Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN) has selected Solidec as one of its 10 Start-Ups to Watch for 2026. The annual list recognizes young chemistry companies with the potential to reshape the industry.

This publication demonstrates high-pressure CO2 reduction of dilute streams in a PSE reactor to markedly enhance formic acid selectivity. It explores simultaneous carbon capture and conversion, bypassing the need for costly traditional purification.

Three Houston startups were granted awards from NASA this month to develop new technologies for the space agency.

The companies are among nearly 300 recipients that received a total agency investment of $44.85 million through the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Phase I grant programs, according to NASA.

Each selected company will receive $150,000 and, based on their progress, will be eligible to submit proposals for up to $850,000 in Phase II funding to develop prototypes.

The SBIR program lasts for six months and contracts small businesses. The Houston NASA 2025 SBIR awardees include:

Solidec Inc.

Principal investigator: Yang Xia
Proposal: Highly reliable and energy-efficient electrosynthesis of high-purity hydrogen peroxide from air and water in a nanobubble facilitated porous solid electrolyte reactor

Rarefied Studios LLC

Principal investigator: Kyle Higdon
Proposal: Plume impingement module for autonomous proximity operations

The STTR program contracts small businesses in partnership with a research institution and lasts for 13 months. The Houston NASA 2025 STTR awardees include:

Affekta LLC

Principal investigator: Hedinn Steingrimsson
Proposal: Verifiable success in handling unknown unknowns in space habitat simulations and a cyber-physical system

Solidec and Affekta have ties to Rice University.

Solidec extracts molecules from water and air, then transforms them into pure chemicals and fuels that are free of carbon emissions. It was co-founded by Rice professor Haotian Wang and and was an Innovation Fellow at Rice’s Liu Idea Lab for Innovation and Entrepreneurship. It was previouslt selected for Chevron Technology Ventures’ catalyst program, a Rice One Small Step grant, a U.S. Department of Energy grant, and the first cohort of the Activate Houston program.

Affekta, an AI course, AI assistance and e-learning platform, was a part of Rice’s OwlSpark in 2023.
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Solidec has been awarded a U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) Fast Track award to advance our on-site hydrogen peroxide generation technology. This support will accelerate our mission to deliver sustainable chemistry solutions for critical industries – from wastewater treatment to semiconductor manufacturing to mining.

Solidec has raised an oversubscribed $2M pre-seed round led by New Climate Ventures, with support from Plug and Play Ventures, Ecosphere Ventures, Collab Fund, Echo River Capital, Semilla Climate Capital, Safar Partners, and others.

Solidec has been selected by NASA for SBIR funding to advance the development of our hydrogen peroxide-producing electrolyzer – a technology with potential applications in onboard disinfection and water treatment during long-duration space missions.

CDL is one of the most selective programs for science-based startups, and the Energy Stream gave us access to top-tier mentors and investors focused on the energy transition.

CERAWeek Agora, one of the biggest annual events for startups in climate tech, is a prestigious platform that brings together innovators, leaders, and visionaries in the field.

The Welch Foundation supports chemical research at academic institutions around the state of Texas. They have awarded Haotian Wang this year’s Norman Hackerman Award in Chemical Research, which will help to support his nanomaterials and electrolyzer research at Rice University.

Designed to ignite the entrepreneurial spirit in the energy industry, this competition showcases remarkable competition for emerging startups in the energy field.

This grant will support Solidec’s efforts to develop an innovative solution for producing emission-free chemical and fuels.

Activate empowers scientists and engineers to reinvent the world by launching startups to address climate change and other global challenges. Activate provides the resources Solidec needs to quickly bring our technology to market.

Rice University’s Liu Idea Lab for Innovation & Entrepreneurship (Lilie) has announced the eight dynamic teams selected for the 2024 Lilie Summer Venture Studio, an immersive summer accelerator program designed to propel the university’s innovative ventures forward.

Flathead Forge is a venture studio focused on energy’s critical dependencies around water and gas.

‘Go for Launch’ in Rice Magazine highlights technologies, teams, and companies at various stages of development from across industries and departments from Rice University.

This is a community of climate-tech pioneers working to design a more sustainable world.

The TEX-E Prize is a multi-round startup competition for Texas students who are developing innovative technologies and business models to advance the energy transition and address climate change.

The grant aims to support groundbreaking projects across Rice, providing crucial capital for projects to spin out of the university and successfully attract investment from angel investors and venture capital.

This program will support the development and prototyping of Solidec’s platform of electrolyzers that capture carbon and generate chemicals using only air, water, and electricity.

The program helps small businesses and other non-traditional partners access testing facilities or obtain third-party subject matter expertise needed to advance their technologies, business, or energy projects to the next level.