China's LanzaTech and Yankuang Group have signed a memorandum of understanding to jointly produce fuels and chemicals.
The companies intend to produce fuels and chemicals using LanzaTech's biological fermentation process and synthesis gas from Yankuang's coal-gasification unit.
LanzaTech's proprietary gas-fermentation platform can be used to convert biomass syngas at laboratory scale.
The companies anticipate that they will be able to start a demonstration facility by the second half of 2012.
Yankuang Group vice-president Zhang Minglin said the aims of the collaboration are to adjust coal chemical production structure, increase the efficiency of its process and reduce its carbon footprint while maintaining growth.
