Junior phosphate technology company JDCPhosphate Inc., Fort Meade, Fla., announced on April 8 that it is changing its name to Novaphos. In addition, it is moving to the the commercialization stage for its Novaphos technology (formerly Improved Hard Process), which enables sustainable production of high-quality super-phosphoric acid (SPA) using low-quality phosphate rock without creating toxic phosphogypsum waste (GM Aug. 10, 2018).
“Our new name is intended to signify Novaphos’ readiness to move into the next phase of its business,” said Timothy Cotton, Novaphos CEO. “We will work with industry partners to commercialize our technology for making phosphate products that are vital to global food production.”
Novaphos also announced that it had made additional process improvements that further enhanced the efficiency and reliability of the technology. During the first quarter of 2019, Novaphos built on previous success at its demonstration plant in Fort Meade to make additional improvements to the technology. The company said it is now achieving phosphate yields of about 80 percent. Acid quality also continues to improve, with impurities at about 2 percent of SPA-equivalent acid, with strong potential for further improvement at commercial scale.
Novaphos continues to run its demonstration plant using only low-quality phosphate rock tailings, containing an average of about 14 percent phosphate as P2O5, with high levels of silica and other impurities, including magnesium oxide.
“The latest improvements to the Novaphos technology are very significant,” said Ron Cambre, Novaphos board member and former CEO of Newmont Mining. “Based on my long career in mineral processing, including phosphates, I am excited to see the technology poised to start addressing the fundamental needs of the phosphate sector while minimizing toxic waste.”
Novaphos said the patented technology uses a carbo-thermal reduction and oxidation process to recover phosphate from low-quality phosphate sources, including previously processed mine tailings. The process avoids direct acidulation of phosphate rock, minimizing the amount of waste and completely avoiding phosphogypsum production.
The process co-produces a commercially useful aggregate for construction and road building called J-Rox, which are the solid balls that remain after phosphate has been extracted during processing. Novaphos has been granted multiple U.S. and international patents covering its Novaphos technology. Novaphos said it is expanding its base of intellectual property based on its most recent process improvements.
Novaphos, which is privately held, said it has started a process of engagement with major phosphate producers and engineering companies to fully commercialize its technology. Current investors include the Florida Opportunity Fund, The Agrifos Group, Stonecutter Phosphate Investors LLC, FCR Armilar Venture Partners III, Avenira Ltd. (a junior phosphate rock mining company), Mitsui & Co., and the Megy family (GM July 14, 2017).