Benchtop DNP polarizer enabling highly sensitive hyperpolarized NMR analysis

forthcoming

Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is a powerful analytical technique in chemistry, pharmaceuticals, and metabolomics, but requires complex and expensive infrastructure, limiting its widespread adoption. Since recently, the development of Benchtop NMR spectrometers offers a simple, compact, and low-cost alternative compared to traditional high-field systems, and their market has seen a significant growth. However, benchtop NMR faces a critical restraint which is its order of magnitude lower sensitivity. Hyperpolarization by dissolution dynamic nuclear polarization (dDNP) offers a solution by dramatically enhancing NMR signal strength but is limited to a handful of groups due to its complexity and dramatic costs, as it operates at high-fields and very low temperatures. The BenchHyp project introduces a breakthrough approach by developing a compact, reusable, and scalable hyperpolarization system compatible with benchtop NMR spectrometers. The core innovation is a flow cryostat with a sliding-sample mechanism, enabling continuous hyperpolarization without sample destruction or dilution. Unlike conventional dDNP, BenchHyp allows multiple reuses of hyperpolarized solutions, significantly reducing costs and enabling real-time, repeated measurements for applications in chemical analysis, pharmaceutical quality control, and metabolomics. This Proof of Concept will advance the technology from TRL 2 to TRL 4, focusing on prototype optimization, industrial validation, and market assessment. The project will also explore commercialization pathways, evaluating licensing, co-development with industry, or a spin-off. An IP strategy and freedom-to-operate analysis will be conducted to safeguard the innovation. BenchHyp has the potential to revolutionize benchtop NMR, bridging the gap between cutting-edge hyperpolarization and routine laboratory applications, paving the way for its widespread industrial adoption and market deployment.