Phase 1: Cu + Au Core Recovery
Build out 5,000 sq ft facility. Install HPMS reactor, biosorption bioreactor, electrowinning cells, water treatment, QC lab. Staff 8 FTE. Target 1 ton/day by Month 12.
$1.46M deployedMetalBloom is a modular biorefinery that recovers rare earth elements, precious metals, and base metals from electronic waste. Three recovery streams. One integrated facility. Every metal accounted for.
Critical minerals are a national security issue. E-waste is the fastest-growing waste stream on the planet. The gap between supply and demand is only getting wider.
Of US rare earth supply is imported from China. A single supply chain disruption could cripple EV, defense, and semiconductor manufacturing.
Only 20-25% is formally recycled. The metals inside are worth more per ton than most natural ores, yet the vast majority is landfilled or exported.
IEA projects a 3-7x increase in REE demand by 2040. EVs, wind turbines, and defense systems all require neodymium, praseodymium, and dysprosium.
Traditional smelters require $200M+ to build. They recover precious metals but ignore rare earths. Single-stream recyclers miss 60-70% of recoverable value.
MetalBloom combines hydrogen processing, engineered bioleaching, and selective hydrometallurgy in one integrated, modular facility. Biology where it's efficient. Chemistry where it's necessary.
Three parallel recovery pathways process different metal classes simultaneously. REE via hydrogen, precious metals via biosorption, base metals via hydrometallurgy.
Real-time X-ray fluorescence analysis routes each batch to the optimal pathway. Economics optimized per load, not per process.
Start with Cu + Au recovery. Add HPMS and rare earth lines. Scale to thermal recovery. Each phase is independently profitable.
Engineered microbial communities (Cupriavidus metallidurans, Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans) operate at ambient temperature. Up to 90% recovery with minimal chemical input.
E-waste input: PCBs, HDDs, motors, ICs. Disassembly, shredding, magnetic separation.
Hydrogen fractures NdFeB magnets into powder. Low energy, high purity rare earth hydrides.
Microbial communities solubilize copper and bind gold, palladium, silver to biomass.
XRF-guided aqua regia on high-grade streams. Electrowinning recovers base metals.
Refined metals ready for market. 17+ elements recovered per batch cycle.
E-waste urban mining sits at the intersection of three megatrends: critical mineral security, circular economy, and industrial biotech.
$500M available for domestic recycling. MetalBloom's process directly qualifies.
30-50% on qualifying equipment. Reduces effective capex by $1.4M-$2.4M.
$600M+ for critical mineral supply chain. Urban mining explicitly prioritized.
$180K-$750K grants for biosorption R&D. Non-dilutive early capital.
Each stream targets a different metal class with the optimal technology. The XRF decision layer routes materials automatically for maximum economic yield.
Hydrogen fractures NdFeB magnets into friable powder without smelting. Direct remanufacture into new magnets possible. 88% less energy than traditional processing.
Cupriavidus metallidurans captures gold and palladium on biomass. Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans oxidizes copper. Fungal communities produce organic acids for dissolution.
XRF analysis determines which residues justify aqua regia refinement. Electrowinning plates out base metals from leach fluid. Every gram quantified.
Only facility combining HPMS, bioleaching, and selective hydrometallurgy in one integrated system.
Parallel processing of REE, precious, and base metals. Multiple revenue streams per ton of feedstock.
AI-driven material routing optimizes economics per batch. Refine vs. sell decisions in real-time.
Each phase adds new capability without disrupting existing operations. $1.4M-$1.6M per phase.
Unit economics scale with feedstock composition. PCBs yield highest margins. Each phase unlocks new revenue streams while maintaining independent profitability.
| Feedstock | Revenue/Ton | Variable Cost | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCBs (40%) | $550-650 | $270-320 | 43-50% |
| HDDs (30%) | $420-500 | $250-300 | 35-44% |
| Motors (20%) | $300-380 | $240-290 | 16-32% |
| ICs (10%) | $280-380 | $260-310 | 5-32% |
| Blended Portfolio | $380-420 | $263-300 | 27-37% |
Months 0-6. 1 ton/day by Month 12. HPMS + biosorption + electrowinning.
