What proionic does

proionic GmbH is an Austrian specialty chemicals company headquartered in Raaba-Grambach (Styria), founded in 2003/2004, that manufactures and supplies ionic liquids — salts that remain liquid at or near room temperature and serve as electrolytes, solvents, and operating fluids. The company is led by founder and scientific director Roland Kalb, inventor of the proprietary CBILS® process, which is described as the only halide- and waste-free industrial production route for ultra-pure ionic liquids, supporting high batch-to-batch stability and scalability. A complementary proprietary technology, HIPE-REC®, handles recovery and recycling of distillable ionic liquids in biomass processing, with recycling rates above 99% for aprotic ionic liquids; the company also partners with METTOP GmbH on ILTEC ionic-liquid-based furnace cooling for the metallurgical industry.

proionic operates five complementary revenue streams: (1) catalog sales of standard ionic liquids (EMIM-BF4, EMIM-FSI, EMIM-OAc, EMIM-OOc, EMIM acrylate and others) at electronic, OEKO-TEX®, and REACH-registered grades, sold both direct and through a webshop and Carl Roth distribution; (2) contract manufacturing of specialty and fine chemistry products on 10L–2,000L batch reactors (5 kg–2 ton scale, up to 220°C, 40 bar, fine vacuum distillation); (3) R&D and process development services from screening through pilot/demonstration; (4) ionic liquid recycling and refurbishment services; and (5) custom synthesis including REACH registration support. Pricing is publicly listed for catalog products (e.g., €510/kg for EMIM-BF4 at 10kg+, €590/kg for EMIM-FSI at 10kg+), with quote-based pricing above 150 kg and for custom work. Customers span energy storage (batteries, supercaps, redox flow), textiles and cellulose reshaping, biomass valorization, metallurgy, currency/precious metals, and specialty chemicals; named customers include Arkema (also the main shareholder since July 2024), Austrian Mint, METTOP GmbH, RBX Creations, and Naturbeads. The company is privately held, operates with 11–50 employees, and is positioned as a world-leading niche ionic liquid manufacturer with deep academic partnerships (TU Graz, JKU Linz) and FFG-funded R&D programs.

Name

proionic

Legal name

proionic GmbH

Website

https://proionic.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

proionic is an Austrian specialty chemicals manufacturer of ionic liquids for energy storage, textiles, biomass, and metallurgy, serving enterprise customers globally with proprietary CBILS® synthesis and HIPE-REC® recycling technologies. Arkema has been the main shareholder since July 2024.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Specialty Chemicals

NAICS

Chemical Manufacturing (325)

SIC

Miscellaneous Chemical Products (2890), Industrial Organic Chemicals (2860)

akta.pro primary industry

Electrolytes & Additives Manufacturing (Liquid, Gel, Solid-State) (EUAFABAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Battery & Energy Storage High-Purity Chemicals (Electrolyte salts/solvents, additives) (IMAEAKAM)

Keywords

• Ionic liquid manufacturing
• Specialty chemicals production
• Electrolyte materials supply
• Biomass processing solvents
• Contract chemical manufacturing

Headquarters

HQ city

Grambach

HQ country

Austria

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Ionic Liquid Production & Sales: Manufacturing and sale of standard ionic liquid products (catalog items) at various scales, from small quantities to multi-ton scale. REACH-registered products are available at multi-ton scale.
2. Contract Manufacturing & Process Development: Custom manufacturing of specialty and fine chemistry products with a focus on liquid chemicals, from urgent short-term supply to commercially viable processes. Services include toll manufacturing from 5 kg to 2 tons, and process development and optimization.
3. R&D Services: Research and development services for customers, including development of new ionic liquid-based technologies and processes, application development, and co-development projects with key players in the value chain.
4. Ionic Liquid Recycling Services: Recycling of both non-distillable (aprotic) and distillable (protic) ionic liquids for customers, including refurbishment of recycled product and custom recycling unit delivery through industrial partners.
5. Custom Manufacturing of Distillable Ionic Liquids: Synthesis and supply of custom Distillable Ionic Liquids not available in the standard portfolio, including custom synthesis and REACH registration support.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

proionic manufactures and supplies ionic liquids (specialized salts in liquid state at or near room temperature) for industrial applications including energy storage, cellulose reshaping, and biomass valorization. The company produces standard catalog ionic liquids, offers custom synthesis and contract manufacturing of specialty liquid chemicals, provides R&D services for ionic liquid-based technologies, and runs ionic liquid recycling and recovery services. Production is enabled by the proprietary CBILS® halide- and waste-free synthesis process, with capability ranging from gram-scale R&D to multi-ton commercial supply.

