Moulton Announces $3.2 Million in Department of Defense, Department of Energy Funding for Middleton Clean Tech, Defense Startup
SALEM, Mass. – Congressman Seth Moulton announced that FGC Plasma Solutions Inc.—a clean-technology, defense startup based in Middleton—was awarded $1.2 million in funding from the Department of Energy (DOE) and $2 million from the Department of Defense (DOD) through the Small Business Innovation Research Program.
FGC Plasma Solutions develops advanced combustion technology—which incorporates plasma to better control combustion in jet engines and gas turbines to reduce emissions. This advanced technology has a range of critical applications, from making air travel more sustainable to enhancing U.S. defense capabilities.
“Massachusetts has a rich history of defense innovation, and this tradition continues today in Middleton with the cutting-edge work of FGC Plasma Solutions,” said Congressman Moulton. “As climate change increasingly exacerbates geopolitical threats, it is imperative that our government prioritize grants like this one, which will help the U.S. maintain a technological edge on the battlefield while leaving a lighter environmental footprint.”
“At FGC Plasma, we use electrical discharges to improve combustion at the molecular level. We work across energy, aerospace and defense using our technology to develop propulsion systems with lower emissions and improved performance,” said Felipe Gomez del Campo, founder and CEO of FGC Plasma Solutions. “Thanks to the support of the Department of Defense and Department of Energy through the SBIR program, and leveraging our venture capital funding, we will continue to make strides in the development of this technology with major strategic and academic partners.”
The company’s work is particularly unique because of the synergies between its clean energy and defense work. The same underlying technology used by FGC Plasma to reduce fuel consumption and emissions from jet engines can also be used to improve the performance of future hypersonic systems.
Funded by DOE, the commercial application of FGC Plasma’s technology aims to reduce emissions and fuel burn for commercial air travel and gas-fired power production. Funded by DOD, the defense application of this technology has the potential to improve performance for airbreathing hypersonic systems.
Every year, the Department of Defense and the Department of Energy invests 1 percent of their budgets in the Small Business Innovation Research Program. The Small Business Innovation Research Program funds a diverse portfolio of startups and small businesses to stimulate technological innovation, meet federal research and development needs, and increase commercialization to extend the value of that taxpayer-funded research and development into commercial products that benefit American workers, businesses, and consumers.
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