What most people see as pond scum, the folks at Cleveland-based Phycal see as potential fuel. The company, with headquarters and a sub-pilot plant in Northeast Ohio, as well as a bio-technology lab in St. Louis, MO, converts simple algae into oil that can be used in power and utility plants as well as for renewable jet and diesel fuel.

"Algal oils produce more oil per acre than any other crop," says Jeff Bargiel, Phycal's business development specialist. "Our facility here in Cleveland has expanded multiple times. We've raised a lot of money and we're going forward very quickly."

In addition to seed money and follow-on funding from JumpStart, Phycal has also received funding from  the Air Force Research Lab and the Ohio Aerospace Institute, National Science Foundation, Department of Agriculture, and private investors. Most recently, the company received a $50 million grant from the Department of Energy.

Cleveland was a natural fit for Phycal's headquarters because the right people to develop the technology are already here. "We look at the talent pool in Cleveland and we needed talented chemical engineers," says Bargiel. "There's a good base here, the talent pool is very concentrated."

That concentrated talent pool will come in handy as Phycal continues to expand. The company is currently hiring seven people in technical fields to further develop the technology.

Plans are underway to build another pilot plant in Hawaii. Bargiel's hope is to begin manufacturing on a commercial scale by 2018, eventually including jet fuel for private airlines in Phycal's offerings.

Source: Jeff Bargiel
Writer: Karin Connelly
Photo: Bob Perkoski