19 May 2022, Hybrid The Investment Catalyst
19 May 2022, Hybrid The Investment Catalyst #RSCinvest
Registered charity number: 207890
We are an international organisation connecting chemical scientists with each other, with other scientists, and with society as a whole. Founded
in 1841 and based in London, UK, we have an international
membership of over 50,000. We use the surplus from our global publishing and knowledge business to give thousands of chemical scientists the support and resources required to make vital advances in chemical knowledge. We develop, recognise and celebrate professional capabilities, and we bring people together to spark new ideas and new partnerships. We support teachers to inspire future generations of scientists, and we speak up to influence the people making decisions that affect us all. We are a catalyst for the chemistry that enriches our world.
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Supporting the UK chemistry-using industry Chemistry-led innovation is integral to a vast number of sectors, including life sciences, energy generation, the automotive industry, construction, and consumer products; the chemistry-using industry contributes over £15bn added value per year to the UK’s GDP. Supporting the growth of this industry and enabling chemistry to remain at the forefront of research and innovation is a priority for us. We support over 2500 companies companies of all sizes and stages – from pre-startups to multinationals. And as our industry is composed of 96% small companies, we have a particular focus on facilitating their development and growth. As a powerful voice for chemistry, we will work with policymakers and other key players in the ecosystem to: • Champion th role of deep tech chemistry SMEs in tackling some of the most pressing societal and environ ental challenges we face • Establish nd supp rt peer to eer n tworks to promote leadership skill , growth nd inn vation • Enable connections with investors to improve access to capital • Enable funders to provide support and processes that meet the specific needs of deep tech chemistry SMEs EnterprisePlus EnterprisePlus is our dedicated service for UK based, R&D focussed SMEs in the chemistry-using industry. Our focus is to give smaller companies the connections and exposure they need to bring their innovations to the wider world. We support over 300 companies via EnterprisePlus, providing access to expertise, knowledge, funding and talent to facilitate growth. Find out more at www.rsc.org/sme Emerging Technologies Competition Our annual innovation competition supports early-stage companies and academic entrepreneurs with the The Emerging Technologies Competition is the Royal Society of Chemistry’s annual innovation commercialisation of their technologies in the fields of health, materials, energy and food. The technologies receive early validation from senior representatives in industry, and winners are provided with tailored support from multinationals, extensive business training, financial mentoring, and funding. Over 350 technologies have been identified through the competition since 2013. Twelve of our winners have gone on to raise a combined total of over £25m in investment, competition. It is a programme that aims to identify some of the most novel, innovative and promising chemistry in the UK and Europe. It supports tech innovators, start-ups and spin outs – across the core categories of Health, Energy & Environment, Food & Drink and Enabling Technologies, Energy, Environment & Health and one has recently announced a £28m trade sale. In addition, we’ve seen university groups spin out in to promising businesses; and companies expand overseas, enter commercial contracts, conduct industrial scale trials, and collectively double their number of employees. Find out more at rsc.li/EmTech2017 The programme is designed to provide a unique pl tform for th s i novators to engage directly with and lear from senior representatives in industry. Winners go on to build exposure and unrivaled industry validation for their projects, funding and mentorship. 2022 marks the 10th edition of the competition and our previous winners and finalust have gone on to raise £775m in equity and grant funding, one has undergone a £28m trade sale, companies have also • Make it asier for de p t ch chemistry SMEs to find the pr ises and equ pment they need to grow and thrive If you can help us move forward with this action lan, do get in touch: industry@rsc.org Download the report here https://www.rsc.org/new-perspectives/discovery/ the-case-for-supporting-uk-deep-tech-chemistry Emerging Technologies Competition expanded overseas, entered into commercial contracts, conducted industrial scale trials and collectively doubled their number of employees. In addition we’ve seen university groups spin out in to promising businesses. Find out more about the competition: rsc.li/ETC22