Months 6-18. 5 ton/day capacity. Automated sorting, REE separation tower.
Months 18-36. 10 ton/day. Pyrolysis, robotic loading, 24/7 operation.
| Year | Throughput | Revenue | Gross Profit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | 800 tons | $320,000 | $80,000 |
| Year 2 | 875 tons | $362,875 | $98,125 |
| Year 3 | 1,563 tons | $656,460 | $160,620 |
Competitors specialize in single metal classes. MetalBloom's hybrid approach captures the $2-4B underserved base metals market where smelters are overkill and bio-only startups are limited.
| Company | Core Tech | REE Recovery | Precious Metals | Base Metals | Capex/Facility | Funding |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HyProMag | Hydrogen decrepitation | Excellent (95%) | Fair | Poor | $5-20M | Strategic JV |
| Umicore | Pyrometallurgical smelting | Fair | Excellent | Excellent | $200-500M | Public (corp.) |
| Cyclic Materials | Hydrometallurgy | Good (85-95%) | Fair | Fair-Good | $20-50M | $53M Series B |
| Mint Innovation | Biosorption | Poor | Excellent | Fair | $5-10M | Bootstrapped |
| MP Materials | Mining + recycling | Excellent | N/A | N/A | $500M+ | Public + DoD |
| MetalBloom | HPMS + Bio + Hydromet | Good-Excellent | Excellent | Excellent | $1.5-5M | Seed (raising) |
We don't compete head-to-head with HyProMag on rare earth magnets (they have an exclusive patent) or Umicore on industrial-scale smelting (they have 40+ years and $500M+ in infrastructure). We fill the gap: integrated multi-metal recovery at regional scale, with 10-100x lower capex than industrial incumbents. The hybrid biosorption + base metals model targets the $2-4B underserved market that no funded competitor owns outright.
MetalBloom is founded by someone who can actually wire, plumb, and operate the facility they're designing. That matters in hardware.
IBEW Local 363 electrician with hands-on industrial systems experience. Physics and Electrical Engineering background providing the materials science foundation for process design. Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) with clinical training bringing chemical safety protocol expertise critical to handling the reagents and biological systems at the core of MetalBloom's process.
This isn't a lab researcher pitching a concept. This is someone who has built industrial electrical systems, understands materials at the atomic level, and knows how to safely operate a chemical processing facility. The combination of industrial construction, materials science, and chemical safety is exactly what MetalBloom's modular biorefinery demands.
Three-phase build with go/no-go gates at each stage. Each phase is independently profitable. Capital deployed only as milestones are hit.
Build out 5,000 sq ft facility. Install HPMS reactor, biosorption bioreactor, electrowinning cells, water treatment, QC lab. Staff 8 FTE. Target 1 ton/day by Month 12.
$1.46M deployedReach 2.1 ton/day throughput. $400+ revenue per ton sustained. Prove unit economics before Phase 2 capital deployment.
Go/No-Go GateAdd automated XRF sorting, HPMS dual-train, REE refining tower, 5x bioreactor expansion. Scale to 5 ton/day. Rare earths become 20%+ of revenue.
$1.44M deployedPyrolysis furnace for aluminum. Robotic loading for 24/7 operation. Advanced effluent treatment. Scale to 10 ton/day sustained.
$1.63M deployed10+ ton/day sustained throughput. All three recovery streams operational. $2.8M-$4.2M annual revenue at full capacity. Ready for facility replication.
Replication ReadyMetalBloom is actively pursuing non-dilutive funding to de-risk the equity raise. Every dollar of grants secured reduces investor dilution.
Domestic recycling focus. MetalBloom's multi-stream process is explicitly eligible.
On qualifying equipment purchases. Reduces Phase 1-3 capex by $1.4M-$2.4M.
Defense Production Act funding for critical mineral supply chain resilience.
Phase I/II for biosorption process development. 6-24 month non-dilutive capital.
Covers Phase 1 capex ($1.46M) plus 18 months of operating runway. Sufficient to reach EBITDA breakeven and prove unit economics before Phase 2 raise.
Phase 2 funded via equipment financing ($1.2-1.5M debt) backed by Phase 1 assets. Phase 3 via Series A ($1.0-1.5M) after Year 1 results de-risk.
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