A fledgling tech company which has created a device it says can charge a smartphone in 15 minutes is hoping to £300,000 to put its invention into mass production.

Petalite raised around £38,000 on the US crowdfunding website Indiegogo earlier this year and in 2014 received £9,500 from Climate KIC Low Carbon Accelerator programme at Innovation Birmingham Campus where it is based.

The company is now seeking to increase dramatically its pool of funding in exchange for an equity stake in the firm so it can expand its operations significantly and starting mass manufacturing of its life-extending portable battery.

The pocket-sized battery provides 2,600mAh of power, enabling the charge of any USB-compatible device on the go.

The Petalite battery enables smartphone owners to prevent their devices from going flat, prolonging battery life and extending overall lifetime.

The funds raised via Indiegogo have been used to redesign elements of the portable battery.

Twelve component manufacturers located in France, the US, China and Thailand have also been sourced, with the first 1,100 Petalite batteries scheduled for delivery in October.

Leigh Purnell, founder and inventor of Petalite, said: "Portable batteries are commonplace now but a Petalite battery is much more efficient, as the core principle is rapid charging.

"This is reflected in the number of patent applications we have pending.

"We were overwhelmed by the success of our Indiegogo campaign at the start of the year which raised 153 per cent of the funding goal.

"The premium nature of a Petalite device resonates with the target audience.

"We have spent nearly 12 months on the prototyping phase and are now ready to embark on full commercialisation of Petalite.

"For this to be possible, we require £300,000 of equity investment, either from venture capitalists or angel investors."

Petalite portable batteries, together with mains-powered rapid-charging docking stations, will be available to order online later this year and will cost £20.

Katharine Fuller, Innovation Birmingham's senior project manager for EU Projects, said: "Leigh is a natural entrepreneur who has the ambition and determination to make a success of his invention.

"Although there are other products with some similarities on the market, Leigh can instantly demonstrate how the Petalite battery is so much more efficient, eco-friendly and cost-effective.

"Innovation in hardware has been the big trend in the low-carbon and tech sectors this year which Petalite perfectly epitomises.

"It has been one of the stand-out products across our European-wide Low Carbon Accelerator programme."