by Kirby Lindsay, posted 30 December 2014
Even great ideas require more than just a thought to make them reality, as Zack McMurry can attest.
Over four years, McMurry, a chemical engineer, and his research partner, James Smoot, a PhD microbiologist, developed a groundbreaking biofuel, made from bio-solids (a by-product of treated sewage). “This really is a community solution to a global problem,” McMurry recently observed about the liquid fuel, “energy could come from less than 100 miles away. It bridges the gap between Chevron and the guy who puts solar panels on his roof.”
Now holding two patents to EEB – one for the biofuel molecules and the other on the process of making them – McMurry and his business partner, Todd Robinson, created a Washington Social Purpose Corporation named Vitruvian Energy – based, for now, here in Fremont. Vitruvian is a great idea, and now comes the work of making it reality.
Crowd Funding Entrepreneurship
“The biggest thing right now is getting some traction,” McMurry explained, “Getting the name out there.” Part of the reason they need the name, and the product, out in the community is to find capitol to start production of the biofuel.
McMurry and Robinson have launched an Indiegogo crowd funding campaign to raise funds to build a pilot EEB production facility. The campaign will allow the community to contribute, to get behind this revolutionary process, and give support for a more sustainable, renewable energy. “I want to see it roll out as a community creating this energy,” McMurry said about Vitruvian, “to make people have a new relationship to their fuel. I think it would change the way we think about energy.”
“Crowd funding provides the opportunity for the general public to support technology and companies that might otherwise not make it. It allows the community to support something that might otherwise die,” McMurry observed, “It allows us to start a business that otherwise might not get started.”
Robinson and McMurry have created Vitruvian, deliberately, under the Washington State Social Purpose model. It is intended to be a for-profit, and socially responsible, corporation. Indiegogo will allow them to start this innovative enterprise, and gives others a chance to put their money into the kinds of businesses they want to see. “It’s like the answer for the 99%,” McMurry said, “like a political donation.”
“The start of a business is the hardest,” McMurry acknowledged. He hopes crowd funding can make it easier – lower the bar – for a whole new generation of entrepreneurs, looking to create more innovative, and sustainable, businesses that reflect societal values. “I hope that if someone has an idea, they can get support,” through crowd funding, he said, “It changes the perspective on who you are beholden to.”
The Indiegogo campaign may raise all the funds Vitruvian needs, or just some, but it is one more way of getting this new energy source the attention it needs. Creating the campaign also gave Robinson, who brings a background in start-ups, and McMurry a reason for creating their message, graphics, website, and business plan up-front. “It’s kind of a gut check,” McMurry admitted.
A Community Based Energy Source
Under the Indiegogo crowdfunding model, even if donors don’t give the whole amount, Vitruvian Energy will get the donations – only the site will take a bigger fee. If Vitruvian does takes longer to launch fully, McMurry believes in the research, and he has reason to believe that the product could be revolutionary.
“King County [Wastewater Treatment Division] is way ahead of everybody in the bio-solid world,” McMurry praised. Today, King County treats sewage, and the by-products are clean water and bio-solids. The County currently pays to have those bio-solids picked up and delivered to companies that make it into fertilizers, agricultural products, and use it in forestry projects.
Vitruvian, and EEB, will be able to transform the same bio-solids into a liquid biofuel. Through research, done in partnership with the University of Alabama, and at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (and funded by grants from the California Energy Commission and the National Science Foundation,) McMurry and his partner found that the resulting biofuel could be blended with gasoline or diesel, but it could not be used as a direct fuel for vehicles. “When we tried to use it 100% in engines,” McMurry explained, “existing [vehicular] engines required too many modifications.” However, “blended with diesel,” he said, “it lowers the soot emissions of a diesel engine by 40%” which could help some corporate fleets meet ever tightening emission standards.
EEB is a liquid biofuel that can create a clean form of electricity. “By 2020, a lot of states have goals for renewable energy,” McMurry observed, “and the waste water never quits being made.” In Washington State, hydroelectricity is very cheap, but at $.12 to $.17 a kilowatt hour, EEB is competitive with solar, wind or other renewable energy sources. The models that Vitruvian has developed make EEB cost-competitive. “It’s in the ballpark,” McMurry said. Plus, unlike solar or wind, liquid biofuel is storable, as is the source material – the bio-solids. This makes it much more attractive. Not to mention, “This is a community sourced biofuel – the more people you have, the more energy you could make.”
Spread The Word?
For now, McMurry hopes to spread the word and let people know of this exciting development in the field of storable energy. From coverage on KUOW to a Facebook page that can share their story, he hopes that word of mouth, and a great idea, can get this renewable, sustainable, and community-created energy source out to the people, so we can all be comfortable, and powered up, far into the future!
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©2014 Kirby Lindsay. This column is protected by intellectual property laws, including U.S. copyright laws. Reproduction, adaptation or distribution without permission is prohibited.