Grant: Applied Research Tools and Instruments Grants

The Biorefinery Technology Scale-up Centre (CCNB-BTSC), operating as part of the Research and Industrial Services Office of the Collège communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick (CCNB), is requesting funding for three automated 2 liter fermentation units to replace two obsolete and unrepairable incomplete units. The CCNB-BTSC is a regional resource for agri-based and marine resource industries and has an extensive track record of research and development projects with a number of commercial partners. The proposed equipment is necessary to complement existing fermentation equipment and would allow the CCNB-BTSC to work under conditions that would improve processes and speed up the time between bench scale and scale-up studies. The fermentation equipment is supported by a complete analytical chemistry laboratory, purification equipment for the extraction of oils, sugars, proteins, antioxidants, and other chemicals, as well as a team of microbiology and chemistry experts. The current facilities and equipment at the CCNB-BTSC, along with the proposed acquisition, would allow the CCNB-BTSC to: (1) provide comprehensive services to industrial clients wanting to derive value from their biomass, be it agricultural, forestry or marine-based, (2) be able to carry projects through from bench top research to pre-commercial testing of processes, while meeting all accuracy and optimization requirements, (3) expand the CCNB's range of applied research expertise, (4) attract additional future partnerships with local or Canadian businesses, (5) improve the quality of training for the research staff as well as the students enrolled in the biotechnology program, and (6) improve the overall quality of research. Not acquiring the 2 liter fermenter systems presents a major risk for ongoing and future CCNB-BTSC projects assisting clients in scale up of fermentations from laboratory to pre-commercial scale.