INCJ to invest $8m in Japan's Microwave Chemical
The Innovation Network Corporation of Japan (INCJ) will invest JPY800 million ($7.8 million) in Microwave Chemical (MWC), a Osaka University start-up seeking to commercialize innovative chemical processes using microwaves.
Additional capital is also being provided by existing shareholders The University of Tokyo Edge Capital (UTEC), Jafco and Nippon Venture Capital.
While microwaves are widely used in home cooking appliances, it is still difficult to apply the same principle to high-volume chemical processes. MWC, which was set up in 2007, claims to have overcome this by developing a proprietary technology which allows microwaves to be used in the chemical manufacture.
The technology has already been used in the production of fatty acid butyl ester 1, an industrial chemical which is widely used as an ink and cosmetics solvent.
According to a release, the technology can simplify a wide range of processes that involve high-temperature, high-pressure and time-consuming chemical reactions. It has also been used in the extraction of oil from algae, the production of graphene, the synthesis of polymers such as polyester, nanoparticle synthesis, and gas reaction processes.
MWC is now focusing on chemical manufacturing processes in food chemistry and has reached an agreement with food and pharmaceuticals company Taiyo Kagaku to jointly explore business opportunities.
In addition to providing capital, INCJ will also dispatch external directors to MWC, help strengthen its business development framework and support future strategic partnerships similar to the one with Taiyo Kagaku.
INCJ has already made a number of investments in start-ups established on the back of R&D carried out at Japanese universities. Last month it invested JPY600 million in Material Concept, a manufacturer of copper paste for use in electrical components and solar panels, set up by Professor Junichi Koike of Tohoku University in partnership with Japan's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT).
INCJ has also backed UniZeo, a company set up by Nippon Chemical Industrial through a joint research project with University of Tokyo, and Exvision, a company that has developed a high-speed image processing technology in partnership with the University of Tokyo.
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