Wyonics

Join us at the ACS Spring 2024 Meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana, March 17th-21st. We're looking forward to connecting with peers, sharing knowledge, and exploring collaboration opportunities. Will you be there? Let us know in the comments. #ACSSpring2024 Interesting in connecting? https://lnkd.in/gSyUvnpk

Wyonics CEO & Co-Founder Kristin Di Bona recently joined the Wyoming Small Business Development Center Network (SBDC) Podcast to discuss Wyonics' ongoing projects and business growth, and the intricacies of navigating a small business in today’s dynamic landscape.

We are thrilled to announce that we have been selected as a recipient of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Voucher Opportunity 5 - Commercialization Support from the Department of Energy’s Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM). In this initiative, Wyonics will collaborate with Idaho National Laboratory. Read more by visiting our press release below.

In September, Wyonics participated in the 2nd Annual UW STEM Carnival at the University of Wyoming. The event featured engaging demonstrations and hands-on activities by STEM faculty, students, and local businesses. At our booth, we showcased a demonstration on making new materials from biomass (plants) using ionic liquids (liquid salts). It was great to see young students excited about our science. The UW STEM Carnival drew over 1,150 attendees, including 650 K-12 students from across Wyoming. It was an excellent opportunity for us to promote STEM education and connect with the community. We want to express our thanks to the University of Wyoming for organizing the event and to all who visited our booth!

Meet Jacob Wozny, one of our talented Research Engineers! Jacob joined our team this summer, after graduating from UW last May with his undergraduate degree in Chemical Engineering. During his time at UW, Jacob was actively involved in testing the physical and chemical properties of polymer composite materials. These innovative materials featured additives derived from coal products, including coal char and graphene oxide, which Jacob and his team synthesized themselves. His responsibilities included crafting and processing these materials, as well as conducting mechanical testing and analytical verification of the final products. At Wyonics, Jacob applies his expertise to the development of new biopolymeric materials and the selective extraction, separations, and recovery of individual lanthanides (rare earth elements) from uranium and thorium-bearing minerals. We're proud to have Jacob as an integral part of our research and development efforts.

As part of our continued work to develop sustainable technologies to generate critical materials, Wyonics was awarded a Phase 1 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant through the Department of Energy for the selective extraction, separations, and recovery of individual lanthanides (rare earth elements) from uranium and thorium bearing minerals. This award is a part of $72 million in funding for small businesses to pursue scientific, clean energy, and climate research, development, and demonstration projects. Wyonics was featured on the Department of Energy award announcement (linked below). Rare earth elements are a set of critical materials that have numerous applications spanning energy applications, automotive, electronic, aerospace, and nuclear industries. Challenges to developing a domestic supply include efficient extraction and interelement separation and demand continues to increase. Existing processes are not economically or environmentally feasible for execution in the U.S., contributing to a reliance on foreign sources. Wyonics is developing technologies that will overcome these barriers and support U.S. Energy Industries through the recently awarded Phase I SBIR, "Selective Electrochemical Recovery of Rare Earth Elements from Ore".

Wyonics sponsored and participated in the 2023 Rocky Mountain Regional Meeting of the American Chemical Society. RMRM23 was held right here in Laramie, Wyoming. The conference featured a diverse range of symposia and events, providing a platform for researchers and experts to share insights and discoveries across a wide range of chemical and materials science topics, emphasizing sustainability, innovation, and the advancement of various fields of chemistry. Our team took part in an array of events and symposia, providing insights into our ongoing projects and expertise. We would like to thank everyone who contributed to making this a great ACS Rocky Mountain Regional Meeting!

“BIO-SENS was a great opportunity to connect with other like minded intelligent individuals in the Bio-Chemistry and Bio-Engineering fields. It was amazing to see all the different projects that are being collaborated on to develop a more sustainable future.” - Nicholas Zalewski Wyonics' team participated in the 2nd Annual BIO-SENS Industry-Academic Biotechnology Symposium in Biddeford, Maine this July. The symposium brought together participants from several EPSCoR states to provide insights into academic and industrial opportunities in the districts, and provided networking opportunities with fellow researchers and industrial experts for the advancement of mutual goals. Wyonics interns and UW students had the opportunity to showcase their recent work and perspectives. Save the Date, July 30, 2024, for the 3rd Annual BIO-SENS Industry-Academic Biotechnology Symposium, hosted by the University of Wyoming in Laramie, Wyoming.

Members of the Wyonics team are attending the 2nd Annual BIO-SENS Industry Academic Biotechnology Symposium this week! BIO-SENS, a National Science Foundation funded project, is dedicated to pioneering innovative biosensing technology for biomanufacturing processes and empowering the biomanufacturing workforce through training and growth opportunities. Isabelle Orozco, Alden Spigel, and Nicholas Zalewski will be presenting posters about their exciting ongoing projects they have been working on this summer. Wyonics CEO Kristin R. Di Bona will also be a panelist in a discussion focused on "Conversations, Partnerships, Teams: Academic and Industry Experiences."

Meet Alden Spigel, one of our talented Scientific Interns who has joined our team this summer! Alden will be a senior at Colorado State University this fall, working on obtaining his bachelor's degree in chemistry. During his time at CSU, he has spent the last 2 years working with the Prieto Group studying nanoparticle synthesis for use in photovoltaic cells. Since joining our team, Alden has been actively involved in the sustainable development of biopolymers. Although Alden will be returning to Fort Collins at the end of the summer, we are proud to have played a part in his journey and professional development. Join us in wishing Alden all the best in his future endeavors!