BALTIMORE, Nov. 09, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pixelligent, whose PixClear® high-index Designer Compounds™ deliver unparalleled brightness, clarity and operating efficiencies for a broad range of optoelectronic and industrial applications, today announced a $1.8M grant from the Department of Energy - Advanced Manufacturing Office. Pixelligent, along with its partners at the University of Pennsylvania’s Department of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics and Argonne National Labs, will use the funding to accelerate development of the company’s PixClear® nanocomposite technology for advanced lubricants.

“This grant is a critical step in commercializing our self-assembling PixClear® nanoparticles in next generation lubricants,” said Serpil Gonen-Williams, CTO of Pixelligent. “We are honored to have partnered with the US Departments of Energy and Defense several times over the past 8 years on over $4M of funded programs, as we’ve worked towards a product that will enhance the durability and efficiency of mission-critical equipment. On this grant, we are again working with the renowned Carpick Research Group at the University of Pennsylvania and Argonne National Labs, and we are proud to have ExxonMobil and Lanxess, AG as commercial testing partners to accelerate adoption of these lubricants.”

PixClear® engineered lubricants create self-forming films that adhere to metal surfaces to dramatically improve energy efficiency, reduce wear and extend life for a wide variety of generators, motors, bearings and machinery. These next-generation lubricants are targeted for use in harsh environments, including wind-turbine gear boxes, wheel bearings in electric vehicles (EVs), marine components, steel and aluminum rolling plants, and space-related applications, among others.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/26f4c24e-0b5c-42c6-b9b6-2411b87e81c8

“We have partnered with Pixelligent for the past five years on multiple advanced lubricant programs sponsored by the US Departments of Energy and Defense,” said Dr. Robert Carpick, who leads the Carpick Research Group at the University of Pennsylvania. “Our development work to date has helped demonstrate the potential energy efficiency impacts of embedding their PixClear® zirconia nanocrystals in various lubricants. The performance is unsurpassed in terms of rapidly forming protective anti-wear films on surfaces.”

“This grant award should allow Pixelligent to complete development of our next generation lubricant additives and will expand our PixClear® Environmental and Sustainability Product (ESP) portfolio,” said Craig Bandes, President & CEO Pixelligent Technologies. “Our PixClear® ESP portfolio includes Designer Compounds® for LED, MiniLED, MicroLED and OLED applications. We estimate that using our efficiency-enhancing PixClear® materials can deliver terawatts of energy savings across display, solid-state lighting and industrial applications.”

About Pixelligent
Pixelligent has reinvented the way composite materials are made by synthetically replicating a broad set of metal oxide materials found in nature. PixClear® Designer Compounds™ deliver a combination of properties, operating efficiencies and never-before-seen performance for Augmented and Virtual Reality, OLED/QD/LED displays, optical sensors, solid-state lighting and energy-related applications. Our proprietary product development and fully scaled manufacturing platform, the PixClearProcess®, enables Pixelligent to engineer PixClear® materials to seamlessly integrate into the most common manufacturing processes, including ink jet, nanoimprint, spin coating, dispensing, slot-dye and photolithography. Our PixClearProcess® utilizes a fraction of the footprint required by traditional chemical companies, and our efficiency-enhancing PixClear® materials can deliver terawatts of energy savings across display, solid- state lighting and industrial applications. Please visit us at www.pixelligent.com and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter @Pixelligent.

About The Carpick Research Group at the University of Pennsylvania
The Carpick Research Group is housed in the Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics Department in the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania. The group works at the intersection of mechanics, materials, and physics to conduct research into nanotribology (the atomic-scale origins of friction, adhesion, lubrication, and wear), nanomechanics, nanostructured materials, and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Their primary focus is on using AFM and other surface science and material characterization techniques to probe the fundamental nature of materials in contact, and to apply the results to practical applications. You can read more about the group at: https://carpick.seas.upenn.edu/.

CONTACT
Sarah Nicholson
snicholson@Pixelligent.com

Image shows PixClear® zirconia-based protective film on top of a steel surface.

(c) 2020 R.W. Carpick