Building the Bioeconomy

Låkril Technologies imagines a future where drop-in industrial chemicals are produced from bio-based sugars rather than petroleum, thus alleviating reformulation costs and advancing rural biomanufacturing. That future is coming to fruition now! Your coating solution, adhesive or SAP formulation can now be bio-based and meet your customer’s exacting requirements without breaking the bank.

Our process for bio-based acrylic acid (BioAA) production allows producers to prepare drop-in formulations with high bio-based content and significant decarbonization versus today’s petrochemical routes. Through the intermediacy of low-cost lactic acid and our catalyst technology portfolio, production of BioAA can finally be cost effective. In addition to BioAA, we are working towards additional acrylate monomers, so let us know what you are looking for.

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  • A photo of Christopher Nicholas

    Christopher P. Nicholas

    FOUNDING PARTNER

    Chris brings 25 years of experience in developing and scaling catalysts, catalytic processes, and process engineering in the refining industry, and is now applying that skill set to renewable chemicals.

  • A photo of Paul Dauenhauer

    Paul J. Dauenhauer

    FOUNDING PARTNER

    ​An upper Midwesterner at heart, Paul is a chemical engineer developing new technologies for converting biomass into the chemical building blocks needed for daily life. He is a serial entrepreneur with two additional successful start-ups.

Meet Our Team
North Pond nature Sanctuary view of Chicago Skyline

Our Mission

Låkril Technologies will bring sustainability to high volume chemical production beginning with processes for bio-based acrylic acid / acrylates.

Starting with a foundation in catalysis, we couple the deep knowledge and rigor of academics with the drive of business commercialization. We value technical competence while building a collaborative culture for our competitive success, with a focus on establishing research and development programs that work to scale technology related to our bio-derived chemicals.

Autumn University of Minnesota Campus

Our History

Låkril Technologies was incorporated in 2021 to commercialize technology spinning out of the University of Minnesota. Since 2022, we’ve been headquartered in Chicago on the Near West Side. In our R&D facility, we are scaling the Låkril Amber Process technology to enable production of bio-based, sustainable acrylic acid at about 50,000 metric ton per year size.

News and Updates

Press release announcing Lakril Technologies' closure of a $3.2 million seed round to scale plant-based acrylic acid, with details about their technology, investors, and goals.
Press release announcing Lakril Technologies' closure of a $3.2 million seed round to scale plant-based acrylic acid, with details about their technology, investors, and goals.
Close-up of tall green corn plants with tassels against a pale sky.
Colorful animated illustration of the conversion of bio-based sugars from corn or beets to acrylic containing products like paints, coatings, adhesives, and detergents.
Watercolor paint set with a paintbrush resting on the red section of the palette.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced a $3.9 million federal investment for 13 projects that will tap into the DOE National Laboratories’ world-class high performance computing (HPC) resources to connect with industry partners.

In this audio interview, Jared White from Brownfield Ag speaks with Chris Nicholas, president and co-founder of Lakril Tech, about an exciting innovation: turning corn into sustainable acrylics. You'll hear how Lakril is using bio-based sugars, derived from corn, to significantly reduce the carbon footprint of everyday products like paints, coatings, and even diapers.

Let’s Work Together