Newtrace: Revolutionizing Green Hydrogen Production with Membrane-less Electrolysers

In the heart of Bengaluru, a city grappling with pollution and climate change, two brilliant minds converged to tackle one of the world’s most pressing challenges. Prasanta Sarkar and Rochan Sinha, armed with years of experience in energy and technology, founded Newtrace in 2020 with a vision to transform the hydrogen industry. Their journey from concerned citizens to pioneers in green hydrogen production is a testament to the power of innovation and determination in the face of global environmental crises.

The Spark of Innovation

Prasanta Sarkar and Rochan Sinha’s paths crossed at Entrepreneur First, a platform connecting startup founders. Their shared concern for the deteriorating environmental conditions in their hometowns sparked a conversation that would lead to a groundbreaking venture. Sarkar, with his background in energy and machines, and Sinha, with his expertise in renewable energy systems, realized they couldn’t afford to wait another decade to address climate change.

Initially, the duo focused on developing battery and electrolyser technology for companies. However, their eureka moment came when they produced an electrolyser at a significantly lower cost than existing market options. This realization pivoted their focus towards green hydrogen production, leading to the establishment of Newtrace in October 2021.

The Challenge: Making Green Hydrogen Viable

The founders faced a monumental challenge: making green hydrogen production economically viable and scalable. Traditional hydrogen production methods, using natural gas or coal, were responsible for massive carbon dioxide emissions. While green hydrogen, produced through electrolysis of water using renewable electricity, offered a cleaner alternative, it was expensive, inefficient, and difficult to scale.

Sarkar and Sinha set out to revolutionize the industry by developing a new class of “membrane-less” electrolysers. Their goal was to significantly reduce the cost of green hydrogen production while improving efficiency and scalability.

Innovation in Action

Newtrace’s breakthrough came in the form of their proprietary, patent-pending electrolyser technology. The team ingeniously designed a system that eliminated the need for expensive membranes, traditionally a critical and costly component in electrolysers. Instead, they developed a novel method using the flow of water to separate gases.

Key innovations in their technology include:

1. Membrane-less design: By removing the need for specialized, costly membranes, Newtrace drastically reduced the overall cost of the electrolyser.
2. Efficient gas separation: The team developed a method to collect smaller bubbles of hydrogen and oxygen, combining them into larger ones. This innovation helped reduce the system’s overall footprint.
3. Local manufacturing: Newtrace’s design primarily relies on locally available materials and components in India, reducing dependency on imports and lowering costs.
4. Customized components: When faced with unavailable components like oxygen detectors, the team developed their own, showcasing their problem-solving capabilities.
5. Scalability: The modular design of their electrolysers ensures easy scalability for various industrial applications.

Overcoming Obstacles

The journey wasn’t without its challenges. As a startup in a capital-intensive industry, Newtrace had to navigate several obstacles:

1. Funding: Developing new hardware technology requires significant investment. The team successfully raised $1 million in Pre-Seed funding from Speciale Invest and Micelio Fund, followed by a seed investment led by Peak XV and Aavishkaar Capital.
2. Technical hurdles: Creating a membrane-less electrolyser required solving complex engineering problems. The team’s diverse expertise in aerospace engineering, nanomaterials, and electrochemistry proved crucial in overcoming these challenges.
3. Market skepticism: As a new player in an industry dominated by established companies, Newtrace had to prove the viability and efficiency of their technology to potential customers and investors.
4. Manufacturing capabilities: Scaling up from prototypes to commercial-scale production presented its own set of challenges, requiring careful planning and execution.

Achievements and Future Prospects

Newtrace’s innovative approach has yielded impressive results:

1. Cost reduction: Their electrolysers are 5X cheaper than current commercial systems, bringing the cost of green hydrogen production close to that of grey hydrogen.
2. Efficiency improvement: The technology not only reduces costs but also enhances hydrogen production capacities.
3. Pilot projects: The company is in advanced discussions with leading Indian and global oil refining companies for pilot deployments.
4. Global recognition: Newtrace has established collaborations with international institutions, including the Dutch Institute for Fundamental Energy Research.
5. Scalable production: From a 20 MW pilot plant, the company is moving towards commercializing 1 MW systems, with plans for 5 MW and 10 MW capacity products in the pipeline.

Timeline of Key Events

• 2020: Prasanta Sarkar and Rochan Sinha meet at Entrepreneur First
• October 2021: Newtrace is founded
• 2022: $1 million Pre-Seed funding raised from Speciale Invest and Micelio Fund
• 2023: Seed investment led by Peak XV and Aavishkaar Capital
• July 2023: Scheduled to present technology at Stanford, USA
• 2024: Expected commercialization of 1 MW electrolyser system

Key Takeaways

Newtrace’s journey from concept to near-commercialization of their revolutionary electrolyser technology offers valuable lessons for innovators and entrepreneurs in the clean tech space:

1. Identify critical pain points: By focusing on cost reduction and efficiency improvement in green hydrogen production, Newtrace addressed a crucial barrier to widespread adoption.
2. Leverage diverse expertise: The founders’ complementary backgrounds in energy, technology, and research were instrumental in developing their innovative solution.
3. Embrace local resources: Utilizing locally available materials and components not only reduced costs but also aligned with India’s push for self-reliance in manufacturing.
4. Persistence in problem-solving: When faced with unavailable components, the team’s willingness to develop their own solutions demonstrated the importance of adaptability and resourcefulness.
5. Focus on scalability: By designing their technology with scalability in mind, Newtrace positioned itself to meet the growing demand for green hydrogen across various industries.

As the world races to combat climate change, Newtrace’s innovative approach to green hydrogen production stands as a beacon of hope, showcasing the potential of homegrown technology to drive global sustainability efforts.