Technology

A two-stage biological C1-to-SAF platform.

C1 Foundry is developing an integrated process in which Moorella thermoacetica converts CO2 and H2 to acetate, and Yarrowia lipolytica converts that acetate toward long-chain fatty acids and engineered hydrocarbon intermediates.

Two-stage architecture

Acetate connects upstream C1 fixation with downstream lipid and hydrocarbon synthesis.

In the first stage, M. thermoacetica converts CO2 and H2 into acetate. In the second, Y. lipolytica uses acetate to produce long-chain fatty acids and related hydrocarbon precursors. The acetate handoff decouples C1 fixation from downstream product synthesis so each organism and process stage can be engineered around a more specific job.

The initial commercial output is a lipid-rich SAF feedstock or intermediate that still requires downstream upgrading and qualification—not finished SAF.

Metabolic control

Complementary substrates can supply carbon, ATP, and reducing power as distinct metabolic functions.

Cells require carbon, ATP, and reducing power at the same time. C1 Foundry's synergistic multi-substrate co-feeding approach does not ask one substrate to supply all three. During CO2 fixation, H2 supplies reducing equivalents while controlled, limited glucose addition supports ATP generation. During acetate conversion, controlled gluconate addition supports NADPH generation for lipid synthesis.

Controlled co-feeding is an operating and metabolic-control strategy. It is not bulk glucose fermentation, and its value must be measured against added substrate and process demands.

Engineering the product

Fatty-acid and terpenoid pathways provide a design space for aviation-relevant hydrocarbon structures.

C1 Foundry is investigating long-chain fatty acids and terpenoid-derived branched and cyclic carbon backbones. The engineering objective is to understand how hydrocarbon composition can support properties relevant to aviation fuels while remaining compatible with practical production and downstream upgrading.

This is active development work. Current materials are not represented as ASTM-qualified jet fuel, and no blend level or finished-fuel performance is guaranteed.

Continuous processing

Commercial translation depends on volumetric performance, stability, and recovery—not cell-specific productivity alone.

Relevant measures include volumetric productivity, titer, yield, culture density, carbon allocation, energy use, continuous-culture stability, and downstream recovery. Strain engineering and process control must be evaluated together because improvement in one metric can shift cost or performance elsewhere in the system.

Reduced-sterility or open-operation research is a secondary robustness and cost-reduction direction. It does not replace the central work on integrated productivity, yield, and stability.

Development questions

The next work must test whether co-feeding improves useful output without giving back the gains elsewhere.

The central question is whether synergistic multi-substrate co-feeding can increase useful volumetric output and titer while maintaining C1 incorporation, product yield, continuous-culture stability, and manageable substrate and energy demand. Additional work will examine rate-determining steps, hydrocarbon structure, analytical performance criteria, and process robustness.

Prior research supports important platform building blocks. Integrated continuous performance at commercially relevant conditions remains to be established.