Contact Name: Dr Aurora Antemir C tact Name: urora Antemir Industry Manager Senior Manager, Industry Royal Society of Chemistry Email: antemira@rsc.org Tel No: 01223 432162 al Society of Chemistry E ail: antemira@rsc.org Tel No: 01223 432162
Contact Name: Nazma Rahman Industry Executive Contact Name: Emily Vipond Programme Manager Enterprise E ail: viponde@rsc.org l o: 01223 438 404 Royal Society of Chemistry Email: rahmann@rsc.org Tel No: 01223 432646
Igniting Innovation Chemistry-intensive SMEs are vital to our economy and future prosperity. Deep tech chemistry SMEs are a subgroup that, despite their importance, are not well understood or supported. As well as providing employment and driving innovation, they are fundamental to achieving potentially transformational breakthroughs in a range of areas, including climate change, developing new treatments for diseases and addressing plastic pollution. In our new report Igniting Innovation: the case for supporting UK deep tech chemistry, we highlight the unique contribution of these innovative companies and reveal the challenges and barriers they face in turning research and development into real-world applications. We have set out the practical steps we’re taking to support deep tech chemistry SMEs and to influence change. The Royal Society of Chemistry is the world’s leading chemistry community, advancing excellence in the chemical sciences. With over 54,000 members and a knowledge business that spans the globe, we are the UK’s professional body for chemical scientists; a not-for-profit organisation with 175 years of history. We partner with industry and academia, promoting collaboration and innovation. organisation with over 175 years of history. We partner with industry and academia, promoting collaboration and innovation. The Royal Society of Chemistry is the world’s leading chemistry com unity, advancing excellence in the chemic l sciences. With over 54,000 members and a knowledge business that spans the globe, we are a scientific not-for-profit
Contact Information: Contact Name: Molly Allington
E-mail: mollyallington@albotherm.com Website: https://www.albotherm.com/
Funding required: £600,000
Albotherm are developing technologies that control our world’s most powerful natural resource, the light of the sun. Albotherm have developed coatings that reversibly transition from transparent to opaque white as they heat up, reflecting the sun’s rays and passively cooling buildings to reduce carbon emissions. The Problem The world needs to produce 50% more food by 2050 to feed a population that will reach nearly 10 billion in this time. Meanwhile arable land has decreased by 30% in the last 40 years due to the effects of urbanisation and climate change. It is essential that we increase the productivity of the arable land we have available to ensure future food security for our population. Greenhouses can produce up to 50 times more food than open land production, helping us feed more people with less, however they are prone to overheating in the summer. This can damage up to 25% of the crop and so it is necessary to find environmentally friendly ways to cool greenhouses to maximise food production. Moreover, 10% of our global energy consumption is dedicated to air conditioning. This equates to 38,000 tonnes of CO2 emitted each year in the UK alone, purely from air conditioning. This demand is expected to triple by 2050 due to an increase in global temperatures. Using fossil fuel derived energy for air conditioning traps us in a Catch 22 as the warmer our planet gets, the more energy we need to keep cool.
The Solution Albotherm have developed coatings that reversibly transition from transparent to opaque white as they heat up, reducing solar gain in hot weather to passively cool buildings. In greenhouses this allows the cooler morning and evening light through while still protecting crops from the heat of the midday sun, boosting yields by up to 20%. The rule of thumb for growers is that 1% extra light means 1% extra yield, which can bring up to £14,000 of additional revenue per hectare. Moreover, growers paint their greenhouses with white shade paints every spring to prevent overheating. These paints then have to be removed at the end of Summer, which is time consuming and also costs our customer £3,500 per hectare annually. Moreover, the run off from the paints causes an estimated 1000 tonnes of microplastic pollution each year across the globe. Albotherm’s technology can be left up for several years at a time, hugely reducing costs for our customers as well as reducing environmental impact. In buildings our coatings reflect heat from the surface of a building, preventing overheating and reducing the need for air conditioning by around 10%, saving customers money and reducing carbon emissions.
