Bayome
DYES PRODUCED BY MICROBES SOURCED FROM RICH BIODIVERSE COMMUNITIES
Located in Pune, the knowledge hub of India, KBCols is working at the forefront of manufacturing non-GMO bio-colours and they have joined forces with ALBINI_next to take this sustainable alternative to petroleum-based dyes to the precious fabrics and yarns of the Albini Group.
With its advanced technology, KBCols screens the vast biodiversity of India in search for colour-producing microorganisms as they stand an alternative source of colours produced from fossil fuels.
By harnessing the tools of biotechnology, the start-up optimizes the natural production of pigment of these microbes in order to extract them as functional dyes in ready to use form (drop in solution). The different phases of the process from microorganism to colour are separated in two main phases: the first one concentrates all upstream processes to produce colors in bio-reactors under controlled conditions, and the other, on the downstream to extract these colors and formulate them in powder form for the use of Industries.
Upstream processes include the selection of coloured cell-colonies on the petridish, inoculation and fermentation. During the fermentation in the bioreactor, the microbes feed on waste sources and readily available, low-cost substrates to achieve consistent colour production under specific controlled conditions.
The downstream processes, on the other hand, consists on the separation of the pigments from the microbial broth after the fermentation until they are formulated into a concentrated powder. The final steps are the drying and finishing of the final dye until the product is ready to be used by Albini in its autoclaves.
ALBINI_next takes the baton, and thanks to the combined know-how, we have been able to industrialize a recipe for dyeing several different biocolours effectively and at scale matching the needs of an industrial context. What’s more, thanks to the internal laboratory at Albini, all the colours are tested to make sure they have the performances required.
