The El Cajon company said this week that it hired Force Fuels of Costa Mesa to test whether SDC can eliminate the bacterial muck known as biofilm that sometimes clogs oil wells, pipelines and other petroleum industry infrastructure.

“A key focus of Force Fuels’ business is the optimization of marginally producing, shallow oil wells through implementation of biofilm reduction and refurbishing technologies,” said Michael Krall, president and chief executive of Pure.

The company didn’t disclose financial terms of the agreement.

SDC is a patented, nontoxic silver ion molecule that quickly kills microbes once they ingest the molecule. It is the main ingredient in Pure’s Hard Surface disinfectant, which is approved for use in food-processing facilities, such as restaurants and meat plants.

In July, the Environmental Protection Agency said the product met federal guidelines for controlling blood-borne pathogens in hospitals and other medical facilities.

Pure’s new collaboration with Force Fuels could open an entirely new market for SDC, said Jeff Donnell, vice president of business development for Pure.

Laboratory tests already have shown that SDC kills bacteria in biofilms found in medical facilities and clears the connective material produced by the microbes to form the goo in which they live, Donnell said.

“Pure will work with Force Fuels to see if SDC shows similar efficacy against biofilms in oil wells,” he said.

If the product works, it would offer an alternative to clearing the muck with a stream of toxic chemicals forced into the ground, Donnell said.

Force Fuels leases oil and gas wells in southern Kansas.