AluminAiry builds aluminum-air generators for the loads that cannot go dark, and the electrodes and membranes other energy companies build with. The fuel is aluminum that would otherwise be landfilled. The byproduct is sold. Nothing burns.
Power systems / generators
Standby and primary power for homes, facilities, and remote military sites. Refueled by swapping aluminum plates instead of recharging or refilling a tank. No combustion, no fuel storage, no downtime.
Energy materials / components
Gas diffusion electrodes, catalyst-coated membranes, and catalysts for fuel cells, metal-air batteries, and flow batteries. Small-batch and pilot-scale, made in the United States.
Facilities that need power through an outage usually choose between a diesel generator and a lithium-ion battery bank. Aluminum-air removes the things that make each one expensive to own.
| Aluminum-air | Diesel generator | Lithium-ion storage | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fuel | Recycled aluminum plate | Diesel, commodity-priced | Grid electricity |
| Flammable on site | No. Water-based electrolyte | Yes. Fuel storage, fire code, suppression | Yes. Thermal runaway risk |
| Operating emissions | None | CO₂, NOx, particulates. Permits and reporting | None on site |
| Refuel or recharge | Mechanical plate swap. No downtime | Fuel delivery. Oil, filters, exhaust after-treatment | Hours on a grid that is down during the outage |
| Critical minerals | None | None | Lithium, cobalt, nickel |
| What is left over | Al(OH)₃, sold to secondary markets | Exhaust | Spent cells |
An aluminum plate oxidizes at the anode and gives up electrons. Oxygen from ambient air is reduced at the cathode and takes them back. The electrolyte carries hydroxide between the two. The electrons take the long way around, through your load.
Practical cell voltage under load is 1.0–1.2 V. Cells are stacked in series to reach 12, 24, or 60 volts. A 2026 peer-reviewed study reached a record 710 mW/cm² peak power density for the chemistry. Read more on the technology page.
Sixty percent of aluminum cans in the United States end up in a landfill, and the energy that went into smelting them goes with them. Our generators pull that energy back out as electricity, and the aluminum trihydroxide that remains is sold into secondary markets. The loop has four stops.
Aluminum, pre- and post-consumer, in all forms from suppliers, partners, and recyclers.
Aluminum is prepared as plate fuel and loaded into the generator.
Electricity is produced on site. No grid, no emissions, no noise.
Aluminum trihydroxide is collected and sold, and the cycle starts again.
Founded in Knoxville, Tennessee. Supported by the University of Tennessee Research Foundation, the Tickle College of Engineering, the Haslam College of Business, DEVCOM Army Research Laboratory, the Tennessee Valley Authority, and the Department of Energy (DOE). Winner of the University of Tennessee Chancellor's Innovation Fund award, 2025, and the TVA x Spark Award, 2024.
Diesel wins on sticker price and loses on everything else. A framework for operations and finance leaders.
A peer-reviewed study pushed peak power density to 710 mW/cm² by managing the aluminum product film. What changed, and why it matters.
Recognized for breakthrough work in aluminum-air energy generation, with new funding to scale the platform.
Recyclers, facilities operators, research partners, and investors all have a place in the loop.
An aluminum-air cell generates electricity from the reaction between aluminum and oxygen in ambient air. It is one of the highest energy-density chemistries known, it is lightweight, and it is mechanically simple.
Instead of recharging, the cell is refueled. Spent aluminum plates are swapped for fresh ones, as fast as filling a tank. Aluminum is abundant and fully recyclable, so the fuel supply is the recycling stream.
Aluminum oxidizes at the anode and gives up electrons. Oxygen from the air is reduced at the cathode and takes them back. The electrolyte carries hydroxide between the two, and the electrons go through your load.
Systems operate at 1.0–1.2 V per cell and are connected in series to reach 12, 24, or 60 volts depending on the application. Refueling is mechanical, so the customer sees zero downtime. The aluminum trihydroxide produced during operation is recovered and sold to secondary markets, which turns the waste stream into revenue.
Peer-reviewed research took a baseline aluminum-air cell to a peak power density of 710 mW/cm², the highest reported for the chemistry on an anode-area basis, by managing the aluminum product film at the anode.
Peak power density on an aluminum-anode-area basis. Prior best reported value per the study's literature survey. Source: Griffith et al., ECS Advances, 2026, 5, 010504 (CC BY 4.0).
A lithium battery has to sit on a charger. A diesel generator has to be topped off from a truck. An aluminum-air generator is refueled by removing the spent plates and inserting fresh ones. The exchange is mechanical and takes minutes.
Because the fuel is a solid, it stores indefinitely, ships without hazmat handling, and does not degrade on the shelf. Standby systems stay ready for years without maintenance cycles.
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Non-flammable, grid-independent power for the operations that cannot afford to go dark. Built for real-world resilience, not a spec sheet.
Operations and facilities leaders face the same tension. They need dependable standby power, but the default options carry hidden costs: volatile diesel prices, fire risk, emissions permits, and maintenance drag.
Aluminum-air is a different answer. A non-flammable, zero-emission, grid-independent source fueled by abundant, recyclable aluminum.
