VentureBeat

The next big cleantech innovation may, ironically, come from a company that thinks small. Nanotechnology, a multidisciplinary field of applied science that operates at the atomic or molecular level, is increasingly making the leap from the lab setting to the startup phase, with firms like MemPro Ceramics, a maker of catalytic filters, trying to blaze a new industry.

The company, founded in 2001 and based in Copper Mountain, Colo., uses a ceramic nanofiber filtration technology licensed from the University of Akron to scrub pollutants from exhaust systems in cars and power plants with a very small amount of catalysts. Ceramics are considered a superior filter material because they can easily withstand extreme conditions and harsh chemicals. They are cheap to make and reusable, and, because of their small size and toughness, offer more versatility.

Nanofibers coated with catalysts, which help speed up chemical reactions, capture and filter nitrogen oxides and particulates from the exhaust, leaving only oxygen and nitrogen behind. MemPro’s goal is to design filters capable of capturing upwards of 90 percent of particles.

While not revolutionary in itself — the filtration technology was adapted from a technology that the firm already uses in its products for the food and beverages, biotech and pharmaceutical industries — this new technology could allow companies in the automotive and energy sectors to develop a broad range of much cleaner exhaust systems.

John Finley, MemPro’s CEO, believes the filters could eventually become the basis for a multi-billion dollar industry. Not only will this technology help companies reduce their emissions, Finley says, but it will also drastically reduce manufacturing costs.

Though still widely viewed by environmentalists and scientists alike with some suspicion, nanotechnology has come a long way toward being broadly accepted over a relatively short period of time. Indeed, while there are lingering concerns about the unintended health effects of nanoparticles, many now realize that nanotechnology could yield some significant environmental benefits.

Companies like NanoGram and SunFlake A/S claim nanotechnology will help them manufacture ultra-efficient, low cost solar cells while others, like NanoDynamics, are using it to improve the efficiency and reduce the emissions of everything from fuel cells to water filters.

NanoGlowa, an international consortium of universities, power plant operators and other carbon-intensive industries, is designing nanostructured membranes that can capture and separate carbon dioxide from flue gases — a technique that is much cheaper than existing scrubbing technologies, it says.

Many of the most promising technologies, such as a chlorine-tolerant membrane that would make desalination much simpler, are still in the lab, however. It’s also important to point out that even the technologies being developed by companies like NanoGram and MemPro Ceramics are still in their infancies.

MemPro Ceramics, for one, could benefit from raising more cash to back its research and commercialization efforts. So far, it has received several grants from the National Science Foundation, including, most recently, $500,000 to cover its R&D costs through June 2010, and some funding from several small private investors. It is currently in talks with several major energy firms to negotiate distribution agreements, and plans on building up its production capacity over the coming months.

With a fresh $32 million funding going to nanotechnoloy firm NanoGram, mainly for development of next-generation solar cells, it’s a good time to point out some up-and-coming technologies that work on very small scales to make photovoltaic cells more efficient.

NanoGram has already had several commercial successes, including inventions in both electronics and medicine. However, the company has of late turned its sights on boosting the efficiency of solar cells.

The company is working on ultra-thin crystalline silicon which it says will reduce the cost of silicon-based solar cells to below $1 per watt hour, a price point that is generally considered a breakthrough.

Its latest funding is notable because Nanogram had so far only taken $27 million in funding since its inception in 1996, growing to over $20 million in annual revenue. It plans to use the additional $32 million (investor details at bottom) in part toward a pilot plant for solar modules.

SunFlake A/S, a European company, makes the same claim of being able to manufacture a low-cost cell with about 30 percent efficiency, roughly double the efficiency of the average solar cell available today.

Headed by noted scientist Martin Aagesen, the company plans to make use of a type of nanowire discovered by Aagesen that he calls “nanoflakes.” Blessed with a perfect crystalline structure, nanoflakes are capable of absorbing nearly all light directed at them, according to the company.

By growing its nanowires into a low-grade silicon substrate, SunFlake will reduce the need for large amounts of high-quality polysilicon when making cells. However, it has yet to announce plans to commercially manufacture cells.

Another methods on the horizon is the use of metal oxide nanoparticals in cells. Dr. Jin Zhang of the University of California, Santa Cruz, plans to use a combination of nanoparticles and quantum dots (using nano-crystals, as SunFlake does) to make a highly efficient solar cell.

