2025-10-15

NanoFrontier Relocates Headquarters to Tohoku University's Materials Solutions Center

NanoFrontier Relocates Headquarters to Tohoku University’s Materials Solutions Center

NanoFrontier Co., Ltd. (Head Office: Sendai City, Miyagi; Representative Director: Seiya Inoue) announced the relocation of its headquarters to Tohoku University’s Materials Solutions Center (MaSC) in Aoba-ku, Katahira, Sendai City, Miyagi Prefecture, effective October 2025. From within this industry-academia collaboration hub, the company will drive product development and real-world implementation leveraging its proprietary nanoparticle technologies, while taking advantage of MaSC’s ‘Research Automation Pipeline’ (automated loop of synthesis—evaluation—exploration).

Key Points of the Relocation

  • Consolidating Headquarters Functions at the Forefront of University-Born Innovation: Seamlessly promoting research, prototyping, evaluation, and business collaborations within the same facility.

  • Preparing a New In-House Laboratory: Continuing precision design (nanoscale size control), dispersion stabilization, and scale-up studies of nanoparticles using NanoFrontier’s proprietary reprecipitation method.

  • Full-Scale Operation of the Research Automation Pipeline: Integrating experiment planning, synthesis, measurement, and data analysis to accelerate learning cycles, dramatically improving exploration efficiency and reducing time-to-milestone.

Background

Through its proprietary reprecipitation method originating from Tohoku University, NanoFrontier has realized the stable nanoparticulation of compounds that were previously challenging. By dispersing, downsizing, and increasing the surface area of nanoparticles, the company unlocks enhanced properties and new applications. With this headquarters relocation, NanoFrontier will strengthen its collaboration with the university, accelerate proof-of-concept testing, and integrate efforts toward mass production and scale-up, thereby significantly boosting the speed of real-world implementation.

Main Areas of Focus Moving Forward

  • Real-Time Detection of Trace Water Contaminants: Realizing high-sensitivity sensing by nanoparticulating and dispersing in water poorly soluble organic dyes, with applications in environmental monitoring of PFAS and other substances.

  • Next-Generation Batteries: Developing electrolyte systems using organic nanoparticles to simultaneously achieve cost reduction and leakage suppression.

  • Advanced Coolant Performance: Pursuing dispersion designs that enhance heat transfer performance by leveraging the interfacial disruption effect while maintaining low viscosity even at high concentrations.

  • Hydrogen Carriers/Dehydrogenation Processes: Utilizing nanocatalysts and thermal-conductive fillers to reduce the required temperature and reaction time for hydrogen transport.

  • Drug Delivery: Pursuing nanoparticulation and water-solubilization of anticancer drugs and others to improve target accumulation and reduce side effects.

  • Custom Solutions: Flexibly accommodating reagent development, contract manufacturing, licensing, and consulting services.

NanoFrontier’s initiatives at Tohoku University’s Materials Solutions Center are also featured on the center’s website:

https://masc.tohoku.ac.jp/project/nanofrontier.html

Call for Joint Research and Partners

NanoFrontier is seeking partners for joint research, proof-of-concept projects, contract manufacturing, and technology licensing in areas such as environmental sensing (PFAS, etc.), next-generation batteries, thermal management demonstrations with data center/rack operators (enhancing coolant performance), and chemical process optimization. Please inquire through the company’s website.

About Tohoku University’s Materials Solutions Center

The Materials Solutions Center (MaSC) is an industry-academia co-creation hub for materials science, established through collaboration between the Institute for Materials Research, Institute of Multidisciplinary Research for Advanced Materials, Institute of Fluid Science, and the Administration Bureau at Tohoku University, with the support of subsidies from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry for facility upgrades. The Center was later joined by the Research Institute of Electrical Communication. Leveraging the advanced research and device development capabilities of these four affiliated institutes—spanning nano to macro scales across metallic, inorganic, and hybrid materials—MaSC aims to establish and promote industry-academia-government collaborative research frameworks in social infrastructure, electronics, and energy fields, contributing to post-disaster reconstruction and enhancing Japan’s international competitiveness in materials science.

Company Profile

  • Company Name: NanoFrontier Co., Ltd.
  • Representative: Seiya Inoue, Representative Director
  • Address: Room 215, Material Solutions Center (MaSC), Tohoku University, 2-1-1 Katahira, Aoba-ku, Sendai-shi, Miyagi Prefecture
  • Established: April 7, 2025
  • Business Activities:
    • R&D, manufacturing, and sales of reagents and functional materials using organic nanoparticle technologies
    • Contract manufacturing of organic nanoparticles and provision of related technologies
    • Technology licensing and consulting in the field of organic nanoparticle technologies
  • Website: https://nanofrontier.jp

Last updated: 2025-10-15