Domestic/Industrial

Unmet needs: Multiple harmful effects of biofilms in domestic and industrial environments have been documented. For example, in the home, biofilms contaminate food preparation surfaces and therefore food prepared on them. They block waste water systems either directly or by providing a substrate for the deposition of other organisms or minerals. In heat exchangers in air conditioning units, or cooling systems in the electricity generation industry, biofilm formation reduces efficiency by up to 25%. In the oil industry, corrosion caused directly by the growth of acid-secreting bacterial biofilms costs in excess of $3 billion annually (industry source) and can cause catastrophic leakage events.

Status: The characteristics of products for applications such as the above differ from those selected for use in the therapeutics or consumer healthcare fields. Therefore QuoNova is working with numerous partners in academia and industry evaluating the potential of our technology, or optimizing compounds for selected applications, in oil and water handling, protective coatings and domestic or industrial cleaning.