Kurita America, BASF Corporation, BASF Enzymes, LLC, and Illinois River Energy LLC have settled their legal dispute involving Kurita America’s patents relating to the use of phytase to control mineral deposits in fuel ethanol plants. The terms of the settlement are confidential.

The United States Patent Office issued U.S. Patent Nos. 8,415,137 and 8,609,399 relating to Kurita America’s pHytOUT^® deposit control technology in 2013. Kurita America pHytOUT^® technology is designed to control mineral deposit scaling, reduce back-end fouling and greatly reduce sulfuric acid use, among other benefits. pHytOUT^® solves a common problem for ethanol producers – the formation of scale forming deposits in processing equipment. These deposits impede heat transfer and flow and compromise the proper operation of mechanical devices used in ethanol processing. In April 2019, the Court of Appeals for the Federal circuit upheld the validity of these patents.

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