Facility managers report that traditional HEPA and carbon filters choke airflow, forcing HVAC systems to work harder. This leads to a 30% rise in energy consumption. The result? Rising utility bills, mounting carbon emissions, and a steep 300% increase in labor costs due to frequent replacements. Moreover, each filter change adds to landfill waste, directly contradicting the company’s ESG goals. HVAC companies must overcome these challenges to support the corporate sustainability goals of their clients.
Take Carrier, for example. The HVAC giant partnered with the U.S.-based startup Transaera to co-develop ultra-efficient climate systems. These systems leveraged Transaera’s novel desiccant technology, in which a unique sponge-like material is used to capture moisture from the air to enhance cooling efficiency. The strategic investment is a part of Carrier’s goal to reduce the carbon footprint of its clients by more than 1 gigaton by 2030. This signals a clear shift: the future belongs to HVAC systems that deliver both performance and sustainability.
To stay competitive, open innovation managers must start sourcing breakthrough filtration technologies, ones that extend the filter life or eliminate filters altogether.
A thorough analysis on the basis of technology patents, awards & grants received, investor funding, and industrial partnerships helped us identify the four most promising startups replacing traditional HEPA filters.
Adsorbi’s sustainable cellulose-based adsorbent has 50% lower CO2 emissions than traditional filters
| Website | https://www.adsorbi.com/technology |
| Total Funding Amount | €1.44 million |
| Last Funding Round/Amount | €1 million |
| Target Use Cases | Commercial HVAC systems, Households, Museums |
| Partnerships/Backers | Metsä Spring, Chalmers Ventures, Jovitech Invest |
Swedish clean‑tech startup Adsorbi has developed a cellulose-based adsorbent from sustainably harvested Nordic wood to replace activated carbon materials in the air filtration systems.
The adsorbent material demonstrates 5–8× higher adsorption efficiency than traditional alternatives like activated carbon. It is recyclable and is both water and fire-resistant. It has a longer lifespan than industry-standard materials, reducing the frequency of replacements. The cellulose-based material has a low environmental impact throughout the entire value chain.
It is an energy-efficient alternative to traditional filters, generating around 50% lower CO2 emissions. It produces 3.5 kg CO2 per kilogram of material, compared to activated carbon, which has an emission factor of 7.5 kg CO2 per kilogram of material.
Unlike HEPA filters, this adsorbent effectively captures volatile organic compounds (VOCs), carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and gaseous ammonia (NH3).
It maintains high performance regardless of humidity levels and easily retrofits into large-scale HVAC systems. It generates minimal dust during installation or replacement. As the material captures pollutants, it gradually changes color from white to brown, allowing constant monitoring to signal when it needs replacing. All these features ensure easy HVAC maintenance.
The startup is establishing a production facility in Gothenburg with the capacity to manufacture 100 tonnes of Adsorbi material annually, demonstrating its strong potential for scalability.
Founded in 2022 and spun out from Chalmers University, the company is led by CTO Kinga Grenda and CEO Hanna Johansson. The Adsorbi’s innovative material was first developed to capture VOCs in museums to protect sensitive artwork from deterioration. Since then, the company has broadened the scope of pollutant removal to many other industries.
This material’s use cases also include protecting sensitive objects such as chemicals, food, and shoes from air pollutants and odor.
In September 2024, Adsorbi won the national final at the SEB Next Awards in the New Ideas category, a prestigious competition that recognizes sustainable Swedish entrepreneurship.
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Innova NanoJet’s noise-free, water-based air purification is perfect for healthcare facilities
| Website | https://www.innova-nanojet.co.uk/ |
| Total Funding Amount | $1.95 million |
| Last Funding Round/Amount | Seed round |
| Target Use Cases | Commercial buildings, Hospitals and Clinics, Households |
Scotland-based Innova NanoJet uses supersonic, ultra-fine nano-scale droplet sprays for filter-free air purification. These high-speed water droplets encapsulate airborne contaminants, causing them to fall out of suspension, to purify the air. This process destroys 99% of airborne pollutants, including viruses, bacteria, allergens, and mold spores. It is capable of eliminating fine particulate matter, including PM2.5 and PM10, which traditional HEPA filters can only partially capture.
The company’s flagship “Clean Air for Life” CDa series is ISO 9001, ISO 14001, and ISO 45001 certified. The water-based technology eliminates the need for costly filter replacements, reducing maintenance costs compared to traditional filtration systems. The device also includes an acoustic structure designed to reduce noise produced during atomization, making it safer and more suitable for environments that require less noise pollution, e.g., healthcare, residential spaces.
In 2025, Strakonice Hospital in the Czech Republic adopted the CDa Pro Air Purifier for its pulmonary department reported outstanding results in improving air quality for patients and staff.
Innova NanoJet has established distribution partnerships in the UK, USA, EMEA, and South & Central America. The company has also received support from Scottish Enterprise, including a £1.5 million grant, to establish its manufacturing facility in Dumbarton, Scotland.
