Current Award Winners

Professor Shane Telfer is a principal investigator for the MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materials and Nanotechnology and is a world-class scientist and international authority in the field of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs). His research excellence has been recognised by a number of professional distinctions including the Massey University Research Medal in 2021. In 2022, he founded the spin-out company Captivate Technology following his discovery of MUF-16 (MUF = Massey University Framework) in 2018. MUF-16 is a crystalline sponge that absorbs carbon dioxide but rejects other gases such as nitrogen and methane therefore revolutionising carbon capture from gas streams. The company aims to achieve high CO2 capture rates while driving down the cost and energy requirements compared to the existing current carbon capture technologies. MUF-16 is a tangible solution to one of our most pressing environmental challenges and Captivate Technology is currently scaling up its technology and entering international markets.