BOSTON, MA, Oct. 24, 2014 -- Cambrian Innovation, a water and bioenergy technology provider, recently won a prestigious contract from the Department of Defense (DOD) and another two from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to further develop biotechnologies to dramatically improve water treatment, testing and remediation. The contracts will allow Cambrian to harness biotechnology to improve water management.
The NIH and DOD awarded Cambrian $450,000 for three Phase-I contracts, bringing the total contract funding the company has received from both departments to $1.6 million to date. Upon successful completion of the first phase, the company has the opportunity to receive an additional $3 million between 2015 and 2016.
The DOD has set ambitious net-zero and alternative energy goals for the Army and Navy to achieve by 2020. By harnessing the renewable bioenergy released during the water treatment process, Cambrian's packaged, bio-electrochemical technology reduces the energy intensity, installation costs and footprint for wastewater treatment systems -- expanding access to clean water and reliable, independent energy sources.
The NIH awarded Cambrian the other two contracts for projects aimed at treating contamination in groundwater. The first will enable the company to treat contamination from the petroleum industry while simultaneously generating renewable biogas for electricity generation. The second will build on Cambrian's existing sensor platform with a rapid-response, field-capable arsenic sensor for groundwater. Current arsenic measurement technologies often require toxic substances; Cambrian's method is based on biology and does not generate any hazardous waste.
Cambrian's core technology has already been commercialized at industrial scale in the EcoVolt product, and these contracts will help develop the next generation of systems capable of extracting even more clean electricity from wastewater at scale. The two NIH grants are classified as the BTEX Contaminated Groundwater Remediation by Bio-Electrochemical Systems (Grant Number: R43ES024664) and the Rapid Field Testing Kit for Determining Arsenic Contamination in Groundwater (Grant Number: R43ES024628).
See also: "Cambrian Innovation named 2015 Technology Pioneer for innovative bioelectric solution"
About Cambrian Innovation
Cambrian Innovation develops biotechnology solutions that extract energy from water. Spun out of MIT in 2006, Cambrian has scaled and validated its proprietary bioelectric technology across several solutions with partners ranging from NASA and the Department of Defense to the National Science Foundation and Clos du Bois Winery. Cambrian's flagship technology, EcoVolt, enables the food and beverage industry to cut water and energy costs by simultaneously treating wastewater and generating energy. Winner of Artemis Top 50 Water Award and the SXSW Eco Innovation Award, Cambrian is headquartered in Boston, Mass. For more information, visit www.cambrianinnovation.com.
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