SBIR-STTR Award

Under this Phase I grant, NuMat Technologies (NuMat) will determine if metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) can be used to remove impurities from hydrogen gas streams at the point of use. The impurities of interest include carbon monoxide, ammonia, sulfur-containing compounds, hydrocarbons, and water. Under the first objective of Phase I, a comprehensive evaluation of MOFs will be carried out to identify the most efficient materials to remove each impurity of relevance. This objective will be achieved by employing a computational screening of the adsorption properties of a library of over a thousand MOFs, followed by synthesis and validation of the highest performing MOFs experimentally. Secondly, methods for incorporating the leading candidates into formed bodies suitable for the application will be evaluated including incorporation into adsorbent filters and membranes. Also, ways to detect excursions in the purity of the hydrogen stream will be evaluated under Phase I. Two sensing routes will be assessed, the use of the MOF itself and the incorporation of other sensor systems to determine gas purity. Finally, the economics of scaling the most promising MOFs will be evaluated, allowing NuMat to understand the cost of commercialization at different scales. Phase I work will allow for prototype systems to be developed under Phase II. The primary focus of the team at NuMat is the development of commercial technologies based on MOFs. To achieve this goal a multidisciplinary team of over thirty people has been assembled that includes chemists, engineers, and business experts. This team has successfully developed the first commercial MOF based product, ION-X®. ION-X® is a product used in the electronics industry to safely store and deliver highly toxic gases sub-atmospherically including arsine and phosphine. Beyond ION-X®, NuMat has a robust product pipeline with other MOF based products expected to be rolled out over the coming year. This product pipeline includes products focused on separation and purification of multicomponent gas streams. In developing these technologies, NuMat has established expertise, instruments, and protocols to rapidly identify MOFs for commercial applications and evaluate if they can be incorporated into successful products. The team at NuMat will utilize this experience in MOF chemistry and sensing to rapidly achieve the objectives of this Phase I SBIR outlined above. This SBIR opportunity presents an ideal route for growth at NuMat, aligning with the goals of the company to expand MOFs into new commercial opportunities. NuMat?s initial commercial success has been a result of identifying small volume high-value applications where MOFs could be leveraged to overcome commercial challenges. NuMat is now seeking to establish market opportunities where MOFs can be deployed to overcome emerging challenges that have the potential to grow exponentially. The inline purification of hydrogen is an application that could proliferate over the coming years as hydrogen markets expand and now MOFs are uniquely suited to play a critical role in this market. Furthermore, these MOF-based technologies developed here may be broadly applicable to the bulk purification of hydrogen.

Under this Phase II grant, NuMat Technologies (NuMat) will continue to develop metal-organic frameworks as point-of-use hydrogen purifiers. These purifiers, once realized, will be deployed to ensure high purity hydrogen is delivered to fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs). Data collected at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory has shown that hydrogen purity at fueling stations can be lower than the required standards outlined by the Society of Automotive Engineers. Impurities can damage the fuel cell catalyst reducing its lifetime and requiring expensive repairs. Decreases in hydrogen purity are a result of the introduction of contaminants during the transportation, storage, and compression of hydrogen. The point-of-use purifiers developed by NuMat under this SBIR contract will capture the impurities introduced, guaranteeing the delivery of high purity hydrogen to the fuel cell. These filters will increase FCEV lifetimes, reduce maintenance costs, and keep vehicles on the road longer. Through Phase I research, NuMat showed that metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) could be used to adsorb impurities found in a hydrogen fuel stream, including carbon monoxide, hydrogen sulfide, and ammonia. Under Phase II, NuMat will build upon this work, developing and testing a prototype filter system. The materials will be optimized, scaled, and formed before they are deployed in a filter. These prototype systems will be extensively tested to determine their efficacy, and several rounds of optimization will be performed. This work will leverage NuMat’s extensive experience in integrating MOFs into commercial products. NuMat is dedicated to the commercialization of technologies that leverage the unique properties of MOFs. A multidisciplinary team of over thirty people has been assembled to achieve this goal, including chemists, engineers, and business experts. This team has successfully developed the first commercial MOF based product, ION-X®, which is a product used in the electronics industry to safely store and deliver highly toxic gases sub-atmospherically, including arsine and phosphine. Beyond ION-X®, NuMat has a robust product pipeline that includes gas purification products used in the semiconductor industry and filter materials deployed by the Department of Defense in filter applications. In developing these technologies, NuMat has developed a robust product pipeline to transition MOF-based technologies to higher technology readiness levels (TRLs). This SBIR will use NuMat’s product pipeline to advance hydrogen purifiers to higher TRLs. This SBIR opportunity presents an ideal route for growth at NuMat, aligning with the goals of the company to expand MOFs into new commercial opportunities. NuMat’s initial commercial success has been a result of identifying small volume and high-value applications where MOFs could be leveraged to overcome commercial challenges. NuMat is now seeking to establish market opportunities where MOFs can be deployed to overcome emerging problems that have the potential to grow exponentially. The inline purification of hydrogen is an application that will proliferate over the coming years as hydrogen markets expand. Data collected under Phase I shows that MOFs are uniquely suited to play a critical role in this market. Furthermore, the MOF-based technologies developed here may also be broadly applicable to the bulk purification of hydrogen.