Product overview

proionic is a world-leading manufacturer and supplier of ionic liquids with over 20 years of experience, operating as a subsidiary of Arkema Group. The company offers a comprehensive portfolio centered on ionic liquids — specialized salts with low melting points that serve as electrolytes, solvents, and operating fluids across energy storage, cellulose processing, and biomass valorization applications. The core product line includes standard ionic liquids (imidazolium, pyrrolidinium, phosphonium, cholinium, and ammonium-based variants) available through the IL Catalog and Ionic Liquid Wizard tool, with CBILS® as the proprietary halide-free production technology. Key products include EMIM-OAc (for polymer processing, OEKO-TEX® certified), EMIM-OOc (distillable, OEKO-TEX® certified), EMIM-BF4 (electronic grade for energy storage), EMIM-FSI (high-purity electrolyte), and EMIM acrylate (polymerizable, for membranes). These are supported by complementary technologies: HIPE-REC® for solvent recovery and recycling, and services spanning R&D (screening, scale-up), contract manufacturing (10L-2000L reactors), and ionic liquid recycling. Applications focus on energy storage (batteries, supercaps, redox flow batteries), cellulose reshaping (textile fibers), and biomass valorization (lignin extraction).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CBILS®: Exclusive production technology for efficient, halide- and waste-free production of ultra-pure ionic liquids.
• HIPE-REC®

Products and services

• EMIM-BF4 (1-Ethyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate, electronic grade) High-purity ionic liquid (CAS 143314-16-3, ≥99.5% purity, electronic grade) used as electrolyte in batteries and electronic applications. Available at €510/kg for 10kg+ orders.
• EMIM-OAc (1-Ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acetate) Aprotic ionic liquid (CAS 143314-17-4, ≥98% purity), OEKO-TEX® certified, used for natural and synthetic polymer processing including cellulose reshaping and textile fiber production. Available at €280/kg for 10kg+ orders.
• EMIM-OOc (1-Ethyl-3-methylimidazolium octanoate) Distillable ionic liquid (CAS 1154003-55-0, ≥98% purity), OEKO-TEX® ECO PASSPORT certified, used in selective extraction of lignin from lignocellulosic feedstocks for biomass valorization. Available at €440/kg for 10kg+ orders. REACH lead registrant.
• EMIM-FSI (1-Ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(fluorosulfonyl)imide) High-purity ionic liquid (CAS 235789-75-0, ≥99.9% purity, electronic grade) used as electrolyte for batteries, supercapacitors, sensors, and advanced materials. Available at €590/kg for 10kg+ orders.
• EMIM acrylate (1-Ethyl-3-methylimidazolium acrylate) Polymerizable ionic liquid (CAS 871326-06-6) developed for use in membranes and advanced materials, with significantly lower production costs than comparable polymerizable ionic liquids.
• Ionic Liquid Recycling Services Recycling services for non-distillable (aprotic) and distillable (protic) ionic liquids, achieving recycling rates above 99% for aprotic ionic liquids. Includes refurbishment of recycled product, analytical quality control, and custom recycling unit delivery through industrial partners.
• Contract Manufacturing Services Custom manufacturing of specialty and fine chemistry products with focus on ionic liquids and liquid chemicals. Capabilities include 10L to 2000L batch reactors (glass, stainless steel, enamel), temperatures up to 220°C, pressure synthesis up to 40 bar, fine vacuum distillation, explosion-proof equipment, and REACH registration support. Scale-up from 5kg to 2 tons per batch.
• Research and Development Services Full R&D support from concept to pilot and demonstration scale across all technical readiness levels (TRL). Services include candidate screening via CBILS® process, physico-chemical parameter database, engineering know-how, and scale-up experience from gram to ton scale for ionic liquid-based technologies.

