HOUSTON, July 06, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Flathead Forge Fund 1 has invested in NALA Membranes, a North Carolina developer of chlorine-stable membranes for industrial water purification and reuse.

NALA’s sulfonated polysulfone membranes solve a constraint that has defined reverse osmosis for four decades. Conventional polyamide membranes degrade on contact with chlorine, the cheapest and most effective tool for controlling the biofouling that drives up operating costs. NALA’s membranes tolerate chlorine, withstanding by the company’s testing more than 1,000 times the chlorine exposure that degrades a standard polyamide RO membrane, so operators can clean aggressively, run longer between replacements, and treat demanding industrial wastewaters that defeat conventional membranes.

The technology is built on polymers invented by co-founder and CTO Judy Riffle, Ph.D., and is protected by issued patents across nine countries. It won the Grand Prize at the 2024 Global Prize for Innovation in Desalination and is one of 50 semifinalists selected from 674 teams across 86 countries in the XPRIZE Water Scarcity competition, at $119 million the largest prize in the foundation’s history.

“Flathead Forge backs innovators solving the biggest problems in industrial water and critical minerals. NALA took on one of the toughest challenges in membrane filtration and solved it with technology that scales. The results are impressive and the timing is right for the operators who run the world’s water systems.”
Doug Lee, Managing Director, Flathead Forge

“Chlorine-tolerant membranes are the holy grail the industry has chased for forty years. NALA solved it. Our membranes take aggressive cleaning, keep removing oil and salt, and make industrial water reuse work at scale.”
Sue Mecham, Ph.D., CEO and Co-Founder, NALA Membranes

About NALA Membranes

NALA Membranes is a North Carolina company commercializing chlorine-stable sulfonated polysulfone membranes for reverse osmosis and nanofiltration. Founded in 2018 by Judy Riffle, Ph.D., and Sue Mecham, Ph.D., its membranes resist the biofouling and chemical degradation that drive cost and complexity in conventional water treatment, enabling reliable water reuse across water-intensive industries. Learn more at www.nalamembranes.com.

About Flathead Forge

Flathead Forge is a Houston-based opportunity builder in hard-tech for water and critical minerals. Forge backs founders and forms companies that turn industrial waste streams (produced water, brines, and waste gas) into purified water, critical minerals, and other valuable products. Its principals are operators who have built, run, and sold industrial water and energy companies, and they put that operating experience to work inside the companies they back. To learn more, visit www.flatheadforge.com.

Media Contact

doug@flatheadforge.com