Ammobia is said to have reinvented the century-old technology

Ammonia is probably the most loved chemical in the world. Without it, crops will become unfertilized and billions of people will starve.

Humans began to make ammonia in large quantities just over a century ago, and since then the process used to make it, known as Haber-Bosch, has not changed much. A new beginning, Amoebasaid that he has tweaked the Haber-Bosch process to reduce costs by up to 40%.

To prove the technology works on a larger scale, Ammobia has raised a $7.5 million seed round, the company exclusively told TechCrunch. Investors include Air Liquide’s venture arm ALIAD, Chevron Technology Ventures, Chiyoda Corporation, MOL Switch, and Shell Ventures.

If the start is successful, it could pave the way for ammonia to be used beyond fertilizer.

Ammonia is considered by some as an alternative to hydrogen decarbonize some industries. Countries like Japan and South Korea have developed industrial and transportation roadmaps that rely on ammonia. Hydrogen, another major competitor, does not as dense energy and transport infrastructure is not as well developed as ammonia.

“The big advantage of ammonia is that it’s easier and cheaper to transport and store,” Ammobia founder and CEO Karen Baert told TechCrunch. “It opens up a whole range of opportunities.”

But that opportunity won’t be much if ammonia production doesn’t clean up its act. The Haber-Bosch process is one of the world’s biggest polluters, producing nearly 2% of global greenhouse gases.

To make ammonia, Haber-Bosch plants use an iron catalyst to force one nitrogen molecule to react with three hydrogen molecules. These reactions require high heat (500˚ C) and pressure (about 200 bar or 2,900 psi) to maintain, both of which are typically provided by burning fossil fuels.

Fossil fuels also provide some of the gas needed as feedstock. Nitrogen is easy to obtain – the gas makes up almost 80% of the Earth’s atmosphere – but most of the hydrogen used in ammonia production is made by using steam to break down methane molecules (CH₄) found in natural gas.

The ammobia process works at about 150˚ Celsius cooler and ten times lower pressure. As a result, plants that use these technologies will produce less pollution, even if they do not waste fossil fuels.

The startup also says the process saves costs up front. Ammobia can use cheaper pumps and equipment because it does not need to be exposed to high temperatures and pressures.

That can give producers an edge. Since almost all ammonia producers use Haber-Bosch, there are usually only two ways to reduce costs: find a cheaper heat source or a cheaper hydrogen source. In places like the US, some are cheaper than natural gas.

Ammobia does not seek to replace it directly. The startup emphasizes that its process can be used with hydrogen or heat sources. But there are some key differences from the traditional Haber-Bosch that can encourage cleaner sources.

Because Ammobia runs at lower pressures, it’s easier to ramp production up and down, which could allow renewable developers to take advantage of excess electricity production to make cheap hydrogen and cheap ammonia.

“Our technology is very compatible with renewable energy, which leads to additional cost reductions because you don’t need to store hydrogen or store electricity,” Baert said. “In that situation, we have the strongest cost advantage.”

The reduced temperature and pressure requirements also allow Ammobia to make equipment smaller than a typical Haber-Bosch plant. Most ammonia facilities are currently producing between 1,000 to 3,000 tons per day, while the commercial size unit of Ammobia will produce 250 tons per day, Baert said. Customers who need more can install multiple units, he said.

Ammobia didn’t share details on how to tweak the Haber-Bosch to run at lower temperatures and pressures, but there are some hints. The company has a patent pending in reactor systems that incorporate sorbents to remove ammonia as it forms to free up space in the catalyst for other reactions. Researchers have also investigated non-iron catalyst bees, incl manganese nitridewhich uses less energy to maintain chemical reactions.

The startup has been operating a small unit for about a year, and the new funding will help the company build a pilot plant that contains all the features of the commercial model on a smaller scale, about 10 tons per day.

“With a modular approach, we can build projects faster, and we can start in medium size,” Baert said. “We see that a lot of customers are looking for that type of solution, and there’s no solution right now.”