How an NCInnovation Grant Helped Dr. Hemali Rathnayake Advance Lithium Refinement in North Carolina
A Technology Showcase Open House hosted by Minerva Lithium in partnership with UNC Greensboro (UNCG) featured live demonstrations of pilot-scale lithium extraction technology, bringing to life a vision that had once seemed out of reach.
For Dr. Hemali Rathnayake, a professor at UNCG’s Joint School of Nanoscience and Nanoengineering (JSNN), the showcase was more than a demonstration. It was evidence that years of persistence had carried her research across the so-called “valley of death,” the stage where promising technologies so often fail to progress because they lack funding, infrastructure, or commercial pathways.
Lithium sits at the heart of modern life: powering electric vehicles, smartphones, and energy storage systems. Yet the U.S. produces less than 1% of the world’s refined lithium, sending much of its mined resource overseas for processing before importing it back at higher costs. That bottleneck not only inflates prices but also leaves the nation vulnerable to supply-chain risks.
North Carolina, home to some of the largest hard-rock lithium deposits in the country, is uniquely positioned to change that equation. But turning ore into battery-grade lithium carbonate requires advanced, capital-intensive refining processes. For years, Dr. Rathnayake and her team proved their adsorption-based refinement method on a small scale. What they lacked was the resources to move beyond prototypes.
That breakthrough came with a first tranche of nearly a half a million dollars in grant funding from NCInnovation. The funding supported technology development in Dr. Rathnayake’s research lab, “NCInnovation helped us take a prototype to a minimum viable product (MVP) with the feasibility to scale to pilot production and commercialization,” Dr. Rathnayake said. “For us, it was the moment a dream became practical reality.” The technology is now able to be licensed to Minerva Lithium, a UNCG spinout company co-founded by Dr. Rathnayake and Dr. Sheeba Dawood, alumna from her research group at JSNN.
“At the lab scale we’re working with just a few grams,” she explained. “At pilot scale, we’re working in kilograms, and the leap from there to commercial production is measured in metric tons.” Without support, most ideas never make it that far.
At the open house, Minerva Lithium unveiled its Gen 4 pilot-scale filter prototype and demonstrated battery cathodes fabricated using its battery-grade lithium carbonate, clear signs of progress toward scale-up production.
The event drew investors and industry leaders alike. Representatives from JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley attended, impressed by the rapid transition from lab to pilot scale. With patents published, product certifications underway, and letters of intent secured from strategic partners, the project is now investor-ready, with a valuation of $50 million and plans to raise $10 million in pre-series funding for a commercial production facility.
Investor Vikram Rao explained the appeal: “The technology is what pulls you in, but the team is what keeps you there. Refining lithium isn’t just necessary–it’s urgent. Dr. Rathnayake’s approach is reliable, less capital-intensive, and positioned to make North Carolina a powerhouse in this space.”
Scaling this technology in-state could create as many as 2,000 jobs, strengthen domestic supply chains, and keep the economic benefits of lithium refinement within North Carolina. With Wilmington’s port offering a logistics advantage, and a growing cluster of battery partnerships across UNC campuses, the state is positioned to lead in clean energy innovation.
But policy will play a critical role. “The policies need to be more tailored toward domestic supply rather than importing from overseas,” Dr. Rathnayake said. “We are sitting on a gold mine here in North Carolina–it’s time to use it for impactful economic development in our state.”
