Imagine the lukewarm water or air escaping a factory; usually, it's too cool to be useful. This technology acts like a specialized sponge that turns that mild heat into a salt-like gradient, which then pushes through a nano-filter to create electricity. It's essentially a way to squeeze power out of heat that was previously considered trash.
Industries waste massive amounts of low-grade heat (<100 °C) because it is technically difficult and expensive to convert into electricity. This results in significant energy inefficiency and higher carbon footprints for energy-intensive sectors.
A laboratory-scale energy recovery system using thermo-sensible ionic liquids and an Ionic Nano Osmotic Diffusion (INOD) engine to convert temperature gradients into electricity.
If you are an AI infrastructure provider dealing with massive cooling costs and heat dissipation — this project developed a harvesting solution that converts low grade heat (<100 °C) into electricity. This allows you to recover energy from servers to lower your operational carbon footprint.
If you are a specialty chemical plant dealing with energy-intensive processes — this project developed a system using thermo-sensible ionic liquids that captures waste heat. It turns low-grade heat into power, targeting the 63% of recoverable heat that is usually wasted.
If you are an industrial food producer dealing with high energy bills and thermal waste — this project developed an osmotic engine (INOD) that generates electric power from heat under 90°C. This helps reduce the environmental impact of your processing lines.
Based on available project data, specific pricing is not provided, but the project is currently evaluating the development of new components to ensure the system can withstand heat conditions at a lower cost.
The project is moving from laboratory screening to a pilot scale. The objective is to reach TRL6 through a testing phase with an international industrial corporation to secure market readiness.
The project report indicates that patent applications will be filed following the promising laboratory findings.
The system is designed to harvest low-grade waste heat (<100 °C) from industrial processes and convert it into electricity via a closed-loop operation.
The project is supported by Veolia and Solvay, and the coordinator is collaborating with potential industrial partners.
The project is led by a single French SME, Sweetch Energy, indicating a highly concentrated IP ownership model. While the consortium consists of only 1 partner, the business risk is mitigated by the strategic support of two industrial giants, Veolia and Solvay, and a clear path toward TRL6 via an international industrial corporation.
Contact Sweetch Energy (France) regarding the INOD technology
Contact us to connect with Sweetch Energy for pilot site opportunities.
