included polyurethanes and textile finishes, are derived from oils found in microalgae. It believes these oils (or triglycerides to give them their scientific name) have so far been under-utilised in materials science, principally because they cannot be supplied on a large scale. This is due to the plants that produce them only thriving in certain conditions.
In an effort to negate this problem, Checkerspot set about trying to understand the genetic code of microalgae. It has been able to grow the algae through industrial fermentation, before feeding it sugar in order to create large amounts of oil. This makes it possible to deliver the building blocks of its materials on a commercial scale.
Its initial progress has come in the form of a performance textile wicking finish, which it markets in partnership with textile finishing specialist Beyond Surface Technology. It has also signed a joint development agreement with Japanese chemicals company DIC Corporation to create a new class of high performance polyols.
Announcing the fresh funding, Charles Dimmler, CEO and co-founder of Checkerspot, said: "We are breaking new ground at the intersection of molecular biology and materials science, and this financing will allow us to continue to build out our existing materials and products while at the same time allow us to further expand the application of these materials across multiple industries. Fundamentally, we see microalgal triglycerides as scaffolds upon which to build entirely new classes of materials.”
Image shows Scott Franklin, an expert in algae and Checkerspot’s co-founder, working on the company’s new materials at a molecular level (credit: Checkerspot).
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