Priscilla Richardson

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How many people have you ever met who partner with a robot named Ralph; who work for industry but are committed to reducing pollution; and have worked as an actor?

I've only met one. He's J. Patrick Borders, the president of Separation Technologies. You'll find him out near the cement plant, because his company is a division of Titan America, the parent company of Roanoke Cement.

The robot comes to life when Borders makes presentations about his company. Ralph waves its arms -- or should I say, waves his arms? His voice is robot-style, set up for interactions with Borders. His constant blinking and turning help entertain the audience while Borders does most of the talking.

What Borders talks about is his mission at Separation Technologies. The firm sells a process that lets a coal-fired electrical utility make electricity without coal's byproduct, the fly ash you can see darkening snow. Utility companies have to bury fly ash in landfills because it has so little value.

To eliminate fly ash, a utility plant sets up a separation plant next door to it. The fly ash goes in one end and out comes a trademarked substance, ProAsh, at the other end. Unlike fly ash, ProAsh goes into concrete as a useful ingredient.

The rest of what comes out of this process is high-carbon ash. The utility plant then burns that high carbon ash. According to Borders, it "replaces up to 2 percent of virgin coal. Coal that's already on site, doesn't have to be mined, trucked or brought on a railroad."

You might think that this process would damage the market for Virginia coal. Not so. It aims to make coal-fired plants less polluting, so they can keep on using coal.

The Titan company also is perfecting another process to separate the oxygen and carbon dioxide that result when coal burns. This technology buries the carbon dioxide underground, keeping this leading greenhouse gas out of the atmosphere.

Borders did not train as an engineer. Rather, with a psychology degree, his first career was as a radio and TV journalist. He enlisted in the Army and served in Vietnam.

Afterward, his jobs as an actor brought him so much success that in 1969 he was making only $2,000 a year. "And I was one of the top earners," he remembered, "other than the stars."

Married to his Illinois hometown sweetheart, Joan, a singer, he gave in to her, and his mother's, urging to get a real job. Little did he know that this would lead him to Botetourt County, a place he now loves.

His father ran a concrete contracting business. "Most of the family was employed with him," he said.

So Borders signed up with his dad and knuckled down. Along the way, he built five more businesses having to do with concrete manufacturing. Also, at age 33, he ran for the nomination for the Illinois House of Delegates and lost, "one of the biggest learning experiences of my life," he said.

He then started his corporate career. First he took a job with a global chemical manufacturer that services the concrete industry. Then in 1987, a job with Texas Industries, an integrated cement and concrete company. From there, in 1990, he moved to New Jersey to work with a chemical and automotive sealants producer.

"I developed a reputation for taking on a business and redirecting the marketing," he said. He's been with Titan since 1997, but not in the same job, having been head of several divisions. Lengthy international trips all come as part of his work. "My wife remembers me as a much younger man," he quipped.

For now, visiting the Titan plant in Florida lets him visit grandchildren there, too. He reads a lot and writes poetry. Or helps his wife with her animal rescue work, which means they currently live with a talking parrot and four dogs.