What Advanced Mineral Separations does

Advanced Mineral Separations, Inc. (AMS) is a privately held Delaware corporation founded in July 2013 and based in Bridgeville, Delaware, that develops and commercializes Molecularly Imprinted Polymer (MIP) technology — a templated-polymer nanotechnology in which synthetic receptor pockets are engineered to match the physical and chemical signature of a target molecule, enabling highly selective capture and release. The company commercializes three product lines built on this single platform: IXOS® extraction polymers for gold and silver recovery from cyanide, glycine/cyanide, and chloride leach solutions (with stated lithium interest on the public site); Affinity™ purification systems for cannabinoid processing; and AMIPs™ / PADs™ cartridges, microfluidic devices, lateral flow tests, and microwell assays for rapid virus and bacteria detection. Performance claims include up to 99% gold capture versus 85–95% for activated carbon, ~25 g/kg adsorption capacity, $150/oz mine-site savings, 50% CapEx reduction in cannabis purification, and 250x sensitivity improvement over immunoassays for pathogen detection.

The company is 100% owned by founder Randy Johnson and operates with 1–10 employees, with additional laboratory and office presence in Salt Lake City, Halifax, and Vancouver. AMS goes to market through direct enterprise B2B field sales to mining companies, cannabis producers, and healthcare organizations, monetizing via hardware system sales (with consumables economics expected for IXOS® and cartridge replenishment for AMIPs™); pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. Supporting infrastructure includes patents and patents pending in 40+ countries, an NSERC-funded two-year AMIPs™ research grant (April 2022), and academic collaboration with York University on microfluidic pathogen detection. The predecessor entity was Sixth Wave Innovations, Inc., where COO Dr. Jon Gluckman led IXOS® development from 2012.

Name

Advanced Mineral Separations

Legal name

Advanced Mineral Separations, Inc.

Website

https://advancedmineralsep.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Advanced Mineral Separations is a privately held nanotechnology company that develops Molecularly Imprinted Polymer systems for gold and silver extraction in mining, cannabinoid purification in cannabis processing, and rapid pathogen detection in healthcare applications.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Bridgeville

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. IXOS® Gold Extraction Systems: Sale of extraction polymer systems to gold mining operations. Systems provide higher yield and cost savings compared to activated carbon, with $150 USD/oz savings demonstrated in pilot testing. Revenue from system deployment plus ongoing consumables.
2. Affinity™ Cannabinoid Purification Systems: Sale of purification equipment to cannabis producers. Reduces CapEx by combining multiple process stages and reduces OpEx by improving yields and eliminating inefficient steps.
3. AMIPs™ Pathogen Detection Products: Detection systems and cartridges for virus and bacteria detection. Multiple form factors (microfluidic devices, lateral flow tests, microwell assays) for point-of-care, laboratory, and infrastructure screening applications.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

AMS develops and commercializes Molecularly Imprinted Polymer (MIP) systems that selectively capture and release target molecules for industrial extraction and detection. Its commercial products include IXOS® polymer systems for gold and silver recovery from cyanide, glycine/cyanide, and chloride leach solutions, Affinity™ purification systems for cannabis extracts, and AMIPs™/PADs™ platforms for rapid virus and bacteria detection. Products are sold as physical polymer systems, devices, and cartridges to enterprise industrial buyers.

Product overview

Advanced Mineral Separations is a nanotechnology company offering a portfolio of products based on patented Molecularly Imprinted Polymers (MIPs). The core offerings include IXOS® for gold and precious metal extraction in mining, AMIPs™ for rapid pathogen detection in healthcare and security applications, and Affinity™ for cannabinoid purification in the cannabis industry. PADs™ extends the pathogen detection platform for amine-based diagnostics. The company also develops detection form factors including microfluidic devices, microwell assays, and lateral flow tests. All systems are 100% company-developed with patents and patents pending in 40+ countries worldwide.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• IXOS®: Extraction polymers for gold mining industry, formulated for deployment in gold extraction from cyanide, glycine/cyanide, and chloride leach solutions.
• AMIPs™
• Affinity™
• PADs™