Founded in 2022, Innova NanoJet is headed by Chairman and CEO Dr Charles Huang. The company earned the CES 2024 TWICE Picks Award for its innovative air purification solutions.
AirLich’s multi-faceted approach for sustainable indoor air purification reduces operational cost by 45%
| Website | https://www.airlich.com/ |
| Total Funding Amount | Not Available |
| Last Funding Round/Amount | Not Available |
| Target Use Cases | Commercial HVAC Systems, Semiconductor Clean Rooms, Healthcare Facilities |
| Partnerships/Backers | Technical University of Denmark (DTU), DEAS A/S |
Danish startup Airlich IP ApS uses a proprietary technology that combines photocatalytic, electrostatic, and catalytic processes for sustainable indoor air purification.
First, the exhausted air is exposed to vacuum ultraviolet radiation, which triggers a radical chain reaction that breaks down and removes gas-phase pollutants.
Secondly, the air stream is directed through an electric field where particles are charged and subsequently collected as dust on a surface. Finally, the air goes through a gas-phase catalytic process that promotes cold combustion of any remaining volatile pollutants. This step is enhanced by energy from the ultraviolet radiation. The cleaned air is then returned to the ventilation ducts. This multifaceted approach ensures comprehensive air purification.
Most conventional filters require regular replacement, which can lead to a drop in air pressure, causing the system to work harder and consume more energy. However, Airlich’s open-path technology doesn’t depend on filters that get clogged or need replacing. As a result, it avoids the common problem of airflow resistance, keeping the pressure drop very low, under 100 pascals (Pa). This reduces operational costs associated with HVAC by up to 45%, making the system more energy efficient. Low-pressure drops make the system ideal for extremely controlled environments like semiconductor clean rooms.
You can easily retrofit Airlich’s EcoGain™ to both new and existing HVAC systems. It significantly reduces a building’s CO₂ footprint by reducing energy consumption for ventilation and air-conditioning solutions. The simulations showed that a single free-standing McDonald’s restaurant of about 600 m² in Denmark reduced its CO₂ emissions by up to 19 tons per year.
Despite not using traditional filters, it can remove up to 90% of gas and particle pollutants in just one pass through the system. The system continuously collects and analyzes data on everything from temperatures and energy consumption to parts per billion air contamination levels to quantify the positive impact of the technology.
The payback periods typically ranging between 2–4 years, depending on local energy prices, indicating a favorable balance of CAPEX recovery through long-term OPEX reductions.
Founded in 2022, the company is led by CEO Rasmus Jølck and CFO Panayiotis Koullas. The Danish Energy Agency’s Energy Technology Development and Demonstration Programme (EUDP) awarded the company a grant of DKK 7.35 million in February 2025.
Applied Photonix’s ViroZap technology is FDA-approved
| Website | https://www.aphotonix.com/ |
| Total Funding Amount | Not Available |
| Last Funding Round/Amount | Not Available |
| Target Use Cases | Commercial HVAC Systems, Healthcare Facilities, Public Spaces |
Applied Photonix’s ViroZap technology utilizes a combination of filtration, advanced plasmonic photonic technology, and LED lighting to destroy pathogens in the air.
The company’s patent-pending plasmonic photonic technology combines two key components:
- Plasmonic nanoparticles: Made from non-oxidizing metal alloys like silver-boron, these nanoparticles enhance light absorption and catalysis.
- Photocatalysts: Semiconductor oxides such as TiO₂ or ZnO, activated by specific light wavelengths (350–420 nm) that facilitate the breakdown of pollutants.
UV-A or visible light activates the photocatalyst. This activation creates electron–hole pairs. At the same time, plasmonic nanoparticles absorb the light and make the local electromagnetic field stronger. This increases the efficiency of the photocatalytic process. Once activated, the photocatalyst produces highly reactive hydroxyl radicals, which attack and destroy pollutants. This process ensures the continuous breakdown of contaminants without the need for frequent filter replacements.
The ViroZap has been tested on a wide variety of airborne microorganisms at an air flow of 500 CFM. It showed over 4 log reduction in a short period of time, meaning it significantly eliminates harmful microbes in the air.
ViroZap products have received FDA 510(K) clearance based on their performance against volatile organic compounds (like toluene), bacteria, fungal spores, and viruses. It is UL certified and can retrofit into existing HVAC systems.
Scientists Yogi Goswami and Lovely Goswami developed this technology in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Conclusion
With increasing regulatory pressure to cut carbon footprint, the demand for smart, low-maintenance air purification solutions is accelerating. HVAC companies must expand their portfolios with sustainable innovations to help their clients meet their net-zero goals.
Open innovation managers must evaluate startups based on proof of concept, scalability, regulatory readiness, and long-term feasibility to identify investment-worthy opportunities. Our experts can help you cut through the noise to find the best startup that aligns with your business goals.
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