Going green with Nfinite

A startup company founded by a Waterloo Engineering professor and two of his graduate students has won US $250,000 to expand and commercialize green technology for the packaging industry.

Nfinite Nanotechnology was launched on Earth Day in 2021 by Kevin Musselman, a professor of mechanical and mechatronics engineering, and Chee Hau Teoh (MASc ’20) and Jhi Yong Loke (MASc ’21), who earned master’s degrees while developing the technology in his lab.

Based in Waterloo, Nfinite was announced this week as one of two winners of seed funding from Amcor, an international packaging company with US $15 billion in annual sales in 43 countries.

Chee Hau Teoh is CEO of nanotechnology startup Nfinite, a spinoff from Waterloo Engineering.

“We are excited to work with industry leaders the calibre of Amcor to rethink and redefine packaging for a circular economy,” Teoh, the chief executive officer, said in a media release.

Nfinite is developing nanocoating technology to keep products fresh and enable the use of sustainable packaging.

Its vapor-deposited nanocoating, applied at low temperature in the open air without a vacuum chamber, is described as eco-friendly, solvent-free, ultrathin and multifunctional.

'Rooted in a culture of innovation'

Amcor launched its seed funding initiative, called Amcor Lift-Off, to “target breakthrough, state-of-the-art technologies” and make the future of packaging more sustainable.

The other winner, Bloom Biorenewables, converts plant waste into chemicals that are used in packaging. It is based in Switzerland.

“Both start-ups are rooted in a culture of innovation and creativity, looking to break boundaries and disrupt the packaging industry as we know it,” Frank Lehmann, a vice president at Amcor, said in the media release.

Photo by SHVETS productions