WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind., May 20, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Professors from multiple Purdue locations, cross-disciplinary students and industry have all joined together with a singular focus: safer water.

A new Purdue-developed technology drastically improves water quality, addressing contamination in both residential and industrial applications with an energy efficient, ambient temperature solution. Testing has shown that this technology can effectively destroy a variety of hazardous chemicals ranging from fuel additives to pharmaceuticals at scale. Recent results from two third-party testing laboratories have shown that this technology also destroyed “forever chemicals,” including PFAS, in samples from California test sites.

Rey Barreto, associate professor of chemistry at Purdue University Northwest (PNW), disclosed this innovation to the Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialization (OTC).

“This innovation represents an exciting leap forward in the development of water treatment,” said Dipak Narula, the OTC’s lead technology development liaison and assistant director of business development and licensing – physical sciences. “This disclosure offered a unique opportunity for us to connect academia and industry in a way that allowed the project to become much larger than the sum of its parts. We look forward to continuing to connect bold ideas to the industry partners who can drive them toward the market.”

Reflecting the breadth of Boilermaker talent, several Purdue faculty supported the project through their wide range of expertise:

• Charles Steele, physical science lecturer and forensic science coordinator at PNW
• Fred Berry, professor at the Purdue Polytechnic Institute’s School of Engineering Technology (SoET)
• Jim Condron, assistant professor of practice at the Purdue Polytechnic Institute’s SoET
• Tillmann Kubis, Purdue University’s Katherine Ngai Pesic & Silvaco Associate Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering in the Elmore Family School of Electrical and Computer Engineering
• Christina Ferreira, assistant research faculty and lipidomics scientist at the Bindley Bioscience Center

With promising innovation comes industry interest. The water treatment technology caught the attention of Rene Ramirez, founder of Fino Advisors, who decided to fund early-stage development in partnership with the university. This collaboration led to Frellmann Water Technologies, a startup spun out from the project now advancing Barreto’s innovation firmly out of the lab and into the real world.

“At Fino Advisors, we’re focused on backing affordable, low-energy technologies with the potential to transform critical systems for both people and the planet,” said Ramirez. “Traditionally, full destruction technologies are exorbitantly expensive and don’t scale well while most affordable technologies are only able to filter contaminants. Frellmann’s technology is designed to handle contaminants of emerging concern for the long term for volumes both municipal and industrial. By combining Purdue’s scientific expertise with our industry insight, we’re accelerating the path to cleaner, safer water at almost any scale.”

Uniquely, the water project has developed without federal funding, instead matching industry funding and interest with the power of Purdue’s talent pipeline.

The water treatment project also utilized seven capstones, a final project in which teams of students use their combined knowledge to solve real-world problems for businesses. Since the water project’s inception, over 60 students from two Purdue campuses have worked to bring the innovation to market readiness through the university’s Fusion Point® program (industry-funded capstone projects).

“This technology embodies our vision for leveraging the collective strengths of Purdue and our industry partners,” Berry said. “By providing undergraduates with hands-on learning experiences and fostering collaboration among professors and entrepreneurs, we create a dynamic team capable of executing transformative projects. This initiative will fundamentally alter our approach to water treatment, showcasing the powerful outcomes that arise when diverse talents unite.”

Solving some of the world’s most pressing issues can’t be done alone and nothing exemplifies this more than the innovation currently unfolding through this uniquely collaborative Purdue project. Currently scheduled to be fully deployed in multiple central California locations, the team hopes to soon expand the technology nationwide.

About Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialization
The Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialization operates one of the most comprehensive technology transfer programs among leading research universities in the U.S. Services provided by this office support the economic development initiatives of Purdue University and benefit the university’s academic activities through commercializing, licensing and protecting Purdue intellectual property. In fiscal year 2024, the office reported 145 deals finalized with 224 technologies signed, 466 invention disclosures received and 290 U.S. and international patents received. The office is managed by the Purdue Research Foundation, which received the 2019 Innovation and Economic Prosperity Universities Award for Place from the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities. In 2020, IPWatchdog Institute ranked Purdue third nationally in startup creation and in the top 20 for patents. The Purdue Research Foundation is a private, nonprofit foundation created to advance the mission of Purdue University. Contact otcip@prf.org for more information.

About Fino Advisors
Fino Advisors is a mission-driven investment and advisory firm focused on venture infrastructure. Fino primarily focuses on value driven sustainability in the energy, water and waste spaces. With a deep understanding of both science and strategy, Fino partners with research institutions, entrepreneurs, and industry leaders to accelerate innovations from lab to market. Fino also works with current technologies to offer market avenues in “shovel ready” projects. Whether through direct investment, commercialization support, or strategic advisory, Fino Advisors is committed to building ventures that address the world’s most pressing challenges with ingenuity and integrity.

About Frellmann Water Technologies
Frellmann Water Technologies is a clean-tech startup spun out of Purdue University research, built to commercialize a breakthrough in water treatment that destroys PFAS and other harmful contaminants at the molecular level. The company was founded by Rene Ramirez, with early support from Fino Advisors, to accelerate the deployment of this innovation beyond the lab.

Attachments

• In the lab: landfill leachate before and after
• Landfill leachate poses significant environmental concerns

Polly Barks
Purdue Research Foundation
phbarks@prf.org