Contact Information: Contact Name: Dr. Claudio Marinelli E-mail: claudio.marinelli@cambridgephoton.com Website: www.cambridgephoton.com
Funding required: £6.5 million
Cambridge Photon Technology (CPT) is creating advanced materials that will significantly raise the power of standard photovoltaic (PV) modules. CPT’s approach solves a pressing problem for the solar PV industry by increasing performance without requiring new module designs or production processes, allowing manufacturers to gain a competitive advantage and raise their margins. The Problem CPT’s technology solves the problem of how to keep improving solar PV performance and costs within the constraints of the industry today. Silicon, the dominant PV material worldwide, has been steadily increasing in efficiency and decreasing in cost for many years. The trouble is that it is now nearing the practical limits of efficiency imposed by its fundamental physical characteristics. Silicon module manufacturers, and their long-established supply chains, need new solutions if they are to continue raising efficiency: both to increase the value of their products relative to those of their competitors, and to keep solar PV competitive with a rising number of other clean and cost-effective power generation technologies. These manufacturers cannot, however, simply abandon their existing product lines. They have invested many billions and built-up decades of expertise in silicon cell and module production and established whole upstream and downstream industries upon highly standardized module designs. Solar PV owners and installers demand long warranties for reliable performance: they will not take the risk of adopting a fundamentally newmodule type or photovoltaic material. Manufacturers must therefore find enhancing technologies that work with, rather than replace, silicon.
The Solution CPT’s solution to this problem is known as Photon Multiplication (PM). High-energy photons of UV, blue and green light entering a module that contains PM materials (PMM) are each split into two infra-red photons, which can be converted more efficiently into electrical current by silicon solar cells. This increase in photon flux reaching the silicon can raise the current generated by the module by as much as 15%. A vital feature of PMM is that they integrate seamlessly with existing PV module designs, being incorporated within the encapsulant film of the module. Unlike other potential solutions, this provides a large performance improvement, and consequent higher selling price and margin, with no need to re-design module structures or invest in new cell manufacturing processes. PMM are therefore highly attractive to CPT’s risk-averse customers (major encapsulant suppliers and module manufacturers). The breakthrough science behind PM, originally developed at the University of Cambridge, is protected by a strong patent portfolio. Since the founding of the company, CPT has made great strides in materials research and development while forming important industrial partnerships. The funds raised now will speed the company’s product development and allow it to work closely with customers and suppliers in preparation for market entry.
Contact Information: Contact Name: Dara O’Brien E-mail: dara.obrien@exactmer.com Website: www.exactmer.com
Funding required: £2.5m
Pioneers in exact polymer synthesis, Exactmer is redefining what is possible in controlling monomer sequences; developing Nanostar Sieving technology to produce high-purity polymers bound for use in medicine. The Problem Oligonucleotide (oligo) therapeutics target disease at RNA-level, reaching targets beyond those generally accessible to conventional pharmaceuticals. While initially oligos targeted the treatment of rare diseases, they are now being developed to treat conditions with large patient populations. However, tonne-per-annum scale oligo production methods are not available; sustainable, cost-effective methods are now urgently required to ensure these innovative medicines are made available to all patients who need them. Solid Phase Synthesis (SPS) is the dominant technique used to manufacture oligos. SPS solves key separation problems associated with iterative polymer synthesis; but brings penalties: The biggest oligo synthesisers are limited to batch sizes of a few kg; and intra-particle diffusional limitations lead to incomplete reactions resulting in impurities. The result is crude oligo purities between 60-90%, requiring further chromatographic processing which contributes 30%-50% of the £800-£1,000/g manufacturing price (at kg-scale). This purification step also accounts for ~50% of the material used in the process, which is incredibly wasteful. Collectively, these issues limit the global manufacturing capacity to ~4t/ year. Together with the high price and large solvent consumption (1,200 L/kg), this represents not only a substantial environmental burden, but a significant barrier to bringing these medicines to all patients in need.
