Press

Electromobility sets challenging requirements for new high-performance batteries – cruising range, life span, safety, or charging times, to mention only a few. An intrinsic challenge is the resource need for a growing number of big car batteries. Ten partners from industry and research organizations successfully joined forces in the EU funded project ECO COM'BAT to develop a sustainable next generation of high-voltage lithium-ion batteries.

Erlangen/Magdeburg, Germany: At the final review of the Celtic-Plus project “ReICOvAir – Reliable Industrial Communication Over the Air” the project team, led by the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IIS, presented a new test system for industrial wireless communication. The developed test system consists of a software-based and a hardware-based test bed solution. Both test beds are proof-of-concept solutions for testing the performance of wireless transmission systems, e.g., in terms of measuring and evaluating reliability, latency and throughput.

From July 1-3, 2019, experts from around the world met at the E-Mobility & Circular Economy (EMCE 2019) Conference in Tokyo to explore how electromobility can contribute to a sustainable and responsible approach to our environment.

At the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials IFAM in Dresden, a new type of iron powder has been successfully processed and tested, which answers one of the cost questions in additive manufacturing and opens up new possibilities.

The Fraunhofer Institute for Microstructure of Materials and Systems IMWS expands its range of microstructure diagnostics with Hitachi's HF5000 field emission transmission electron microscope. The presentation of the new microscope took place during a workshop in Halle (Saale). In this meeting, international experts were presented with novel microscopy technologies as well as a demonstration of possible applications of the HF5000.

“The future of sustainable value creation systems” was the theme of a workshop on the Biological Transformation of the European manufacturing industry, hosted by the European Technology Platform ManuFUTURE and Fraunhofer in Brussels. Some 40 experts from industry, the European Commission and research institutions discussed how materials, structures and processes of living nature could be used in manufacturing for a more sustainable future. In parallel the Commission published the first draft of the “Strategic Plan” for Horizon Europe which references bio-inspired and bio-integrated manufacturing as well as “enhanced information-based technologies inspired by nature and biology”.

On July 4, 2019, the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE in Freiburg officially inaugurates its new Center for Power Electronics and Sustainable Grids. With a propriety connection to the 110 kV high-voltage grid and 40 MVA transformer, the new center offers a worldwide unique research infrastructure which enables it to meet the growing demands on power electronics, a key technology for the energy system transformation.

Machine bearings are usually lubricated with various oils. But today large quantities of these oils still end up in the environment. The Fraunhofer Institute for Mechanics of Materials IWM, MicroTribology Centrum μTC has developed a method which will in the future make it possible to lubricate slide bearings using water, a much more environmentally friendly approach.

Safe diagnoses of diseases, identification of multidrug-resistant germs, detection of beginning epidemics at an early stage or detection of toxins and pathogens in drinking water and food in even the lowest concentrations – these are major challenges and goals of current research programs. One of the most promising tools for these tasks are novel and considerably improved biosensors. The project “BioSensing” of the Fraunhofer Institutes for Silicate Research ISC and for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology IME and the Leiden University, Institute of Physics aims to overcome the limits of modern biosensors with the help of quantum technology.

Wind power is an important element to achieve sustainability in energy supply. Within the EU project "Riblet4Wind", a team of seven project partners faced the challenge of making the aerodynamics of wind turbines more efficient. One approach was to reduce air resistance. In aircraft construction, it was shown that the functional coating developed at Fraunhofer IFAM with microscopically small grooves – called riblet paint – reduces air resistance and saves fuel. The scientists took advantage of this know-how and adapted the technology to the rotor blades of a wind turbine. The tests under real conditions yielded promising results.