More than 160 submissions from 30 countries were received, and the winners were chosen from 14 finalists at a three-day event at the company’s RD&I center in Deventer, the Netherlands.
Two overall winners were awarded joint development agreements (JDA): Sironix Renewables (USA) received a JDA from Nouryon and Imagine Chemistry partner Unilever for its technology to make surfactants from plants; and Ionomr (Canada) received a JDA from Nouryon for its eco-friendly membrane technology.
Six other groups will receive the following awards:
- Ingu Solutions (Canada) – supply agreement with Nouryon for its miniaturized pipeline sensors;
- RISE (Sweden) – research agreement with Nouryon for its technology to modify the surface of nanoparticles;
- Intelligent Fluids (Germany) – research agreement with Nouryon plus partner support by ICOS Capital for its physics-based cleaning fluids;
- Cambridge Carbon Capture (United Kingdom) – partner support by Lux Research for its technology to capture and convert CO2 into a saleable mineral;
- Arenal Process Control Solutions (the Netherlands) – chemical research support for its ultrasonic and thermal sensors for monitoring production processes;
- The University of Sheffield and Entomics (United Kingdom) – chemical research support by Nouryon for its insect-derived surfactants.
“Since 2017, Imagine Chemistry has generated more than 500 innovative ideas, and Nouryon will focus on a Go-to-Market program to make sure that as many as possible reach commercialization, said Marco Waas, Director RD&I Industrial Chemistry.