ICM signs deal on VFT reactor that preps DCO for hydrotreater with no further pretreatment

ICM Inc. has signed an agreement with Visionary Fiber Technologies Inc. to be the exclusive distributor and engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor for VFT’s fiber reactor separation technology in the ethanol space.

VFT’s patented proprietary fiber reactor technology is a refinement process for feedstocks such as distillers corn oil (DCO), a coproduct of ethanol production. The continuous flow process is designed to extract significantly more impurities than traditional separation methods, resulting in a clean DCO that can be sold directly to renewable diesel refineries, bypassing pretreatment at their site. With VFT’s fiber reactor system, there is also less downtime and higher throughput, as well as a smaller footprint overall.

“ICM is the ideal channel partner for VFT in the ethanol industry—they recognize the vision and opportunity to create significant value for ethanol producers from renewable diesel,” said John Kinzer, CEO of VFT. “We are eager to see our technology broadly deployed to help ethanol refineries diversify revenue and related cash flow derived from the emergence of the renewable industry.”

The fiber reactor features a small footprint, skid-mounted design with fast processing capability. “We’re excited to work with VFT and introduce customers to the benefits of adopting this new separation process for distillers corn oil,” said Tom Ranallo, ICM vice president of operations. “This collaboration naturally aligns with ICM’s purpose of continuously innovating to help our customers increase both efficiency and value. With the recent increase in demand of feedstock for renewable diesel, this technology represents a great opportunity for ethanol plants to get more value for their corn oil production as prices in the market continue to climb to new highs.”

The licensing agreement between ICM and VFT was signed in May. ICM is already accepting orders for this innovative offering.