Accelerate your sustainability solution with tailored expertise, equipment and co-funding.
Applications are open for the The Trailblazer for Recycling and Clean Energy (TRaCE) R&D Voucher program, a gateway to knowledge, resources and co-funding to help get your idea off the ground and scaling to commercial success.
With an R&D Voucher and TRaCE’s ecosystem of support, you can accelerate and de-risk the commercial development of your novel recycling and clean energy technology ideas, while making your innovation budget go further.
Eligible small-to-medium enterprise, startups and scaleups can receive matched funding of up to $50,000 and access one clear pathway to invaluable research and development infrastructure, equipment, skills and knowledge.
EM Energy: creating hydrogen from waste
EM Energy, co-founded by Isabel Toasa and Chris Wilson, is the first recipient of the R&D Voucher program. They’re developing the Organic Hydrogen Electrolyser Cell (OHEC), which can produce hydrogen from almost any organic material.
Unlike other hydrogen production technologies, EM Energy’s OHEC doesn’t rely on excessive amounts of water or energy, making it a fitting candidate for power generation or industrial heating in communities with waste biomass. The OHEC just uses waste to produce hydrogen which can be co-located exactly where industries need it to help them decarbonise.
They knew they were onto something big, but didn’t have the facilities or equipment to test the amount or purity of hydrogen the OHEC produced.
“We tried to work in shared laboratories, but because it was a communal space we had to pack up everything which became very time consuming. We also didn’t own the right equipment, so we couldn’t perform the tests we needed to,” said Chris Wilson.
Through the TRaCE program they have been formally connected with Dr Peter Richardson to kick off a research project to test and validate the production of green hydrogen from the OHEC. After signing on, Isabel and Chris decided to make the move from Sydney to Newcastle to fully immerse themselves in the process.
“We saw the amount of industry in Newcastle and knew that’s where we’ll scale up,” she said.
Chris shared that he’s excited to grow EM Energy through the support of the TRaCE R&D Voucher Program, saying “it’s going to give us access to some of the really great resources within the University, such as the research staff, equipment and labs, helping us to accelerate our research and development activities for the company.”
EM Energy’s early results are already looking promising, and Isabel and Chris are looking forward to seeing what other TRaCE opportunities they may be able to take advantage of to get their groundbreaking technology to market.
Get in touch
TRaCE is a Commonwealth-backed program where our team act as your concierge, guiding you through an ecosystem of support to advance Australia’s manufacturing priorities and contribute to the global push towards Net Zero.
If you’re eager to see what a TRaCE R&D Voucher could do for your business, learn here.
Limited opportunities available. Apply here.