The Solution Exactmer’s Nanostar Sieving technology addresses the limitations of current commercial oligo synthesis, producing purer crude-oligo products, at scale, more economically. At multi-tonne scale, Nanostar Sieving could show a 10x reduction in cost with a 10x increase in batch capacity. This disruptive new technology is capable of high synthesis purity, and could render chromatography redundant, dramatically cutting medicine costs to patients, and waste of materials by some 30-50%. The technique involves growing polymers from a hub molecule, chain-extending monomers one at a time, creating a soluble ‘nanostar’ complex. This complex is then sieved from reaction debris after each cycle using a molecular separation membrane. Using membranes for the crucial separation step overcomes current state-of-the-art: (i) it takes place in the liquid phase, removing issues of intra-particle diffusional limitations; (ii) it is scalable; and (iii) it allows for in-line monitoring for reaction completion, essential to obtaining high purity. The current early- stage, non-optimised nanostar synthesiser produces a 20mer oligo with purity 90%, compared to 70- 80% crude-purity for the same oligo from SPS. Furthermore, Nanostar Sieving is chemistry-agnostic, meaning it is compatible with a wide variety of conditions and chemical syntheses, safeguarding the technology as synthetic routes are developed and improved.
Contact Information: Contact Name: Nick Whitehurst E-mail: nick@figura-analytics.co.uk Website: www.figura-analytics.co.uk
Funding required: £500,000 Funding secured: £200,000
Figura Analytics use nanopore technology to screen a sample of liquid in minutes, measuring the size, concentration and shape of every particle in the sample. This enables users to monitor consistency and quality as well as spotting abnormalities quickly. Their technology has applications in industry and MedTech. The Problem Figura Analytics technology addresses many current problems in their target industries. Traditional microbiological tests take time (days in most circumstances) and have significant cost. Delays in getting results add cost and complexity to business and can kill or prolong hospitalisation in a clinical setting. Many manufacturers don’t trust micro tests due to their own poor plating processes. Traditional light scattering solutions to analyse liquids struggle with turbid samples and PCR tests take time and are very specific, with no broad screen for contaminants as part of the process. Industrial Cell Counters are limited to only measure a small size range of particle. Figura’s IP can measure an entire size range whilst looking for particles of specific shapes at the same time, solving many of the outlined problems in one simple test, in a cost- effective manner.
The Solution Using Figura Analytics unique, patented nanopore technology they are able to count the size, shape and concentration of all particles in a liquid, in minutes. They pump a liquid sample (5-100ml) through a constricted channel with an electrical current passing through it. Each particle blocks the current, and it is the recording of this change in current that allows the analysis to take place, including particle shape, which has never been achieved before. This will allow digital fingerprinting of samples to drive rapid, accurate detection of abnormalities, improving patient outcomes in healthcare and preventing microbiological spoilage in products. Figura’s Analyser can handle turbid samples (including mayonnaise), allowing rapid analysis of products that were previously not possible without extreme dilution. All of this will save their customers time and money, as well as adding a robustness to their processes. Following successful trials in industry Figura will be launching in late 2022.
Contact Information: Contact Name: Glenn Halliday E-mail: glenn.h@lowsulphco.com Website: https://www.lowsulphco.com/
Funding required: £1m Funding secured: almost £500,000
Low Sulphur Fuels (LSF) has developed a unique chemical recycling process to convert used rubber tyres, plastics and lub oils and produce circular outputs that are used to make new plastics, chemicals, rubber tyres or components and other valuable products. The Problem Disposing of used rubber tyres, oils and plastics in landfills or exporting it to developing countries for re-processing, dumping or burning is causing massive environmental emissions of CO 2 , NOx and SOx: 30% of used oils and rubber are dumped or incinerated annually 70% of used plastics are dumped, landfilled or incinerated.
The Solution LSF have developed a unique chemical recycling process to recover the hydrocarbon component of used rubber tyres, plastics and lube oils, and produce recovered distillate outputs and recovered Carbon Black. These can then be converted into new plastics, chemicals, rubber tyres and other consumer and industrial products. LSF’s recovered distillates can be used by refineries and plastic manufacturers to make new, as good as original, plastics, rubber tyres, industrial product and other industrial and consumer products. In simple terms they heat the input feedstock to a gas phase, then inject their proprietary electrolyt into the gas stream. LSF’s electrolyte reacts and cools the gas to produce a raw distillate/electrolyte mix. They separate and solvent wash the raw distillate to produce a clean, bright final distillate as well as other valuable outputs. The outputs can be used to make new chemical feedstocks, rubbers, plastics, and other valuable products. LSF’s key USP is that it produces a highly saturated distillate with low levels of contaminants by using their radical electrochemistry to deliver such results. Most of their current competitors cannot achieve this.
