Smart sponges that absorb toxic gases

Omar Farha discovered in graduate school at UCLA that he was wowed by Metal-Organic Frameworks – MOFs as they’re called by chemists. MOFs were like sponges that could soak up toxic gases and other health hazards -- one of the most exciting and oft cited areas of chemistry. So when Omar arrived at Northwestern University in 2007 it took him just four years to find two like-minded co-founders and start NuMat. The Chicago company designs custom MOFs that provide chemical protection, safe storage of toxic gases, and carbon reduction in energy intensive processes. NuMat has three facilities -- in Illinois, Wisconsin and South Korea -- employs about 80 people and has raised $78 million.

Midwest Moxie's executive producer is Audrey Nowakowski. She produced this episode. Subscribe to Midwest Moxie wherever you get your podcasts. And if you love Midwest Moxie as much as we do, help us out by posting a review.