Zaiput Flow Technologies awards $10,000 in grants to three leading flow chemistry groups

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - Oct. 28, 2013 - PRLog -- Zaiput Flow Technologies, an MIT spin off marketing innovative devices for continuous flow chemistry, awards $10,000 in grants to 3 of the most prominent flow chemistry research groups worldwide. The grants are awarded as part of the company-sponsored  “Zaiput Challenge.” “We were overwhelmed by the quality of the applications received” stated Andrea Adamo, founder and CEO of Zaiput “ and we decided to add two $2,500 prizes for the most innovative submissions in addition to the initially planned $5,000 prize”.

Two grants go to Europe, one to the USA. Prof. Steven V. Ley, Dr. Claudio Battilocchio, and Richard J. Ingham from the University of Cambridge (UK) received the largest grant with a research project that aims at improving the sustainability of chemical processes.  These researchers will use the Zaiput liquid-liquid separator to “provide significant reductions in the amount of downstream processing required, enabling the telescoping of several stages within the synthesis.”

Dr. Nicholas Leadbeater and Trevor Hamlin from the University of Connecticut  (USA) will receive funding to further explore synthesis of organofluorine compounds. They will use Zaiput’s liquid-liquid separator to overcome a key hurdle in the synthesis process. “The final step of the reaction requires a switch in solvent and, if any of the prior solvent is left behind, the efficiency of the reaction is impacted,” they wrote. “Using the Zaiput liquid-liquid extractor, we plan to perform this solvent switch in a seamless way.”

Dr. Kerry Gilmore from the Max Planck Institute of Technology (Germany) will receive funding to implement a biphasic catalytic coupling reaction where the aqueous-soluble catalyst is continuously separated, recycled, and re-fed into the flow system.  Dr Gilmore explained that Zaiput’s liquid-liquid separator has the potential to enable use of “one biphasic catalytic system … to perform several sequential reactions – increasing the rate of scientific progress.”

The grants will be available immediately to support purchase of Zaiput Flow Technologies' products and include full technical support from the company to bring to completion the proposed research plans. They are part of the company’s mission to promote “groundbreaking innovations in flow chemistry”.  For more information visit www.zaiput.com/challengegrant.

About Zaiput Flow Technologies

Zaiput Flow Technologies is a start-up spun off from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, MA (USA). The company was incorporated to commercialize tools that enable and streamline flow chemistry applications. The first line of products launched in Spring 2013 includes a membrane-based liquid-liquid extractor and a back pressure regulator designed specifically for flow chemistry. The products are marketed worldwide.  For further information visit www.zaiput.com.