FluoRok, a spin-out of the University of Oxford developing a new method for the direct synthesis of high value fluorochemicals, announced £3 million (US$3.8 million) of seed funding from Oxford Science Enterprises (OSE), an independent, billion-pound investment company that funds businesses via its unique partnership with the University of Oxford.

Fluorochemicals are currently made using an energy-intensive process that involves the production and transport of hydrogen fluoride (HF) as a key intermediate. This gas is made by adding sulphuric acid to the naturally occurring mineral fluorite (fluorspar) at temperatures of 300–400 °C. The resulting HF is highly corrosive, extremely toxic, dangerous and environmentally unfriendly.

FluoRok’s technology changes this paradigm, enabling for the first time the bypassing of toxic HF production to manufacture fluorinated materials directly from raw minerals (fluorite, CaF₂) or fluorinated waste streams.

This solution reduces energy requirements, lowers CO₂ emissions and enables significant progress towards net-zero in the fluorochemical industry. Additionally, intrinsic process safety facilitates the reshoring of fluorochemcial manufacturing to the UK. Currently, a significant portion of fluorochemical production has been concentrated in the United States, China, and Japan.

FluoRok was founded by Professor Véronique Gouverneur FRS together with Dr Gabriele Pupo, both originating from the Department of Chemistry, University of Oxford. (In May, Professor Véronique Gouverneur was at MIT to deliver the Buchi Lectures in Organic Chemistry.) Dr Pupo is now FluorRok’s CEO; Professor Gouvernor serves as consultant and non-executive director.

Fluorinated compounds are widely used in daily life and their applications range from electronics, textiles, aluminum production and petroleum refining to agrochemicals, pharmaceuticals and energy storage. Fluorinated compounds comprise a significant proportion of all chemicals produced today, with an estimated 20% of all marketed drugs and approximately 30% of agrochemicals.

Resources

• Gouverneur Group, University of Oxford