Auburn-based Forest Concepts LLC has won a $1 million Department of Energy Small Business Innovation Research grant for the second phase of a biomass-production system.
The system makes uniform particles from wood waste, and the particles can then be used in the production of energy, according to company CEO Michael Perry.
“We are coming up with the equipment that can by used by biofuel plants,” he said Tuesday, “We’ve found a low-energy way to reduce the size of the particles. They become flowable, and can move through a system easily. By having uniform sizes, the chemistry is more efficient.”
The seven-partner company was founded in 1998 and specializes in research and development projects. Privately held, the company has 13 investors, Perry said.
So far, he said, Forest Concepts grant proposals have enjoyed a 50 percent approval rate.
The vision of the company, he said, “is to start creating innovative products from scrap wood - the millions of tons of waste wood” produced by the forestry industry.
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