ETH Zurich researchers want to make salt printing marketable

From basic research into practice

This work is set to go beyond being purely academic. Kleger and Fehlmann began a Pioneer Fellowship in early July. They have one year to demonstrate if it is possible to commercialise the technology.

“We want to find out if the process can pass the test of real-world use,” Kleger says. Her business partner is equally keen to ensure that the lab results don’t simply gather dust in a drawer. “It’s important for me to always have an application in mind, as that keeps me motivated,” Fehlmann says.

For use in jaws and in space

The two researchers already have several specific ideas for commercialising their process. One possible application is jaw implants. “If one loses a tooth, the jawbone underneath disintegrates very quickly,” Kleger explains. Before a dental implant can be inserted, the bone must first be rebuilt. Surgeons currently do this using bone material from the hip – but that requires a second surgical site. Alternatively, they could opt for customised bone implants made of magnesium alloys, into which bone-forming cells can migrate and which will degrade over time. Kleger and Fehlmann could use their process to produce precisely this type of implant.

An idea that heads in a similar direction is to produce three-dimensional scaffolds for cell cultures. Cells don’t behave in the same way in 3D space as they do on a 2D plane such as a standard laboratory Petri dish. With this in mind, the researchers have contacted scientists who work with such cell cultures in the lab. It isn’t yet clear whether these scientists would prefer to produce such scaffolds themselves using Kleger’s and Fehlmann’s process, or whether they would instead opt to buy the scaffolds ready-to-use.

The two young entrepreneurs see another possible application in space travel. “On space missions, weight is money,” Kleger says. Because every gramme counts, lightweight metal components manufactured using their process would be ideal for use in spaceships or rockets.

Customisation, not mass production

However, one thing is already clear to these two Pioneer Fellows: their products will not be cheap mass-produced items, but rather relatively expensive mass customized products. This is because the manufacturing process is rather slow and doesn’t allow very large batches to be produced in a short time. “We’re not going to position ourselves in the mass market,” Fehlmann says.

They have yet to make a final decision regarding their business model. “We’re currently analysing the market to find out who our potential customers are and what they really need,” Kleger explains. They have already had countless discussions with dentists and cell biologists, and also with companies that manufacture printing equipment.

Steep learning curve in business

“What we’re doing now is in some areas very different to my doctoral project – and the learning curve is correspondingly steep,” Kleger says with a smile.

Fehlmann adds, “We’re getting a lot of new input, and we have to approach things differently from how we do in research. That’s enriching and exciting.”

The two women are also receiving start-up help from ETH Professor André Studart, in whose Complex Materials Group they did their research. Among the things he will provide them with in the coming year are a laboratory workplace and printing equipment. “We’re delighted that we can continue to work here for a while,” Kleger says.

Moreover, they will be in a position to benefit from the experience of other start-up founders from Studart’s group. “We’re in close contact with all four companies that have emerged from the group so far,” Kleger says.

They have also come up with a name for their start-up: “Sallea”, a portmanteau of “salt leaching”. So the process they want to bring to market has given the young company its name. At some point, they will apply for the label of “ETH spin-off”. But for now, there is still a lot of development work to be done – and then the two Pioneer Fellows will see whether their successful research work turns into a profitable company.