Overview

Since 2001, Dr. Ashok Cholli and his research team from the University of Massachusetts Lowell have developed a new class of high performance macromolecular antioxidants, employing both molecular design engineering and green chemistry processes.

Polnox's high performance antioxidants better protect various materials, including polyolefin (plastics), elastomers (rubber), lubricants, oil and fuel, processed food/food packaging. Compared to commercially used antioxidants, these novel antioxidants offer significantly improved material protection, including enhanced oxidative resistance, higher thermal stability and low to no material diffusion.

In 2003, Navigator Technology Ventures, a subsidiary of Draper Laboratory provided initial venture funding and incorporated the technology into a start-up business- Polnox Corporation. Polnox is located in a state-of-the-art research and development and production facility at 333 Aiken Street, at the campus of the University of Massachusetts in Lowell, Massachusetts.

The company has an experienced management team, and currently employs 6 full time employees, including 4 PhDs with synthetic, polymer, materials science and molecular engineering expertise. . Polnox's world class Scientific Advisory Board currently includes the 2000 Nobel Laureate for Chemistry, Professor Alan MacDiarmid, University of Pennsylvania and Dr. Ashok Cholli, the Company's founder. Polnox holds the exclusive rights to several pending patents covering the intellectual property of all Polnox's antioxidant technologies. Hamilton Brook is the patent attorneys of record.

According to the year 2001 market survey, industrial antioxidants market is a U.S. $1.4 billion dollar market. Currently commercially available antioxidants, including TBHQ, BHT, BHA, PG, and their analogs are used to protect a variety of materials (polyolefins and elastomers, fuels and lubricants), and in food preservation and packaging. These current industrial antioxidants are sold through specialty chemical companies, including Ciba, Great Lakes Chemical, Eastman Chemical, Albermarle, Vanderbilt and others.

Recognizing some of the current deficiencies relating to thermal volatilization/degradation, antioxidant activities and diffusion of antioxidants, Polnox Corporation has developed novel macromolecular antioxidants with significantly higher oxidative resistance, higher thermal stability and low to no material diffusion. Industry standard tests have been conducted at independent laboratories to compare Polnox's novel antioxidants versus current antioxidants in a variety of materials. As illustrated, Polnox's novel antioxidants have superior antioxidant resistance providing 285-385% more antioxidative protection for polypropylene (PP) (plastics) than the commercially used phenolic type antioxidants. Polnox's novel antioxidants also yield substantially longer shelf life than the currently used antioxidant, TBHQ for cooking oils. Polnox's antioxidants also have significantly higher thermal stability as demonstrated in its TGA data. Polnox's antioxidants can help meet new material requirements and capitalize on expanding new market opportunities under high temperature conditions.