Belfast-based MOF Technologies is to license two new nanomaterials developed by Limerick-based researchers as part of an attempt to fight greenhouse gases in Europe.
The company said it would develop the two metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) – nanomaterials that are effective at capturing and storing carbon - known as TIFSIX and SIFSIX – from the University of Limerick. Researchers there had developed the materials in response to an EU-led initiative to cut greenhouse gas emissions in Europe.
"The 2030 Climate and Energy Framework commits all EU member states to a 40 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions over the coming years," said MOF Technologies chief executive Dr Paschal McCloskey. "The development of this new class of adsorbent materials by Prof Mike Zaworotko and the team at UL, which exhibit unprecedented gas capture and storage potential, combined with MOF Technologies' ability to produce MOFs on a commercial scale, will provide Ireland with an opportunity to make a real contribution to the global fight against climate change."
MOF Technologies, which was spun out of Queen’s University four years ago, became the world’s first company to successfully commercialise metal-organic frameworks, which are crystalline, sponge-like materials that are composed of two components – metal ions and organic molecules known as linkers.
The porous materials can store, separate and capture specific gases and be used in everything from natural gas storage in vehicles to drug delivery devices.
