Universal Bio Mining is applying synthetic biology to the mining industry, improving both mineral extraction processes and remediation processes.
The company’s initial focus is on engineering extremophiles to improve the productivity of mining processes which currently utilize bacterial catalysts. In addition, the company aims to achieve economic bioleaching of chalcopyrite at mesophilic temperatures. It is pursuing multiple approaches to the problem, including both direct genetic manipulation and directed evolution.
On the remediation front, the company’s engineering team has built two different metal sequestration systems for effluent water bio-remediation.