Northern Lights in a bottle: University of Minnesota and Plasma Blue revolutionize chemical processing

If you’ve ever gazed up at the night sky in northern Minnesota and marveled at the ethereal, shimmering curtains of the Aurora Borealis, you have witnessed one of nature’s most spectacular phenomena: plasma.

Often called the fourth state of matter, plasma isn't just a rare arctic light show. It makes up more than 98 percent of the observable universe. When gas is charged with enough energy, its atoms strip off their electrons, creating a supercharged "soup" of free-flowing ions and energetic particles. It is powerful, precise, and dynamic.

Now, scientists at the University of Minnesota’s Southern Research and Outreach Center (SROC) in Waseca, in partnership with Minnesota-born process technology startup Plasma Blue, have found a way to capture that same cosmic force inside a liquid reactor.

Call it "Northern Lights in a bottle."

This liquid-phase plasma discharge technology is quietly initiating a revolution in process engineering. From shattering virtually indestructible "forever chemicals" (PFAS) without blistering heat, to transforming biodiesel production and creating chemical-free disinfectants that melt away into plain water, this University of Minnesota-born innovation is proving that some of the world's toughest environmental challenges can be solved at the level of an electron.

From the lab to the field: A UMN discovery takes off

The story of Plasma Blue begins inside the halls of the University of Minnesota’s Department of Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering (BBE). Decades ago, UMN Professor Roger Ruan began exploring the untapped potential of non-thermal cold plasma. Over the years, Ruan trained generations of innovators and laid the groundwork for applying electric discharge to complex liquid reactions.

Building on that foundational science, SROC Research Fellow Shaobo Deng and Professor Forrest Izuno brought the idea to physical life. Around eight years ago, the SROC team built a raw prototype affectionately nicknamed "the grill." They wanted to see if they could drive instant chemical reactions by creating plasma directly inside liquid streams rather than in open air.

It worked — stunningly well.

Recognizing the game-changing potential of this research, the University of Minnesota Research & Innovation Office's Technology Commercialization unit worked to license the core patent family. To bridge the gap between a successful University proof-of-concept and commercial market deployment, the technology found a dedicated champion in the Minnesota Soybean Research & Promotion Council. The Council formed Plasma Blue LLC to commercialize the process technology, keeping the business co-located directly alongside University researchers at SROC in Waseca.

"We didn’t invent plasma, but what makes Plasma Blue unique is the mechanical engineering and precise control required to scale it," explains Tom Slunecka, CEO of Plasma Blue. "Think of traditional chemical processing like a rotary landline phone, and what we’ve built here with the University as a smartphone. It's a completely different paradigm."

How it works: The scalpel versus the sledgehammer

Traditional chemical manufacturing and water treatment often rely on brute force: towering pressure vessels, extreme heat, and harsh chemical reagents. Plasma Blue takes the opposite approach.

By running low-temperature electricity through a liquid flow, the reactor creates short-lived, highly reactive chemical species — such as hydroxyl (•OH) radicals and oxygen ions — right inside the fluid. Plasma supplies energetic electrons and reactive species that can initiate chemical reactions without heating the entire molecules to conventional reaction temperatures.It is the physical difference between using a sledgehammer and a surgical scalpel.

Imagine setting a pot of soup on the stove. Traditional processes heat up the entire kitchen just to get the soup warm. Plasma Blue’s targeted energy heats only the soup inside the pot — leaving the rest of the room untouched. Because it operates at low temperature and near ambient pressure, a Plasma Blue unit consumes a fraction of the energy required by conventional systems and can be supplied by renewable energy.

Blasting PFAS without the furnace 

Nowhere is this surgical precision more urgent than in the battle against per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, better known as PFAS.

PFAS are a family of synthetic chemicals used for decades in nonstick cookware, stain-resistant fabrics, and firefighting foams. Because the carbon-fluorine bond is one of the strongest single bonds in organic chemistry, PFAS do not naturally degrade in the environment. They accumulate in human tissue, soil, and drinking water, earning them the nickname "forever chemicals."

To destroy PFAS thermally, municipal facilities normally have to incinerate waste at temperatures between 1000° to 1500° Celsius — an energy-intensive process that is prohibitively expensive and difficult to deploy broadly.

