Corrolytics, a Houston clean-tech upstart tucked into the city’s industrial ecosystem, says it can flag microbial corrosion in hours instead of the months operators are used to waiting. The company’s portable electrochemical test is pitched as a way to head off leaks, avoid unnecessary chemical treatments and curb the emissions tied to ripping out and replacing corroded steel. That storyline has caught the attention of oil and gas players and water utilities in Houston and abroad that are trying to stretch the life of aging pipes and tanks during the energy transition.
“What used to take months now takes a couple of hours,” founder Anwar Sadek told the Energy Tech Startups Podcast in a recent profile. According to InnovationMap, the Corrolytics field kit delivers near‑real‑time electrochemical readings from fluid samples, without the need for invasive probes or shipping bottles to a distant lab.
How the test works
The company’s portable MIC (microbially influenced corrosion) test is designed to read electrochemical activity directly from process fluid samples so operators can see when microbes are actively attacking metal surfaces instead of just confirming that microorganisms are present. The approach builds on electrochemical monitoring research described in the industry journal Corrosion, where Sadek and collaborators detail real‑time electrochemical techniques for studying bacterially driven corrosion.
Pilots, Houston roots and accelerators
After relocating to Houston, Corrolytics began running pilots in both the city and Brazil as it toughens the kit for day‑to‑day field use, according to Greentown Labs. The startup also landed a spot in the Rice Alliance Clean Energy Accelerator and earned recognition at the Rice Energy Tech Venture Forum, moves that helped the team get in front of operators and potential investors.
Why industry is paying attention
Operators in oil and gas, petrochemicals, water and wastewater, HVAC, industrial cooling and biofuels are testing the kit because microbial corrosion can quietly chew through metal inside closed systems and trigger expensive, sometimes hazardous failures. As reported by Energy Capital HTX, preventing leaks, cutting back on unneeded biocide use and stretching asset lifetimes can all translate into lower emissions along with improved safety margins.
Funding and next steps
Corrolytics has secured non‑dilutive funding and is lining up additional capital to grow. The company announced a $200,000 Phase I SBIR award from the U.S. Department of Transportation, according to the company, and, per Greentown Labs, the team is preparing larger pilots, commercial partnerships and a seed round to support manufacturing and new hires.
Research pedigree
The founders trace Corrolytics’ technology back to academic work on MIC and electrochemical sensors, with peer‑reviewed electrochemical monitoring studies providing the lab foundation for rapid field testing, as highlighted in Corrosion. InnovationMap notes that Sadek’s NSF I‑Corps customer‑discovery work included more than 300 interviews, and that over 95 percent of stakeholders flagged microbial corrosion as a major unresolved problem, a response that pushed the team toward commercialization.
For Corrolytics, the immediate to‑do list is straightforward: ramp up production of the kit, expand pilots and turn early enthusiasm into paying customers, a path the team says could deliver near‑term emissions cuts if the technology scales. Hear more in the full conversation on the Energy Tech Startups Podcast (Energy Tech Startups).