Contact Information: Contact Name: George Frodsham E-mail: george@medisieve.co.uk Website: https://www.medisieve.com/
Funding required: £8m
MediSieve is a London-based Biotech start-up that has developed Magnetic Haemofiltration, a revolutionary platform therapy that enables the physical removal of specific substances from the bloodstream of patients. It can be used to (1) treat disease, (2) improve the safety and efficacy of other therapies, and (3) to deliver drugs. The Problem Many substances that circulate in blood can cause serious clinical problems. Toxins, pathogens, cells, cytokines, harmful antibodies and others directly cause diseases, many of which can be fatal. Others block drug therapies (preventing them from reaching their intended target in the body), reducing safety and effectiveness. Despite the clear potential benefits, there is no technology available today that is able to physically remove specific substances from the bloodstream. Several technologies exist that can remove various substances from blood – extracorporeal therapies such as dialysis have been around since 1945 – but none are specific. They are limited in terms of what they can remove, and often remove the “good” with the “bad”, limiting their effectiveness and breadth of their applications. One disease for which no solution exists is Acute Hyperinflammation. Afflicted patients overreact to an infection causing their immune systems to start attacking their own bodies; mortality can be up to 30%. These overreactions are driven by an overproduction of inflammatory cytokines, with IL-6 playing a major role. No existing technology can specifically target and remove IL-6, and there is no approved treatment for these patients.
The Solution The Magnetic Haemofiltration System (“MHS”) is a Class II therapeutic-device combination that enables the selective removal of clinical targets directly from the bloodstream. The platform is an extracorporeal therapy: during the procedure a patient’s blood is circulated through an external blood loop. Nanoengineered magnetic beads, when injected in the loop, seek out and bind specifically to the targets. A magnetic filter then captures the beads and bound targets before they return to the body. Practically any target can be removed including specific cells, inflammatory cytokines, pathogens and antibodies, providing a platform to treat a huge range of medical conditions. Conjugating a drug to the surface of the beads also enables extracorporeal, time-controlled delivery of drugs with bloodborne targets. The first application targets and removes IL-6, intending to treat patients suffering from acute hyperinflammation. The rapid and selective removal of IL-6 in these patients (who include those suffering from pancreatitis, cytokine release syndrome, ARDS, critical COVID-19 and others) would be a novel and potentially life-saving intervention. The safety and efficacy of the IL-6 MHS has been demonstrated and the technology is ready to enter first-in-man clinical studies; ethics and regulatory approval have been granted for the first part of the studies.
Contact Information: Contact Name: Ian Russell E-mail: ian.russell@oxfordnanosystems.com Website: www.oxfordnanosystems.com
Funding required: £1.5 – 2m
Oxford nanoSystems (OnS) develops advanced and highly innovative coating technologies that reduce the cost per kW of alkaline hydrogen electrolysers. The Problem Green hydrogen has a critical role to play as an energy vector enabling global decarbonisation. However, the cost of production is a major obstacle to the widescale use of green hydrogen. Alkaline water electrolysis (AWE) is a mature technology. Advanced membranes, ‘zero gap’ electrode structures and catalytic electrode coatings have raised the performance of AWE such that it has the potential to dominate the future mix of green hydrogen production technologies. However, capex reductions are required to enable production of green hydrogen by AWE at the costs needed to support widespread adoption. Electrode coatings are a key area with potential for cost reduction. On the cathode side, coatings improve the efficiency of the hydrogen evolution reaction (i.e. lowering the electrical energy needed to cause hydrogen production at the cathode). State of the art (SotA) cathodic coatings are alloys incorporating platinum group metal (PGM) catalysts: for example, nickel loaded with platinum. Although these SotA coatings provide excellent catalytic activity performance, at costs of circa €400/m2, they are simply too costly. This cost arises from both the materials and associated application processes. High performance PGM-free catalytic cathodic coatings, that are lower in cost, are required to drive the rapid adoption of AWE.