(Nanotechnology, by the way, refers the field of science that works at the atomic and molecular scale, roughly between 1 to 100 nanometers. Elements and compounds take on different characteristics when they are so tiny, and studying them is leading to new users and inventions, as we’re seeing here.)

A team led by Zhang and including other researchers from China and Mexico recently tested a prototype cell using a nanocomposite material of their own devising. The cell performed even better than the researchers expected.

“We’re manipulating the energy levels of the nanocomposite material so the electrons can work more efficiently for electricity generation,” Zhang told ScienceDaily. His research is currently supported by various governmental groups from the three countries involved.

One note when considering these up-and-coming technologies: It will probably be about five years before they hit the market in force. However, as new technologies become more common, existing cost balances between different solar technologies, like polysilicon and CIGS cells, will likely be upset.

Finally, returning to NanoGram’s funding, the company brought on new investors Global Cleantech Capital, Masdar Clean Tech Fund, Mitsui Ventures, Nagase & Company, Nanostart AG, TEL Venture Capital, and Yasuda Enterprise Development for the round. Existing investors ATA Ventures, Bay Partners, Harris & Harris, Institutional Venture Partners, Nth Power, Rockport Capital Partners, SBV Venture Partners, and Technology Partners also participated.

The flexible chips industry doesn’t grab a lot of headlines, but it is bringing together nanotech, biotech, and other technologies to possibly usher in some revolutionary new products.

We’ve been quietly checking up on some of the venture-backed companies in this area, including NanoGram, Plextronics and Plastic Logic. They are few, and slow-moving, but worth a look.

Their potential applications sound straight out of sci-fi: interactive displays embedded in anything from clothing to wall paper, newspapers that update in real-time, soldiers wearing camouflage that changes color with their surroundings. There’s hype, too. Last month, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer newspaper dismissed a report saying it was looking to test flexible “e-paper.”

However, with the right high-tech materials and machines, semiconductors can be deposited on highly durable, flexible and — importantly — cheap substrates like plastic, often replacing silicon and glass. See this picture below.

Those inky looking things are circuits. Instead of the highly complex, capital-intensive fabrication process used today, printed electronics, in a way similar to newspaper printing, uses a roll-to-roll method, literally printing circuitry on the material as it scrolls by.

The near-term applications of flexible electronics will dramatically reduce the cost of radio frequency identification (RFID) chips, with most people expecting these RFIDs will be as prolific as bar codes are right now. Other players are making lightweight, flexible and relatively cheap solar panels that can go nearly anywhere. Later on, these flexible solar panels could actually bend to follow the sun as it tracks across the sky.

Then here’s military applications, where flexible electronics could enable soldiers to shed as much as 20 lbs of equipment, with GPS, threat detection, and health monitoring systems built into their clothes.

Before any of this can happen, a number of factors need to line up: Nanotech companies have to develop the right substrates; manufacturers need to implement new ways to mass produce them; and mainstream companies have to buy in.

Pittsburgh’s Plextronics uses organic polymers for substrates and aims to combine light, power, and circuitry in one tiny device. The company has raised over $16 million from Birchmere Ventures, Firelake Capital, and Draper Triangle Ventures. One of its major clients is PolyIC, which prints the chips, is the product of a joint venture between Siemens and Kurz. Milpitas, Calif.’s NanoGram, though technically not a start-up, changed its direction in 2004 and has since raised $25 million from a number of investors, including Technology Partners, ATA Ventures, and Nth Power Technologies. It is taking a different approach than most other companies in the field and working with silicon instead of plastic. It has recently partnered with a manufacturer in Japan to work on producing materials for flexible displays. Some other start-ups working on materials for flexible circuits are Guided Particle and Polyera.

The industry is in its infancy. In the last three years, $350 million in venture funding has gone to companies working in the field, and $100 million of that was invested by Oak Investment Partners and Tudor Investments in UK’s Plastic Logic for their production facility in Dresden, Germany. But compare that $100 million to the $2-4 billion spent on silicon wafer production facilities — and the room for growth in flexible electronics becomes clear. Polymer Vision, a potential competitor, has raised $21M (see alarm:clock euro).

Some big companies are already active. Sony and LG.Philips LCD have made announcements, and Motorola was one of the presenters promoting printed electronics at a recent conference organized by the U.S. Display Consortium.

The conference attracted over 50 VC firms, including Applied Materials, Bessemer Venture Partners, and Battery Ventures.