Small Business Innovation Research Program Provides Seed Funding for PFAS-related R&D
Elateq, Inc. has been awarded a $1mn National Science Foundation (NSF) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant to conduct research and development (R&D) work on a novel technology for advanced electrochemical degradation of “forever chemicals” or PFAS in water. The R&D will result in affordable, scalable, sustainable technology for effectively destroying PFAS, which can be easily operated and maintained on-site. The technology integrates electrochemically induced, advanced oxidation and reduction processes alongside an improved design of the conventional electrochemical flow cell to achieve high-performance mineralization of PFAS.
Elateq’s sustainable technology for removing PFAS from water aims to protect public health and the environment from the adverse impacts of PFAS, not only from direct exposure to these chemicals but also indirect adverse impacts originating from current solutions—high energy consumption, harsh chemicals used for maintenance, and the need for, e.g., incineration as a PFAS-loaded waste post-processing.
Roderick Anderson, Elateq’s CEO: “The NSF SBIR award is a critical support of Elateq’s efforts to develop such technology that we can comfortably stop naming PFAS as forever chemicals.”
About the National Science Foundation’s Small Business Programs
Once a small business is awarded a Phase I SBIR/STTR grant (up to $275,000), it becomes eligible to apply for a Phase II (up to $1,000,000). Small businesses with Phase II funding are eligible to receive up to $500,000 in additional matching funds with qualifying third-party investments or sales. To learn more about America’s Seed Fund powered by NSF, visit: https://seedfund.nsf.gov/
America’s Seed Fund powered by NSF awards $200 million annually to startups and small businesses, transforming scientific discovery into products and services with commercial and societal impact. Startups working across almost all areas of science and technology can receive up to $2 million to support research and development (R&D), helping de-risk technology for commercial success. America’s Seed Fund is congressionally mandated through the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. The NSF is an independent federal agency with a budget of about $8.5 billion that supports fundamental research and education across all fields of science and engineering.