Overview

This solution uses Galdieria, a microalga that grows in extreme environments such as acidic hot springs, to treat industrial wastewater and waste while using them as feedstocks for producing new resources.

Technology strengths

Organic matter in wastewater from food, sugar, distillery, and textile factories can be used to cultivate Galdieria. The resulting biomass can then be used for precious-metal recovery, creating a new circular model that connects wastewater treatment with resource recovery. The technology is also being applied to gold recovery at natural mines as an alternative to mining processes that depend on hazardous substances such as mercury.

Deployment examples

Partner

Filminera Resources Corporation (the Philippines)

Use case

A field demonstration is being prepared at a gold mine in the Philippines. A contract was signed with Filminera Resources Corporation to recover ore samples, and a process has been established covering sample collection, analysis and certification by the Philippine Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB), and transport to Japan. Gold-extraction tests will be conducted in Japan using the recovered ore. If the technology proves applicable, the project is expected to proceed to a field demonstration at the mine. Partnerships with Philippine universities and research institutions, as well as a research and development framework using programs such as SATREPS, are also being considered.

Additional examples

Feasibility studies are underway in India and Southeast Asia to establish Galdieria cultivation models using industrial wastewater. In southern India, potential partners are being explored among distilleries, sugar mills, fruit-juice processors, cocoa processors, palm-oil mills, dairy processors, pulp and paper manufacturers, and textile-dyeing companies. In southern India, Malaysia, and the Philippines, candidate sites for algae cultivation and demonstration are also being explored in collaboration with universities and research institutions, while demonstration frameworks covering local regulations and logistics are being designed. The aim is to build a circular model: “Industrial wastewater and waste → Galdieria cultivation → water-environment improvement → resource recovery.”