Mülheim-based Deep Tech start-up Minerva Carbon has secured €1.8 million ($2.1m) in funding through the EXIST Transfer of Research programme to commercialise mesoporous high-performance carbon materials for advanced battery and fuel cell applications.
The company was founded by Dr Abdu Bilican, a former PhD researcher at the Max-Planck-Institut für Kohlenforschung. Mesoporous carbons offer high potential for energy storage and catalysis, but scalable synthesis methods have remained elusive. During his doctoral research, Bilican developed a faster, more efficient process for producing these materials at industrial scale.
“We now have a unique opportunity to commercialise mesoporous carbons with outstanding properties on a large scale for a wide range of applications,” says Bilican.
Initial tests show the carbon materials significantly improve fast-charging performance in batteries and enhance the long-term stability of PEM fuel cells. A pilot plant is now under construction at the Max Planck Institute to support scale-up.
“Our aim is to combine cutting-edge research with modern production technology. This will allow us to manufacture application-optimised carbon materials efficiently and sustainably right here in North Rhine-Westphalia,” adds co-founder Jonas Gram, formerly of the Fraunhofer Institute.
The founding team brings expertise in strategy, automation, finance and lab-scale quality control. Their shared goal is to strengthen Germany’s role in battery and fuel cell innovation and contribute to a European battery value chain.
Image: The team: Abdu Bilican (front), Julius Kaiser (left), Jonas Gram (right), and Nguyen-Khan Tran (back). © Minerva Carbon
