Nanomox, a pioneer of sustainable production and recovery processes for inorganic materials, today announced completion of a £2.4 million seed investment round, consisting of a mix of equity and grants.
The round saw participation from Parkwalk along with TSP Ventures, Boast Trading LLC, Imperial College Enterprise Fund 3, SNØCAP VC, the Circular Innovation Fund, EIT RawMaterials and UK angel investors.
Nanomox, which was founded at Imperial in 2020, has developed a breakthrough approach to the sustainable production of precisely engineered advanced materials and recovery of valuable resources like zinc, manganese and copper from waste sources and mineral ores.
“Our unique ionic liquid platform can create nanoparticles tuned for high performance in high value applications. With the same platform we can recover valuable raw materials from waste sources and mineral ores,” said Nanomox Founder and CEO, Dr Francisco Malaret. “This funding is a major step towards our ambition to deliver a truly sustainable, circular production process for high value advanced materials.”
The company will use the funding to build a first-of-its-kind commercial pilot plant and R&D facility – Catalyst 1 – enabling it to dramatically scale production of its first commercial materials and further develop its platform technology for resource recovery from waste streams.
Sustainable production of advanced materials
Nanomox has developed and validated a proprietary process based on ionic liquid chemistry that enables the production of metal oxide particles precisely tailored for high performance in applications that range from UV protection to electronics and catalysis. The tuneable process is low energy, operates under mild conditions, and offers exquisite control of particle properties such as size, shape and crystallinity.
As Dr Malaret explains, “The control our process offers over particle morphology means we can meet demanding performance requirements. We’re looking to apply this ability across a range of industries, beginning with our world-leading zinc oxide crystals for UV protection.”
Best in class transparency
Nanomox has developed tailored zinc oxide (ZnO) crystals for use in mineral-based sunscreens – an emerging category in UV protection favoured by those with sensitive skin and customers looking to avoid exposure to synthetic organic UV filters. While ZnO has been used in sunscreen for many years, traditional formulations leave a white residue on skin that consumers dislike.
Nanomox has created advanced ZnO crystals that block UV light with high specificity, designed to address current limitations and lead the development of a new generation of mineral-based sunscreens. Nanomox’s current products have achieved record-level transparency in independent laboratory evaluation, with further optimisation underway. A first product launch is planned for Q3 2026.
With its new funding, which includes support from the Innovate UK Investor Partnerships programme, Nanomox is building a commercial pilot plant to scale production capacity to tonnes per month, enough to supply partners in the cosmetics industry.
Green Chemistry, circularity and future development
Nanomox’s unique ionic liquid process enables extraction of metals like zinc, manganese, copper and rare earth elements from mineral ores and industrial waste streams like spent batteries, mining tailings and waste from steel production processes. The latter of these is particularly promising, with zinc-rich electric arc furnace dust a key target for the company. Nanomox estimates the zinc contained within this waste stream, which is widely disposed of rather than recycled, could be worth up to $9 billion.
“At Circular Innovation Fund, we partner with founders who share our vision for a more resource-efficient economy. Nanomox’s approach to recovering zinc from industrial waste demonstrates the kind of scalable, sustainable innovation Europe needs to strengthen its circular value chains,” said Stéphane Villecroze, Co-Founder & Managing Partner, Demea Sustainable Investment, and Andrée-Lise Méthot, Founder & Managing Partner, Cycle Capital
To find out more about Nanomox, visit their website or our portfolio page here.