Our History

The founders of Elemental developed the breakthrough idea for our technology in the early 2000s.

Since then, they have performed extensive testing to develop an efficient and scalable process. Along the way our team has been working with top tier universities, subject matter experts, independent research institutes, and select companies to develop, refine, and operationalize the process. As the commissioning of the technology ramps toward commercial production, Elemental aims to continuously improve and refine the process to maximize the production and quality of its products.

Looking to the Future

Elemental continues to expand our production and development capabilities and spearhead fundamental and applied research. By advancing materials to drive applications development in the graphene space, we will sustainably innovate the next paradigm shift in multiple industries.

Mission

Commercialize innovative materials to enable their use in broad applications, helping to build a better world while advancing global sustainability through novel technology.

Vision

Elemental aspires to be a world-class producer and thought leader in advanced materials, trailblazer in the conversion of unrecyclable materials, and champion for long-term sustainability.

Values

Accountability: Uphold the highest standard of integrity and commitment to do what is right for our people, our customers, and the planet

Innovation: Deliver novel solutions to critical problems through continuous improvement and development

Partnership: Develop relationships founded on trust, respect, and integrity

Executive Team

Erik Koep
CEO
Ron Presswood
Founder & CTO

Leadership Team Members

Rob Van Paasschen
Senior Vice President of Finance
Thuan Vu
Vice-President of Engineering

Board of Directors

Erik Koep

  • PhD in Material Science, Electrochemistry from Georgia Institute of Technology
  • More than 15 years developing R&D teams
  • Former CEO at Worn Again Technologies
  • Former Professor at the University of Barcelona

Ron Presswood

  • Mechanical Engineering from University of Houston
  • Worked for NASA across multiple projects including space flight hardware
  • Holds numerous patents including novel equipment for treating contaminated groundwater

Katherine Corrigan

  • Principal – Taranis Carbon Ventures
  • Leads investments in decarbonization and in the circular economy
  • Over 10 years of experience in private equity and in climate technology
  • Holds an MBA from London Business School

Alex Elsik

  • CEO and Portfolio Manager at Geosol Capital LLC for over 12 years
  • Former Executive Officer and Head Trader at Keystone Energy Partners
  • Former Director at Reliant Energy
  • Graduated from the Texas McCombs School of Business with a degree in Finance and Business

Tom Samuels

  • Board Chair - Elemental Advanced Materials
  • Investment Professional with over three decades of institutional portfolio management experience
  • Consultant / Business Strategist and Board Member impacting business, governmental and philanthropic organizations

Advisors

Assisting the Elemental team are a diverse group of prominent scientists, academics and researchers dedicated to the innovation of advanced material science.
Dr. Rafaella Nascimento

President
C-Intelligence Tech LLC

Dr. Micah Green

Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering
Texas A&M University

Dr. James Meen

Center for Superconductivity
University of Houston

Dr. Krishnan Rajeshwar

The Electrochemical Society
University of Texas at Arlington

Dr. Rabindra Bhattacharyya

Retired Director of R&D
ALCOA

Our Partners

We work with experts across the industry, including four tier one universities to develop, test and refine our process.

The Graphene Council logo
Greentown Labs Logo
Texas AM Logo
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UT Arlington
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POLYMTL
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Our production process is faster, more efficient, more economical, and produces the highest purity graphene and hydrogen.

Connect with Us
Erik Koep
CEO

Erik Koep is an award-winning, accomplished executive and business driver who has carried multiple early-stage technology companies through rapid and continuous growth.

Prior to joining Elemental, Erik was involved in a variety of academic and commercial roles. He served as CEO of Worn Again Technologies, R&D Site Director for Italian automotive parts OEM Eldor Corporation, Chief Technology Officer for C-Bond Systems as well as Professor of Electrochemistry at the University of Barcelona, Spain.

He holds a PhD in Electrochemistry from the Georgia Institute of Technology (GA, USA) as well as Bachelor’s Degrees in Physics and Philosophy from Emory University in Atlanta (GA, USA).

Ron Presswood
Founder & Chief Technology Officer

After co-founding Elemental in 2019, Ron Presswood serves as the company’s Chief Technology Officer. His rich background as a mechanical engineer has led to Ron serving on a number of developments and application projects, including space flight hardware for NASA while working for Johnson Engineering-Space Hab, novel equipment for treating contaminated groundwater, tools for manufacture of dental restorations, software tools for capital asset management.


Ron was instrumental in developing the patented technology behind Elemental’s patented, single-step process used to produce high quality graphene. Ron earned a BA in environmental science at Rollins College and a MECE in mechanical engineering at the University of Houston.

Rob Van Paasschen
Senior Vice President of Finance​

Before joining Elemental Advanced Materials, Rob held progressively senior roles in corporate finance within private equity-backed companies. Most recently, he led the finance and accounting functions at Circulus, a leader in large-scale post-consumer plastic recycling. Prior to his transition to corporate finance, Rob worked in RBC’s energy investment banking group in Houston, TX, where he specialized in capital raises and corporate M&A. Over the years, he has helped raise more than $2.5 billion in debt and equity for various organizations. Rob also has an entrepreneurial spirit, which is highlighted by his successful acquisition and growth of a small business, where he was able to double the revenue within two years. His entrepreneurial experience, coupled with his expertise in scaling early-stage companies, has significantly shaped his career. He started his professional career at Milliman, working in their actuarial healthcare consulting group.

Rob earned his MBA from Rice University and holds a BA in Mathematics and a BBA from Southern Methodist University.

Thuan Vu
Senior Mechanical Engineer

Thuan Vu serves as a lead engineer on the commercialization of Elemental’s products. As a certified professional mechanical engineer, Thuan brings diverse engineering experience to the Elemental team including equipment design, steel structures, and commercial HVAC systems.

Thuan is well versed in performing a variety of research and reporting, including machine finite element analysis in ANSYS, manufacturing processes, and structural analysis. Thuan earned his BS in mechanical engineering and technology from the University of Houston.