Quantifiable outcome

• Recycling rates above 99% for aprotic ionic liquids
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Johannes Kepler University Linz (JKU Linz)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on the Plas-Ion-PhotoKat project (FFG-funded) with the Institute of Applied Physics (IAP) and the Linz Institute for Organic Solar Cells (LIOS) for electrochemical CO2 reduction using photocatalysis and ionic liquids.
• GIG-KarasekcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic partnership for the HIPE-REC® technology. Demo-units of the recycling technology are available at GIG-Karasek, who can also deliver those units at industrial scale. Collaboration on biomass processing and solvent recovery.
• Graz University of Technology (TU Graz)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMultiple collaborations including the IonFlow project (FFG-funded) for high-performance membranes for redox flow batteries, and the Institute of Bioproducts and Paper Technology (BPTI) for polymerizable ionic liquids and EMIM acrylate development.
• Schwarz & Partner PatentanwälteminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPatent attorneys supporting proionic in intellectual property protection for more than 15 years.
• METTOP GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for the development and commercialization of the ILTEC Technology — a safe ionic liquid cooling technology for furnace cooling in the metallurgical industry, replacing traditional water cooling.
• Trinkl UnternehmensfitminorOthersOrganizational consulting partnership since 2021.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• IoLiTec Ionic Liquids Technologies: German specialty chemical company focused exclusively on the synthesis, application, and distribution of ionic liquids for research and industrial use. Most direct head-to-head competitor to proionic, offering overlapping imidazolium-based IL catalog with similar research/industrial customer base.
• Solvionic: French ionic liquid specialist producing standard and custom ILs for energy storage and industrial applications. Closely aligned with proionic in product offering and target markets (battery electrolytes, supercaps, catalysis).

Broad incumbents

• BASF: World's largest chemical company with a specialty chemicals portfolio that includes ionic liquids, electrolyte formulations, and battery materials (through its Catalysts division). Competes with proionic across multiple end-markets and can leverage scale, global sales force, and integrated R&D that proionic cannot match.
• Merck KGaA (Sigma-Aldrich/Merck Life Science): Major catalog and specialty chemicals supplier offering ionic liquids through Sigma-Aldrich brand, serving the same lab-research and industrial customers as proionic. Distributions competing ionic liquid product lines and provides process chemicals at scale.
• Solvay: Belgian specialty chemicals producer with battery materials, fluorinated products (closely related to FSI anion chemistry proionic makes), and specialty polymers. Competes in advanced battery electrolytes and polymer processing chemistries relevant to proionic's customer base.
• Evonik Industries: German specialty chemicals leader with strong position in battery materials (lithium-ion electrolyte additives), specialty polymers, and chemical intermediates. Overlaps with proionic in energy storage and high-purity industrial chemistry applications.
• Chemours Company: U.S. fluorochemicals specialist producing fluorosulfonylimide (FSI) chemistries underpinning proionic's EMIM-FSI product. A vertically-integrated supplier/competitor that could supply ionic liquid anions or compete in next-gen battery electrolytes.
• TCI Chemicals (Tokyo Chemical Industry): Japanese specialty chemicals supplier with a deep catalog of ionic liquids for research and industrial customers globally. Competes with proionic on catalog IL product offerings for academic and R&D customers.

Emerging players

• Strem Chemicals: U.S.-based specialty chemicals manufacturer and distributor with a notable ionic liquid catalog for research customers. Smaller scale than proionic but a credible alternative source for imidazolium and other IL chemistries in the research segment.

Regional players

• Koei Chemical Co. Japanese producer of specialty ionic liquids and intermediates, serving Asian markets. Comparable producer of IL catalysts and electrolytes with similar technical capabilities but operating in a different geography than proionic's EMEA-centric distribution.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/about

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments1 record

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about proionic