Products and services

• IXOS® Gold Extraction Polymer System Patented nanotechnology using Molecularly Imprinted Polymers (MIPs) for adsorption and extraction of gold and silver from cyanide, glycine/cyanide, and chloride leach solutions. Delivers higher selectivity, capacity, and recovery rates than activated carbon, with lower power requirements, fewer consumables, and environmental benefits. Sold as a deployable polymer system to gold mining operators, replacing activated carbon in gold processing circuits.
• AMIPs™ Pathogen Detection Platform Molecularly Imprinted Polymer platform for rapid detection of viruses and bacteria. Detects viral and bacterial particles directly rather than antibodies/antigens, making it robust against pathogen mutation. Sold as cartridge-based detection systems in multiple form factors (microfluidic devices, lateral flow tests, microwell assays) for point-of-care, laboratory, and infrastructure surveillance applications.
• Affinity™ Cannabinoid Purification System MIP-based purification system for recovery and purification of cannabinoids from crude cannabis extracts, yielding highly purified full-spectrum distillate without heat or chemicals. Replaces multiple conventional purification, distillation, and chromatography steps with a single automated unit, achieving 90%+ purity, 50% CapEx reduction, 25% higher yield, and 50% lower operating cost. Sold to cannabis extraction and processing companies.
• PADs™ Pathogen Amine Detection Pathogen amine detection system for diagnostics and surveillance of viruses or bacteria. Deployable as point-of-care tests or screening technologies for critical-infrastructure monitoring, including water surveillance applications.

Quantifiable outcome

• Up to 99% gold capture efficiency vs 85-95% for activated carbon
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• York UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic collaboration with Dr. Pouya Razai at York University for development of microfluidic device with AMIPs technology for E. coli detection and UTI diagnostics. Joint research project advancing point-of-care testing capabilities.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Lanxess: Lanxess' Lewatit ion-exchange resins are widely deployed in hydrometallurgy and metal recovery, positioning it as a large specialty-chemical incumbent competing for the same polymer-adsorbent slot AMS targets.
• DuPont: DuPont produces specialty ion-exchange and adsorbent polymers (e.g., Amberlite) used across mining and chemical processing, an established incumbent in the same selective-capture resin category AMS targets with IXOS®.
• Cepheid (Danaher): Cepheid's GeneXpert is the dominant rapid molecular pathogen detection platform in clinical settings; it represents the entrenched incumbent AMIPs™ would need to displace in regulated diagnostic workflows.
• Solvay: Solvay supplies specialty chemicals and functional polymers to mining and industrial separation customers, overlapping with AMS' specialty-polymer value proposition across multiple end markets.
• Abbott Diagnostics: Abbott's Binax and ID NOW rapid pathogen tests dominate point-of-care infectious disease diagnostics, directly competing with the AMIPs™ value proposition on speed and sensitivity.
• QuidelOrtho: QuidelOrtho produces rapid immunoassay-based diagnostics (e.g., Sofia platform) for viruses and bacteria, overlapping with AMIPs™ in the rapid pathogen detection category.

Direct peers

• Bepex International: Bepex provides processing equipment for botanical and cannabis purification, overlapping with Affinity™ in offering continuous, scalable separation technology to cannabis processors.
• Precision Extraction Solutions: Precision Extraction Solutions supplies extraction and processing equipment to cannabis producers, directly comparable to Affinity™ as a competing cannabis processing platform.
• Purolite (an Ecolab company): Purolite supplies ion-exchange and adsorbent resins used in gold and precious-metal recovery circuits, directly comparable to IXOS® as a competing polymer-based gold extraction technology.

Regional players

• Cyanco: Cyanco is a major supplier of sodium cyanide to gold mining operations and is embedded in the same leach-circuit workflow where IXOS® is deployed, making it an adjacent/partner-or-competitor peer in the gold processing value chain.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Advanced Mineral Separations