A company spun off from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology is seeking to crowdfund a patented exhaust gas purification system for all ship fuels.
It will be boulted on what Daphne Technology said are proven technologies.
The company is partnering Crowdcube, the world’s largest crowdfunding platform, to offer equity to the public.
Initial target is for €400,000 ($485,299) and said it hopes "for double, and would be great to reach €1m".
The move comes after it already raised €8m ($9.7m) from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme.
The Lausanne-based firm, which said it is in discussion with three major shipping companies seeking to retrofit its system to LNG vessels by the end of 2022, believes there is public demand to support technologies that fight climate change. Investors will be able to pledge amounts starting at €10.
“Daphne Technology is currently pursuing its second equity round to pilot test our solutions with leading shipowners,” said founder and chief executive Dr Mario Michan. Its shareholders already include Aramco and the Innovation Fund from Belgium.
The company, which was launched in 2017, offers a “universal green converter” aimed at helping shipping to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 no matter what fuel is used.
The exhaust purification system is claimed to reduce emissions of CO2, NOx and SOx from heavy fuel oil (HFO), as well as NOx and NH3 from ammonia, while taking CO2, NOx and methane from LNG. The HFO system transforms pollutants into fertiliser that can be sold while the LNG unit cuts 90% of methane slip.
“Owners will have to embrace innovative technologies that enable a multi-fuel and a multi-emissions solution,” Michan said to achieve zero emissions.
He added that its unique technology can give the “most flexible and economically viable path towards compliance with existing and pending regulations”.
Daphne Technology owns patents that build on proven technologies, including Dielectric Barrier Discharge and Electron Beam Flue Gas Treatment, which remove toxic pollutants and emissions from engine and boiler exhaust gas.
It has seven potential pilot installations on board ships and 50 potential commercial prospects, according to its website. It is also active in a number of pilot projects with classification society DNV in Norway related to ammonia as a fuel, as well as carbon capture and storage.
After closing the crowdfunding, Daphne Technology said it will also pursue an equity round targeting institutional investors, corporations and venture capital firms.
