SBIR/STTR Research Award

SBIR Phase II: Rapid Food Biomass Dehydration Process Utilizing Zeolite Filters to Retain Food Nutrient Profiles

Award identifier 414153a0bc75bc3d5ad678e9d70e218976305eacdc053ea6f3ff349bf5a519d4Awarding agency National Science Foundation

Award amount

$980,360

Program and phase

SBIR · Phase II

Award year

2025

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Award details

Awarding agency
National Science Foundation
Branch
Not reported
Recipient company
Startle Innovation LLC
Proposal award date
2025-04-01
Contract end date
2026-09-30
UEI
CTCUAYD9YWJ8
Solicitation number
NSF 23-516
Topic code
M

Research abstract

Abstracts are a public record of active and expired awards and are an important source of information on NSF activities. The purpose of the Abstract is to describe the project and justify the expenditure of Federal funds. Abstracts must not contain inappropriate or confidential information, and because they are available to such a wide audience, high standards of quality must be maintained in preparing them. The NSF award abstract has two parts, which should appear in the following order: -Part 1: A nontechnical description of the project, which explains the project's significance and importance. This description also serves as a public justification for NSF funding by articulating how the project serves the national interest, as stated by NSF's mission: to promote the progress of science; to advance the national health, prosperity and welfare; or to secure the national defense. This part of the abstract should describe the fundamental issues the project seeks to address, as well as other potential benefits, such as how the project advances the field, supports education and diversity, or benefits society. This part should be understandable by a broad audience. -Part 2: A technical description of the project that states its goals and scope, the methods and approaches to be used, and its potential contribution. In many cases, the technical project description may be a modified version of the project summary that is submitted with the proposal. However, the technical description should reflect any changes in the project's goals made after the review process. -Part 3: The Statement of Merit Review, "This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria." This statement is non-editable and added to every proposal Abstract once it has been saved in eJacket. This statement is viewable after the Abstract has been saved, and is read-only. Upon award of a proposal, the Abstract is available in the Award Search application and via FastLane. The broader/commercial impact of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project is to improve the competitiveness of US farmers and US agricultural industries by creating a new drying technology primarily for food but also for other commodities. This new technology is cost effective compared to other existing technologies, and can directly and indirectly help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It also expands the spectrum of available industrial drying methods and may help retain the overall consistency of important components of the food source. All of these features will make food more nutritional and more affordable. The project improves collaboration among multiple business and technological sectors in the country. And it can make US seaweed farmers economically viable, open new market opportunities and new product development, and lead to job creation as these companies thrive and grow. This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project acknowledges the outsized negative impact the high cost of drying commodities has on many sectors, including US farmers and agricultural industries. Extending from a Phase I project that demonstrated the concept of our new technology, this Phase II project focuses on creating a commercial prototype that can dry important commodities like seaweed quickly, cost-effectively, reliably, and safely while potentially preserving their nutritional value. This new commercial prototype will include three parts: a new desiccant filter, a drying chamber, and a microwave chamber. The Phase II project will focus on conducting tests of the full prototype system, understanding and maximizing energy savings of the filter dehydration process as a function of humidity level, time, heat, and pressure, and finally by conducting nutritional analyses and characterization of seaweed samples. This technology will undergo techno-economic analysis (TEA) in Phase II. The resulting novel material and methods will comprise a commercially viable novel drying method that will make it possible to quickly dry seaweed at a mild temperature to preserve all nutrients while consuming a minimal amount of electricity. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

Technology keywords

Not reported

Other awards by this recipient

Verified by the same UEI. These are other public SBIR/STTR award pages, not a merged company record.

Research funding history

2 SBIR/STTR records share this UEI (2022–2025). Reported award amounts total $1,236,015. Reported amounts are not federal obligations.

Phases: Phase II, Phase I

Agencies: National Science Foundation

Agency intelligence

National Science Foundation

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