The Solution OnS’ core technology is nanoFLUX, a highly porous coating that combines very high surface area with a morphology that enhances gas bubble release. Applied using a novel, low-cost, proprietary electro- chemical deposition process, nanoFLUX is a copper- nickel alloy coating with a dendritic surface structure that is typically 5-30 microns in thickness. OnS has developed a cathodic coating based on nanoFLUX combined with a non-PGM catalytic outer layer. This combination provides very high catalytic surface area, a surface structure that promotes hydrogen gas bubble release and ejection, plus other advantageous features. AWE flow cell tests have shown that OnS’ cathodic coating provides similar electro-catalytic performance to SotA PGM-loaded coatings. Based on detailed process cost analysis, OnS is confident that its cathodic coating can be applied for a small fraction of the cost of the PGM-loaded coatings. OnS will deliver a cathodic coating with SotA performance but at a fraction of the cost of existing PGM-loaded coatings. This will significantly reduce the capital cost of AWE hydrogen electrolysers on a cost/kW basis. This, in turn, will help drive the levelised cost of green hydrogen towards the critical target of $1/kg that is required for mass adoption.
Contact Information: Contact Name: Tim Craft E-mail: tim.craft@somnus-scientific.co.uk Website: www.somnus-scientific.com
Funding required: £2m Funding secured: £200,000 at commencement of round Somnus Scientific is a multi-award winning start-up diagnostics company with new IP being developed in the fields of sedation and anaesthesia. Somnus will fulfil the global unmet need of point-of-care measurement of propofol. The Problem Propofol is an intravenous hypnotic producing general anaesthesia in higher dose and sedation at lower doses. Propofol-based anaesthesia is often safer and more effective than the more commonly used gaseous anaesthetics, with patients experiencing fewer complications and recovering faster. Additionally, there is increasing research evidence that patients with certain types of cancer are significantly more likely to be alive 5 years after treatment if they have received propofol instead of gases. Despite this, gaseous anaesthesia remains preferred, as the levels of anaesthetic in each patient by measuring it in their breath. A widely acknowledged impediment to the greater use of intravenous anaesthesia is the current lack of an equivalent monitor – one that measures blood propofol concentration. Propofol is also used for sedation. It is the most widely used sedative in Intensive Care Units (ICUs) worldwide. Over sedation is common (up to 60% of patients) and results in an increased risk of death, longer time on a ventilator, and a longer hospital stay in ICU rehabilitation ward. Early market research has demonstrated a desire to be able to measure blood propofol concentration as part of the assessment of the depth of sedation.
The Solution Somnus is developing near-patient, real-time blood propofol concentration monitors. Prior to the company’s incorporation, no suitable propofol sensor existed. Having completed a technology landscape review, Somnus has created electrochemical sensors that detect propofol at clinically relevant concentrations. Propofol is electrochemically active and fouls electrodes during continuous measurement. The novel solution created by Somnus utilises an enzyme to metabolise propofol to its redox pair and detects a change in current proportional to the concentration of propofol. Electrode functionalisation has been achieved with carbon nanotubes and metal oxide additions. Interference studies have driven sensor voltage optimisation and novel means of separating free-propofol in whole blood developed. External validation of the sensor technology will be followed by product design including clinically optimised readers for the single use cartridge housing the sensor. The value proposition for Somnus’ products includes improved and personalised care for individual patients receiving sedation or anaesthesia. Healthcare providers will achieve better resource utilisation from shorter hospital stay as well as reduced drug expenditure, both from using less propofol and treating fewer side effects. With no change in bed numbers, bed availability will increase. Facilitating the switch from gaseous anaesthesia to intravenous propofol will massively reduce health-care derived climate change.
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