Vision: To be the world leader in research, development and commercialization of Multifunctional Polymeric Materials and Membranes for chemical and biological applications.
The Company's proprietary platform technology is electron-beam-induced grafting of combinatorial nano/micro polymer brushes. This technology can impart on existing materials and membranes new & multiple functions. For example, a microporous membrane with grafted functionalized micro brushes not only performs microfiltration (by molecular size cutoff), the functional groups on its brushes can simultaneously capture and remove toxic metal ions, soluble proteins, viruses or cells from the filtrate. In this process, common polymeric base materials in a variety of shapes (film, hollow fiber, nonwoven cloth, etc) are exposed to an electron beam that creates highly reactive radicals in the material. Each radical acts as a starting point for the polymerization of a new polymer brush that extends off the surface of the starting material. The density or spacing of these polymer brushes is extraordinary and exceeds all other methods used to modify polymeric materials. The density and the length of the polymer brushes can be easily controlled. And, since there is a large and varied selection of chemical monomers, each with unique chemical properties that can be used to form these brushes, there are numerous functions that can be imparted onto polymeric materials and membranes. For example, the Company has produced functionalized microporous hollow-fiber membranes that selectively bind proteins and viruses. Using a continuous manufacturing approach, the large-scale production of these functionalized materials and membranes is readily and economically scaled up. Thus, the Company has a rich and versatile technology platform capable of generating a vast array of novel materials and membranes that can be manufactured from lab to industrial scales.