June 15, 2022
The activity , promoted by SQM in conjunction with the INNSPIRAL accelerator, had the collaboration of the Catholic University of the North (UCN).
Innovative proposals seeking to advance towards carbon neutrality, electromobility and energy storage were awarded at the Pitch Day of the "More Lithium, Less Footprint" initiative that took place within the framework of Exponor 2022 activities.
The innovation initiative, which for the second consecutive year seeks to contribute solutions with high social and environmental impact, was promoted by SQM in conjunction with the INNSPIRAL accelerator, in addition to the collaboration of the Catholic University of the North (UCN).
The first three places were awarded $30,000, $20,000, and $10,000, respectively. The first place among the winning teams went to the Remote Waters initiative, a proposal based on the installation of an off-grid solar-powered, lithium-ion battery-powered water treatment system that removes arsenic.
Second place went to Endurance Electric, an initiative that promotes the socio-economic development of communities by increasing the generation of income bases based on production through the offering of PULSE solar generators in combination with a "Pay as you grow" type financial platform.
The third position was occupied by the Litiohm proposal, which consists of designing and locally assembling lithium batteries for photovoltaic solar installations, considering the reuse of their internal components in order to promote a circular economy.
The works that took the top three places were selected by a top-level jury that included among its members Bárbara Torres Vallejos, director of Innovation and Technological Development of the Directorate of Analysis and Management of the Vice-Rectorate of Research and Technological Development (VRIDT) of the UCN.
“The selected teams reflect the path that Chile is on, in terms of promoting and strengthening the generation of science and technology-based companies, which can aim at the productive development of the country,” he pointed out.
The board added that the criteria considered for selecting the winning teams took into account the social and economic impact and the scalability of their proposals.
“More Lithium, Less Footprint” was aimed at R&D centers and universities, SMEs and startups; and the official launch of the call took place in May of this year in the auditorium of the Cowork USQAI of the Catholic University of the North (UCN).