Enter Plasma Blue and the SROC.

By hooking up a pilot-scale plasma unit directly to water contaminated with PFAS, the high-energy electrons generated by the plasma strike the stubborn carbon-fluorine bonds, shearing them apart at near room temperature.

"PFAS compounds are notoriously difficult to break down because of those incredibly stable carbon-fluorine bonds," says Xiaowen Chen, assistant professor in the Department of Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering based at SROC. "With our liquid-phase plasma discharge, we generate energetic electrons and reactive species that cleave those bonds at ordinary temperatures and pressures. We aren't transferring the pollution somewhere else or burning massive amounts of fossil fuels to bake it; we are deconstructing the molecular structure right in the water stream."

This breakthrough carries staggering real-world implications for Minnesota. Currently, over 120 landfills across the state collect rainwater runoff (leachate) that contains lingering concentrations of PFAS. Because Plasma Blue units are modular, small, and scalable, plug-and-play units could soon sit directly at landfill sites or municipal wastewater plants, neutralizing PFAS before it ever touches regional aquifers.

Re-engineering biofuels and sustainable agriculture 

While destroying toxic pollutants is crucial, Plasma Blue’s roots actually lie in green energy.

When the technology was first evaluated at SROC, researchers used liquid plasma to drive transesterification — the reaction that transforms vegetable oil into biodiesel. Traditionally, making biodiesel is a slow batch process that requires large heating tanks, natural gas, and caustic catalysts.

With Plasma Blue, fat molecules and ethanol or methanol react in a fraction of a second. The reactor can accelerate transesterification, after which the biodiesel-rich and glycerol-rich phases undergo separation and purification. Crucially, because the process replaces fossil-fuel heat with clean electricity, it reduces the carbon intensity score of a biodiesel plant by up to 2.5 points. In an industry where carbon scoring dictates federal incentive payments under low-carbon fuel standards, those 2.5 points represent millions of dollars in economic viability for farmer-owned facilities.

"By lowering energy consumption and switching from gas heat to renewable electricity, we can keep rural biorefineries competitive for decades to come," Slunecka emphasizes.

Beyond fuels, the UMN and Plasma Blue team are unlocking a slate of agricultural applications:

• Plasma-Activated Water (PAW): Passing ordinary water through the plasma reactor infuses it with short-lived reactive nitrogen and oxygen species. This "plasma water" acts as a powerful broad-spectrum antimicrobial agent that kills bacteria, viruses, and fungi on contact. After a few minutes, the reactive species collapse, leaving behind nothing but plain, clean water (H₂O). PAW can sanitize medical instruments or wash fresh food crops without leaving chemical residues or requiring chlorinated solvents.
• Decentralized nitrogen fixation: Instead of relying on massive, fossil-fuel-guzzling fertilizer plants, plasma units can fix atmospheric nitrogen directly into irrigation water, creating on-demand, eco-friendly plant nutrients right on the farm.
• Targeted nanoparticles: Chen's team is also utilizing plasma to synthesize uniform metal nanoparticles used for advanced crop protection and thin-film coatings, drastically reducing the amount of active chemical pesticide needed in agricultural fields.

Why Minnesota must double down on process technology 

The partnership between the University of Minnesota and Plasma Blue is a textbook example of land-grant university research at its absolute finest: cutting-edge fundamental science, born in a campus laboratory, refined at a regional research center, and brought to commercial scale alongside local agricultural leaders.

However, staying ahead in global innovation requires sustained backing. Taking process technology from the pilot stage to industrial implementation across the country takes investment, institutional support, and cross-disciplinary collaboration.

"The work being done at SROC proves that Minnesota can lead the nation in sustainable process technology," says Chen. "To fully realize this technology’s potential — whether that's cleaning drinking water or decarbonizing industry — we need to continue expanding our research capabilities, attracting top talent, and building strong pathways between University labs and industrial partners."

As Plasma Blue continues scaling its small, modular reactors from its base at SROC, it stands as a testament to what happens when University ingenuity meets real-world vision. The spark that began as a curiosity in a University lab is now poised to transform green energy, clean our water, and protect our communities for generations to come.