Today, POET announced a new co-product from the ethanol production process: Inviz. Inviz is a protein called zein, that is extracted from Dakota Gold HP at POET's ethanol production facility in Scotland, S.D. The protein is a renewable ingredient that can be used instead of petroleum-based ingredients in films, packaging, adhesives, coatings and glazes, as you can read in the release.
The announcement is another step from ethanol production facility to full biorefinery. But how did POET arrive at this place? The answer is largely found in the career path of POET Senior Scientist John Lawton.
Lawton has spent his career working on zein, much of it at the National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research at USDA ARS in Peoria, Ill. That extensive research has made him one of the world's foremost experts on zein. In fact, the Wikipedia entry for zein lists three papers authored or co-authored by Lawton. Those are just a few of the 32 peer-reviewed journal publications and five book chapters that Lawton has authored on zein and related topics and he is also responsible for four patents.
Recognizing that expertise, POET hired Lawton almost three years ago so that he could lead the company's efforts to develop commercial production of zein. The two had collaborated on zein research a few years prior to Lawton's arrival at POET.
For his part, Lawton wanted to come to POET because he recognized that the way POET produced ethanol resulted in a co-product that was a better starting point for zein. The Dakota Gold HP distillers grains produced with POET's proprietary fractionation and "no-cook" technologies of BFRAC and BPX, contains a protein that hasn't been damaged by heat. As noted in the release, Lawton is excited to see the commercialization of his life's work in the lab.
Take a look at this video from POET TV of Lawton explaining zein and the advantages of Inviz:
This is one of the many people at POET working on many renewable products that can displace those made from fossil fuels. To keep up with our progress, keep visiting this blog and follow us on Twitter.
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