Redeem Solar Technologies

Redeem Solar Technologies, founded in February 2023 and based in Graz, Austria, is a company focused on revolutionizing the chemical industry through photocatalysis. The firm was established by CEO Malek Ibrahim and COO Florian Ehrlich-Sommer. Ibrahim holds a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and has experience as a postdoctoral researcher at North Carolina State University and in the petrochemical industry, holding several patents and publications. Ehrlich-Sommer earned his MSc. in Chemistry from TU Graz and possesses experience in field sales, industrial machinery maintenance, and business development.

The company develops and commercializes patent-protected, modular photocatalytic reactors that utilize solar energy to produce green hydrogen, fertilizers, and other chemicals. This technology aims to overcome previous limitations of photocatalysis by incorporating a reusable photocatalyst and a high-efficiency photoreactor design. A key feature of the reactor is its ability to instantaneously separate gas bubbles as they form, maximizing the use of light energy. The system effectively combines the functions of a photovoltaic cell, an electrolyzer, and a purification unit into a single, scalable device that operates at ambient temperatures without complex electronics. Their product line includes over 10 flow reactor models and more than 20 catalyst formulations to suit various research and industrial needs.

Redeem Solar Technologies targets a diverse client base across several sectors, including green hydrogen production, sustainable chemicals, on-site fertilizer production, wastewater treatment, and pharmaceuticals. The company has a notable connection to the aerospace industry, with its technology being suitable for in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) for long-duration space missions by producing fuels and chemicals. Its business model involves direct B2B sales for large-scale industrial applications and sales through laboratory equipment distributors for smaller-scale reactors. The company outsources the machining of reactor parts and sources catalyst raw materials from partners, while handling final assembly and quality control in-house. For market penetration, Redeem provides initial units to key customers in each sector at low or no profit for validation purposes. The firm has received pre-seed funding from investors like Science Park Graz, the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG), and Austria Wirtschaftsservice (aws). Keywords: photocatalysis, green hydrogen, solar chemicals, flow chemistry, sustainable chemistry, solar reactors, chemical manufacturing, photocatalytic reactors, green fertilizers, on-site chemical production, renewable energy technology, aerospace ISRU, wastewater treatment, carbon-neutral industry, photochemistry, TU Graz spin-off, catalyst technology, modular reactors, solar energy conversion, chemical engineering