Breaking Ground on Energy Innovation: RTI Scales Up Pilot Xcelerator
On October 14, 2025, RTI International celebrated the groundbreaking of a major expansion to its RTI Pilot Xcelerator (RPX), a one-of-a-kind facility in Research Triangle Park, NC, helping innovators move clean energy technologies from the lab to commercial scale. The project represents a significant investment in the nation’s energy transition and underscores RTI’s mission to transform bold scientific ideas into real-world solutions.
When completed in 2026, the expanded RPX will total more than 25,000 sf of pilot-scale demonstration space, including 12,000 sf of covered process bays and 3,000 sf of indoor workspace, control rooms, and staff amenities. As one of the few privately owned custom energy pilot facilities in the US, RPX provides a flexible, “plug-and-play” environment where startups, government agencies, and corporate partners can design, install, and test new energy processes under real-world conditions.
Building on a legacy of innovation
Originally established in 2013, RPX was designed to support US Department of Energy–funded R&D programs. Over time, as technologies matured, RTI recognized the need for larger-scale, more integrated systems that could demonstrate performance at industry-relevant scales.
“Our original facility was built to support R&D programs funded primarily by the US Department of Energy,” says David Dausch, PhD, vice president of engineering and advanced technology at RTI. “As the technologies we were developing advanced in technical maturity, we recognized a need to build larger scale, more integrated systems to demonstrate their performance under real-world conditions and at industry-relevant scales.”
The expanded facility builds on this vision, offering a flexible design that supports a wide range of process technologies—from carbon capture and biomass conversion to renewable fuel production and industrial decarbonization. The project team includes Redline Design Group as architectural designer, Eno Company as general contractor, HEAPY for mechanical and electrical engineering, and Kimley-Horn for site civil and utilities engineering.
A flexible, plug-and-play design
Central to the RPX expansion is its open-plan concept, which Dausch describes as a “160 ft x 80 ft covered outdoor space with full utility upfit,” including supply gases, electrical, and process water. The eight process bays—each roughly 40 ft x 40 ft—are arranged without physical walls, allowing RTI to adapt the layout to each client’s project.
“Utilities run through the spine of the roof with drops at each of the eight bays,” Dausch says. “Though there are eight notional bays, the open design without physical walls between bays allows us more flexibility for installing new process units based on their size, configuration and utility needs.”
Each bay includes a dedicated, enclosed control room with observation windows and full network connectivity for real-time process monitoring. The space is engineered for Class 1, Div. 2 hazards, and incorporates fire suppression, gas monitoring systems, and vent headers connected to a thermal oxidizer and flare for safe emissions control.
“The process bay design is also open air, allowing sufficient air flow through the process bays for safe operation,” Dausch says. “The vent headers, thermal oxidizer, and gas flare also provide for safe hazardous gas removal and emissions control.”
Integrated infrastructure and built-in capabilities
RTI’s RPX campus integrates a full range of pilot-scale infrastructure to support complex chemical and energy systems. The facility is equipped with 480 V, 3-phase power, bulk gas supply (including nitrogen, oxygen, CO₂, hydrogen, natural gas, and flue gas), chilled water, and waste handling systems.
In addition, the site houses unique, built-in units to support process development—including a bench-scale gas absorption system for carbon capture research, a fuel burner unit for producing flue gas from multiple sources, a biomass pyrolysis unit capable of converting one ton per day of feedstock into biocrude, and a Fischer-Tropsch reactor capable of producing up to two barrels per day of low-carbon fuels and chemicals.
These integrated assets allow RTI’s clients to rapidly move from bench-scale proof-of-concept to pilot-scale validation without needing to construct their own infrastructure—a capability few organizations can match.
Collaborative design and user feedback
The expansion’s design is heavily informed by the experiences of RPX users over the past decade. “We’ve received lots of feedback on how novel this concept is in the energy sector for advancing early-stage technologies to pilot scale,” Dausch says. “Another benefit is the attached indoor workspace for breaks, meetings, or periodic office work. Previously, our staff and partners had to relocate to other buildings on RTI campus for indoor facilities. The new expansion will provide an improved work environment for our staff.”
The new 3,000-sf indoor area will include meeting rooms, climate-controlled offices, and staff amenities to create a more collaborative and comfortable environment for research teams and visitors.
Located on RTI’s Research Triangle Park campus, RPX offers access not only to physical infrastructure but also to RTI’s deep bench of engineering expertise. “Our engineering support team is key and highly valued by our partners,” Dausch says. “We also have built-in, novel process units that can supplement new technologies coming to us from our partners—for example, our units for carbon capture, biomass pyrolysis and low-carbon fuels production.”
The facility’s proximity to RTI’s core research laboratories provides additional benefits. While the expansion itself is dedicated to process testing and demonstration, clients can leverage RTI’s analytical and chemistry labs for materials characterization, chemical analysis, and process optimization.
Accelerating the future of energy
A highlight of the expansion is a planned 1 MW solar field adjacent to the facility. “The planned 1 MW solar field adjacent to RPX will provide both power to RTI’s campus as well as a renewable power source for projects running at RPX,” Dausch says. “These types of ‘Renewables to X’ demonstrations—using renewable electricity to produce low- or zero-carbon fuels or products like ammonia—will be possible at RPX to help demonstrate technologies that can lower the carbon footprint of new energy sources.”
This integration of renewable energy into pilot operations reflects RTI’s broader commitment to sustainable innovation and positions RPX as a model for energy-efficient, low-carbon research infrastructure.
For Dausch, the RPX expansion is about more than bricks and steel—it’s about advancing technologies that can redefine the global energy landscape. “In the current environment of growing global energy demand, energy innovation is required to meet the demand while reducing the environmental impact of energy generation and consumption and doing so at reasonable cost,” he says.
“RPX, with its unique business model and flexible facility design, can help address this challenge by providing a ready-made infrastructure with a supporting engineering team to help advance these technologies to pilot-scale demonstration,” he adds. “RPX can help accelerate the timeline, reduce the cost of this development stage, and reduce risk for technology developers and their investors.”
When the doors open in 2026, RTI’s expanded Pilot Xcelerator will stand as a national resource for clean energy demonstration, enabling innovators to bridge the gap between discovery and deployment—and helping bring the next generation of sustainable fuels and industrial technologies to life.
