With each of our innovator stories, we get a chance to meet the people behind EU-funded ideas, which have the potential to change our future for the better.
In this edition, we share an insightful conversation with Raúl Aragonés, the founder and CSO of AEINNOVA. The Spanish startup has developed a patent inspired by space tech. Thanks to 7 EU R&D grants, they manufacture a new generation of NETZERO heat-powered batteryless maintenance-free & long-range wireless IoT that transforms the industry 4.0 into more digital with the least environmental impact.
AEINNOVA made an impressive presentation at the first Innovation Radar Summit, receiving the main award of the Innovation Radar Prize 2024. They received around €5M in EU funding.
“Our product addresses a critical challenge in industries: the waste of industrial heat, which accounts for 21% of global energy losses due to inefficiencies in sectors like oil & gas, iron & steel, paper, glass, cement, and chemicals. We help industries recover and repurpose this waste heat by converting it into green electricity using thermoelectric generators. ”
Tell us more about yourself and your work?
My name is Raúl Aragonés, and I am the main founder of Alternative Energy Innovations SL (AEInnova), a startup I helped create 10 years ago. I hold a PhD in microelectronics engineering and have spent the last 20 years conducting research in wireless sensor networks and microchip design.
AEInnova is a spinoff of the Microelectronics Department at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, where we collaborated extensively with various space agencies. One of our co-founders, Prof. Dr. Carles Ferrer, previously served as the director of the Catalan Institute of Space Research (IEEC) for over 8 years.
Currently, I serve as AEInnova’s Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) and lead both the company’s research efforts and its business development initiatives.
What problem is your product solving and what makes its solution unique?
Our product addresses a critical challenge in industries: the waste of industrial heat, which accounts for 21% of global energy losses due to inefficiencies in sectors like oil & gas, iron & steel, paper, glass, cement, and chemicals. We help industries recover and repurpose this waste heat by converting it into green electricity using thermoelectric generators.
Inspired by radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTGs) used in deep space missions, we’ve developed a reliable and cost-effective thermoelectric generator. By simply making contact with heat, it generates electricity that can power sensors or other electronic devices. This patented technology, recognised in the US, Canada, and the EU, not only improves energy efficiency but also reduces pollution, making it a unique and sustainable solution for industrial operations.
On the other hand, many of these industries face significant challenges in adopting automation due to several factors:
Large facilities:
- Installing wired sensors is only practical for monitoring critical assets, leaving semi-critical or non-critical assets unmonitored. Additionally, wiring costs in these facilities range from €50-100 per meter, making it a costly solution.
- Deploying wireless sensors is also expensive, as it requires substantial investment in wireless infrastructure using traditional low-range protocols and gateways.
Harsh environments:
- High temperatures in these facilities render battery-powered wireless sensors impractical. Lithium batteries drain quickly in extreme heat, often within weeks, and they cannot be recharged.
Lack of awareness:
- Many industries are not fully aware of the benefits of applying predictive maintenance to improve efficiency and reduce downtime.
Our technology addresses all these challenges. We have developed the first waste-heat-powered, batteryless, maintenance-free IoT sensor solution. It utilises ultra-long-range wireless communication to enable effective predictive maintenance for industrial machinery, revolutionising automation in these environments.
How did you start your journey, and where are you now on the road to achieving your ambition?
My journey began as a researcher in microelectronics at my university, where I focused on developing advanced IoT and energy harvesting technologies. At conferences like IEEE Sensors and IEEE IECON, global experts highlighted that the future of the Internet of Things would rely on energy harvesting, given the environmental and economic drawbacks of lithium batteries.
At the same time, several of AEInnova’s co-founders were working on space research projects. In space exploration, heat has long been used as an energy source to power deep-space missions and Mars rovers. This inspired us to ask: why not create a cost-effective heat converter that could transform industrial waste heat into electricity? Using similar principles to those employed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, we designed a prototype and presented it to EIT InnoEnergy and the Repsol Foundation, both of which decided to invest in our vision.
In our early stages, AEInnova received over 30 national and international awards, including recognition from the United Nations, the German Energy Agency, and the Green Building Council, for our technological advancements. The European Commission also supported our mission from the start, helping us capture the interest of early adopters who allowed us to test our technology in real-world industrial environments.
Now, with our solution fully commercialised, our primary focus is on scaling up to reach larger markets and customers. To achieve this, we need significant funding to invest in hardware certifications and marketing efforts, ensuring we can maximise our impact.
