Bioforcetech, a California-based clean technology company, has received a $310,000 Bridge Carbontech grant from Columbia University’s Carbontech Development Initiative. The program is backed by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority.
The funding will support an industrial dosing system that lets concrete batch plants automatically incorporate Bioforcetech’s material into their mixes. Dario Presezzi, CEO of Bioforcetech, said the company is applying its wastewater experience to close a carbon loop into concrete for long-term storage.
Bioforcetech’s process starts at wastewater treatment facilities, where biosolids go through biological drying and then high-temperature pyrolysis. That converts the material into biochar, branded as OurCarbon. The process also targets PFAS, or “forever chemicals,” breaking their bonds into carbon and fluorine. Third-party testing at Bioforcetech’s California site confirmed 99.98 percent PFAS removal efficiency.
The resulting biochar becomes a concrete aggregate. Every ton of OurCarbon sequesters more than a ton of CO2-equivalent, according to an independent life-cycle assessment. It also avoids up to 24 tons of carbon compared with landfill disposal.
New York faces pressure from tightening PFAS regulations and rising landfill costs, alongside mandates for lower embodied carbon in construction. Garrett Benisch, chief development officer at Bioforcetech, said the state recognizes the solution as a multibenefit opportunity for its waste and construction sectors.
The Columbia grant will fund design and production of a system that automates delivery of OurCarbon into concrete trucks. Kartik Pilar, program manager at the Carbontech Development Initiative, said Bioforcetech shows how waste can become valuable construction material at scale.
Bioforcetech operates more than 40 drying units across 17 sites in the United States and Italy. OurCarbon has also found use beyond concrete, including as a replacement for petroleum-based pigments in inks and coatings.