The lifetime bill is driven by the lines that never appear on the purchase order.
| Cost line | Diesel generator | Aluminum-air |
|---|---|---|
| Fuel price | Swings with global commodity markets, and spikes during the emergencies when you need power most. | Aluminum sourced through recycling. A structurally more stable cost basis. |
| Maintenance | Oil changes, filters, exhaust after-treatment, load-bank testing, fuel polishing. | No combustion. Refueling is a mechanical plate swap, not a fuel-storage-and-delivery operation. |
| Fire liability | Flammable fuel drives siting restrictions, suppression requirements, and insurance premiums. | Water-based, non-flammable electrolyte removes the entire risk category. |
| Emissions exposure | Air-quality permits, emissions reporting, and growing carbon-price liability. | Zero-emission operation simplifies compliance and hedges future regulatory cost. |
Every site is different. We will build a total-cost-of-ownership comparison from your load profile, run hours, and current backup source.
Gas diffusion electrodes, catalyst-coated membranes, and catalysts for fuel cells, metal-air batteries, and flow batteries. Small-batch and pilot-scale, made in the United States, delivered faster and cheaper than large-scale manufacturers.
We fabricate custom materials based on the customer's catalysts, substrates, formulations, loadings, and form factors. If you have a recipe, we can run it. If you have a target, we can help get there.
R&D and pilot teams need the best materials quickly and affordably, and large-scale manufacturers are not set up to serve small runs. We are.
We are a U.S.-based company focused on small-batch and pilot-scale production. In today's world, you and your company need access to the best materials quickly and affordably.Brian Washington, Founder and CEO
Many industries generate aluminum scrap and byproducts that are discarded or underutilized. We turn that material into clean, uninterrupted power for homes, businesses, and vehicles.
Grid infrastructure is aging, severe weather is more frequent, and the default answer, a diesel or gasoline generator, is loud, flammable, high-maintenance, and often not running when it is needed. The people and facilities that can least afford to lose power are usually the ones with the least reliable backup.
AluminAiry exists to fix backup power. Our aluminum-air generators are silent, non-flammable, grid-independent, and refueled by swapping aluminum plates. Recycled aluminum is how we fuel them affordably and sustainably, but the mission is uninterrupted power for the homes, facilities, and field operations that cannot go dark.
By 2029, with 5,000 units and 32,500 refuel kits in the field across 4,000+ customers, we project:
Projections based on AluminAiry deployment model. Aluminum cans are part of the solution: we estimate roughly 1.3 GWh of energy is landfilled each year in cans alone, and 60% of U.S. aluminum cans end up in a landfill. Fueling generators with that aluminum turns a disposal problem into distributed backup power.
We convert consumer and post-consumer aluminum into energy through electrochemical extraction. The aluminum trihydroxide generated during operation is recovered and sold to secondary markets, creating a second revenue stream.
This is energy independence built on a material that already exists in abundance: in landfills, recycling bins, and on factory floors around the world.
We secure aluminum, pre- and post-consumer, in all forms from suppliers, partners, and recyclers.
Aluminum is prepared as plate fuel and loaded into our electrochemical generation systems.
Clean, uninterrupted electricity is produced on site. No grid, no emissions, no noise.
Aluminum trihydroxide is collected and sold to secondary markets, completing the loop.
Whether you recycle aluminum, invest in clean energy, or believe the future should be powered differently, there is a place for you in the AluminAiry ecosystem.
Our technology serves a $2 billion dual-use backup-power market: rural homes across the Southeast and U.S. forward operating bases worldwide. We are building the generators, the fuel supply, and the materials business underneath it.
Southeast rural homes are the beachhead: long outages, weak grid, high generator ownership, and TVA in our backyard. Forward operating bases are the dual-use second market, where diesel logistics are the single most expensive and dangerous line item.
A portable diesel generator is cheap on the shelf and expensive to own. The AluminAiry unit replaces it at a lower purchase price, with no oil changes, filters, or fuel storage, and no combustion. Read the full cost-of-ownership breakdown →
Deep dives on the technology, the clean-energy market, and the economics of recycled-aluminum power. Plus company news.
Diesel generators win on sticker price and lose on everything else. A total-cost-of-ownership framework for operations and finance leaders evaluating clean backup power.
A 2026 peer-reviewed study pushed aluminum-air power density to a record 710 mW/cm² by managing the aluminum product layer. What changed, and why it matters for clean energy.
A grounded comparison of energy density, safety, cost, sourcing, and the trade-offs that decide which chemistry fits which job.
Analyst estimates vary widely, but the direction is consistent: up. A clear-eyed look at the numbers, the drivers, and where the real opportunity sits.
Backup power is usually a sunk cost. Aluminum-air reframes it as an investment. Here is how the ROI math works.
Most aluminum cans still end up in landfills, taking their embedded energy with them. Aluminum-air offers a second life.
Recognized for breakthrough work in aluminum-air energy generation, securing new funding to scale our circular energy platform.
Our team presented the aluminum-air generator to regional investors and partners, highlighting the path to grid-independent clean power.
Mentorship, lab space, and a network of clean-energy partners across the Tennessee Valley.
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Published by AluminAiry, Knoxville, Tennessee.
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