Words like "milking" and "feedlot" might be most commonly associated with a cow pasture. But for Highland Heights-based
Phycal, something else comes to mind: Algae.
The burgeoning bio-tech company is developing a production system for growing algae and extracting its energy � converting its oil to biodiesel. That finished product can be used as drop-in replacements to diesel, jet-fuel and other energy products.
Phycal's extraction process, Olexal, continuously milks oil from algae without dewatering and recycles the living algae back to ponds, says Jeffrey Bargiel, Phycal's business development specialist. "We call it milking because we milk the cow rather than killing it," he says.
That variety of innovation has drawn lots of attention. The Wall Street Journal called 2009 "The Year of Algae." Both Crain's and Business Week featured the up-and-coming Phycal. "We've been laying low," Bargiel says. "We can't keep ourselves hidden any longer."
Phycal has a research facility in St. Louis, and plans for pilot facility in Hawaii. There are about 25 positions at the company's Ohio location (where there are two 40-foot ponds for research and development), but the workforce continues to grow.
And so does the algae.
Source: Jeffrey BargielWriter: Colin McEwen