ThermoAura poised to reach profitability in 2015

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The manufacturing space at ThermoAura, a startup nanomaterials company, in Colonie.

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Megan Rogers

Reporter- Albany Business Review

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Rutvik Mehta, the entrepreneur-scientist behind the nanomaterials startup ThermoAura, anticipates turning the company's first profit in the beginning of 2015.

ThermoAura manufactures thermo-electric materials for applications in smart cooling and heating. Mehta, a co-founder and CEO, will start scaling up the manufacturing for a second product next year. He is raising $1 million to facilitate that growth.

Mehta spun the company out of research he did as a doctoral student at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York and moved the seven-employee startup into a manufacturing space in Colonie this summer. He spent the fall building a larger manufacturing line.

ThermoAura manufactures nanocrystals of thermoelectric semiconductors, using a conventional oven.

"It takes as much energy to make nanomaterials in our process as it takes to make a cup of coffee," he says.

He will target electronic companies and device manufactures in the smart heating and cooling space as initial customers. The technology also has applications in waste heat.

The National Science Foundation, New York State Energy Research and Development Authority and the Eastern New York Angels have all made investments in the startup. The largest investment came from science foundation, which awarded ThermoAura $750,000 in 2013.

ENYA, an early-stage investment fund in the Albany area, gave $250,000. The first $150,000 was given in 2013. The remaining investment will now be given to the company because it reached the milestone of establishing a manufacturing facility.

ENYA currently is raising a second fund of $2 million. Joe Richardson, a co-general manager of ENYA, says the group will begin to make investments in early 2015.

Megan reports breaking news and covers education.