Inside the NTI–NTU Corporate Laboratory
Jointly established by Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) and Nanofilm Technologies International (NTI Nanofilm), the S$66 million NTI–NTU Corporate Laboratory facility brings collectively NTU’s superior analysis platforms and NTI Nanofilm’s industrial-scale coating methods inside a single setting. The launch on 20 April 2026 was officiated by Dr Tan See Leng, Minister for Manpower and Minister-in-charge of Energy and Science & Technology.
The lab is supported by the National Research Foundation, Singapore beneath the Research, Innovation and Enterprise (RIE) 2025 plan, and developed in partnership with Enterprise Singapore.
Designed as a translational platform, the Corporate Laboratory permits analysis, pilot-scale testing, and expertise improvement to happen alongside business — accelerating the journey from discovery to deployment together with nanocoating sustainable manufacturing, in addition to clear power, semiconductors, and superior manufacturing. More than 60 researchers and PhD candidates in the present day are advancing next-gen nanotech options throughout 4 analysis thrusts — superior supplies, coating tools, nanofabrication, and hydrogen power.
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| Ms Goh Swee Chen, NTU Board Chair; Dr Tan See Leng, Minister for Manpower and Minister-in-charge of Energy and Science & Technology; Dr Shi Xu, NTI Nanofilm Founder, Executive Chairman and CEO; and Prof Lam Khin Yong, NTU Vice President (Industry) (left to proper) on the official opening ceremony of the NTI–NTU Corporate Laboratory, marking the launch of a brand new platform for business–academia collaboration. |
Where MSE Drives Impact: Advanced Materials and Hydrogen Energy
Within this ecosystem, NTU’s School of Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) performs a key function throughout a number of tasks — together with in Advanced Materials and Hydrogen Energy, the place Prof Ng Kee Woei, Chair of NTU MSE, and Prof Jason Xu Zhichuan are among the many mission leads driving these efforts.
Advanced Materials: Engineering Surfaces That Heal
One of probably the most speedy translational outcomes of the lab is in oral healthcare sector, the place NTU, NTI Nanofilm, and the National Dental Centre Singapore (NDCS) are collaborating to develop superior coatings for dental prosthetics, with the intention of enhancing affected person outcomes.
From Materials Design to Clinical Need
Dental implants function in demanding environments — uncovered to mechanical stress, microbial challenges and complicated organic circumstances. Current limitations can result in:
- Infection dangers and/or irritation
- Weak tissue-implant integration
- Longer restoration occasions
To deal with this, MSE-led analysis focuses on superior floor coatings, together with the novel bioactive Tetrahedral Amorphous Carbon (ta-C) nanocomposite coatings.
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Models of tooth implants regarding the collaboration between NTU, NTI Nanofilm, and the National Dental Centre Singapore (NDCS. |
- Bond strongly to titanium implant surfaces, enhancing sturdiness
- Incorporate bioactive parts reminiscent of phosphate and magnesium to advertise therapeutic
- Provide antimicrobial properties, lowering an infection threat
The result’s a fabric system designed not simply to guard, however to actively assist organic integration.
“We are engineering coatings that do greater than defend — they work together with the physique to enhance therapeutic and integration on the implant interface,” stated Prof Ng Kee Woei
As highlighted within the collaboration, these coatings have the potential to:
This work sits inside a broader translational pathway over the subsequent 5 years — from lab-based supplies design, to organic validation, and onward into medical testing with NDCS.
Hydrogen Energy: Engineering Catalysts for Real-World Performance
In parallel, NTU MSE contributes to hydrogen power improvement via catalyst layer optimisation inside a broader system led in collaboration with Sydrogen, NTI-Nanofilm’s effort in constructing sustainable power options for the hydrogen financial system.
Reducing Platinum, Retaining Performance
Proton trade membrane gasoline cells (PEMFCs) depend on platinum-based catalysts for the oxygen discount response (ORR), the place efficiency, sturdiness, and value are carefully interlinked. At NTI–NTU Corporate Laboratory, the MSE staff led by Prof Jason Xu Zhichuan focuses on optimising the catalyst layer — a essential part that straight impacts effectivity and lifespan — whereas working carefully with Sydrogen on system-level integration.
This contains:
- Fine-tuning catalyst composition via alloying with cheaper transition metals like iron, cobalt and nickel, and introducing molybdenum doping to reinforce stability
- Engineering nanoparticle buildings to enhance catalytic exercise
- Evaluating efficiency beneath accelerated stress circumstances to grasp degradation behaviour
Working in tandem with Sydrogen’s improvement of different elements — together with bipolar plates and general gasoline cell stack design — this built-in method permits nearer alignment between supplies design and real-world working circumstances to assist the event of extra sturdy, cost-effective, and commercially viable hydrogen methods.
“The focus is not just on improving a single material, but ensuring it performs reliably within the full system. We are continuing to optimise these catalysts in close collaboration with industry to translate them into practical, deployable solutions,” stated Prof Jason Xu Zhichuan.
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| Sydrogen’s proprietary coating applied sciences for bipolar plates, alongside its gasoline cell platforms, enabling system-level validation and scale-up of NTU MSE-optimised catalyst supplies. |
Where Materials Meet the Future of Manufacturing
Across each biomedical coatings and hydrogen catalysts, a transparent sample emerges: supplies are now not developed in isolation, however engineered with software, scalability, and manufacturing constraints in thoughts from the outset. Within the NTI–NTU Corporate Laboratory, NTU MSE contributes to the mixing of supplies science, industrial capabilities, and real-world purposes — supporting the interpretation of improvements into options for healthcare, power methods, and superior manufacturing.