SBIR Phase I: A high-efficiency and compact blood filter for enhanced removal of toxins during hemodialysis

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The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is improving the outcomes for patients with End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) and creating significant value with a new blood filter. In addition to the ability of the blood filter remove more toxins than current devices, the silicon nanopore membrane (SNM) blood filter will also confer additional health benefits on ESRD patients because it requires less blood and less overall blood contact time. The ESRD blood filter market is approximately $2 Billion dollars per year. In addition, the SNM technology will also create significant commercial value, have societal impact, and advance science and technology outside the ESRD population. It can be used in a wide array of applications, including water filtration, artificial lungs, and for cell therapies. The proposed project will develop a novel blood filter with SNM to enhance toxin removal during hemodialysis for patients with ESRD. Today, ESRD patients suffer from numerous serious complications due to poor clearance of toxins during hemodialysis. The new SNM-based blood filter will remove toxins more efficiently and significantly improve patient outcomes. The objective of this research project is to demonstrate the feasibility of building a compact blood filter using SNM. SNM are fundamentally different than the polymer membranes currently used in blood filters. Consequently, the SNM must be designed for use in blood filters and tested as blood filters before being used clinically. Developing the next-generation SNM and testing a small-scale SNM blood filter will establish feasibility of the SNM blood filter. At the conclusion of this project, a new blood filter will have been proved feasible and the next phase will consist of creating full-scale blood filters for testing.