What’s the biggest impact EU-funding has had on your journey so far, and can you specify an outcome? (Please mention how much EU-funding you have received so far).
We must acknowledge that the EU funding programs have been a game-changer in both the economic and technological development of our company. Without this funding, AEInnova would have likely ceased to exist in its early stages, eight years ago. In the EU, the ecosystem for investing in cleantech and deeptech is still not fully developed.
Since the beginning, AEInnova has raised approximately €8M, with nearly €5M coming from the European Union. Around 50% of this has been in the form of investment, while the other 50% has come from European grants provided by agencies such as EISMEA, CINEA, and other EU bodies.
Have you already tested your product with clients? What was it like?
Yes, we’ve been testing our product with clients since 2015. Thanks to the H2020 SME Instrument Phase I, we conducted our first pilot at the SEAT manufacturing plant in Barcelona, specifically in their painting workshop chimney. Since then, we’ve validated our solution with other clients, including Ferrovial, Sacyr, Celsa, and Ciments Molins.
The journey hasn’t been without challenges—some early devices failed due to the extreme temperatures they were exposed to. Others lasted only a few months, but the most recent installations are still operational. Developing technology for high-temperature environments is incredibly demanding, but each test has been an invaluable learning experience, helping us refine and improve our solution.
What is your company’s greatest achievement to date?
Our greatest achievements span both funding and technology milestones.
From a funding perspective, securing investment from the EIC Fund has been a game-changer for AEInnova, providing the support we needed to continue our mission and grow.
From a technological standpoint, obtaining the IECEx certification stands out as a major accomplishment. This certification allows us to deploy our technology in explosive industrial environments, such as oil & gas, chemical, and petrochemical sectors, where battery-powered IoT devices cannot operate due to the risk of lithium battery explosions. This breakthrough positions AEInnova as a leader in delivering safe and reliable solutions for these high-risk industries.
How do you see your company making a difference in the future?
We envision a future where devices operate without batteries. The global demand for lithium and other raw materials needed for energy storage in electric vehicles, portable devices, and wireless sensors is unsustainable, both in terms of availability and environmental impact. Extracting, processing, manufacturing, and recycling these materials comes at a significant ecological cost.
Our mission is to drive a shift toward powering wireless devices with energy harvesting technologies, making them more sustainable and environmentally friendly. By advancing these solutions, AEInnova aims to play a pivotal role in reducing reliance on batteries and building a cleaner, more sustainable future.
Why is participating in the Innovation Radar Prize important to you?
Participating in the Innovation Radar Prize is important to us for several reasons. Firstly, it highlights the incredible work of the European Thermoelectric community in developing cost-effective thermoelectric generators. AEInnova is proud to be part of this extensive network of universities, research centres, and SMEs across Europe, all working tirelessly to make this technology reliable and scalable.
Equally important, this platform allows us to raise awareness within the venture capital ecosystem about the urgent need to invest in energy harvesting technology startups. Our planet is facing critical challenges related to pollution, global warming, and energy stress. AEInnova’s technology plays a crucial role in decarbonising energy-intensive industries, and our success directly supports Europe’s leadership in driving industrial decarbonisation.
What did it mean to you to be a winner of the Innovation Radar Prize?
Winning the Innovation Radar Prize is a significant recognition of the work we are doing to help industries become more digital and sustainable. Historically, innovation in the industrial sector has been dominated by large players, but this award proves that small SMEs like AEInnova can develop impactful, cutting-edge technologies at a fraction of the cost. It’s also a testament to the dedication and hard work of our employees, shareholders, and management team, whose efforts have been instrumental in achieving this milestone.
How would you define success and what keeps you going in the pursuit of it?
For me, success is not just about achieving financial milestones or market growth—it’s about making a tangible, positive impact on the world. At AEInnova, success means helping industries reduce their environmental footprint by making energy harvesting technologies accessible and sustainable. Our goal is to power devices without relying on traditional batteries, which are not only costly but also harmful to the planet.
What keeps me going is the belief that the work we are doing is part of a larger movement toward a more sustainable future. Every time we see our technology in action, helping industries become more efficient and reduce their carbon emissions, it reinforces the value of our mission.
Moreover, the challenges we face—whether technological, financial, or market-related—push me to think creatively and persistently. The support of our team, the recognition from the global community, and the opportunity to lead AEInnova toward a greener future are what fuel my drive to continue moving forward, despite the obstacles.
Article published by EurA AG.
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