Press releases, interviews and news

Our diversity statement was developed with the involvement of all employees. It expresses our commitment to diversity, equality and inclusion and serves as a guiding framework – both for day-to-day interaction at the institute and for all measures in our diversity management strategy. On Diversity Day, we spoke to the colleague who held many of the strings in her hand during the creation process: Dr. Miriam Gerlach from HR Development. Her personal goal: to create the basis for ensuring that all employees are given the same conditions and have the opportunity to develop their expertise and expand their potential across management and specialist levels.

The carbon cycle can be closed with the help of electrochemical CO₂ reduction: Unavoidable emissions from concrete production or waste incineration become CO – and thus the starting point for chemicals or fuels. However, there is a hurdle lurking in the industrial application of this technology: It is not (yet) compatible with the existing infrastructure. Researchers at Fraunhofer UMSICHT and Ruhr University Bochum have developed a possible solution: a new reactor that efficiently converts CO₂ using pressurized CO₂ and pure water.

The new STARS research project started with a kick-off in March with the aim of making steel mill slag usable as a raw material for the production of high-quality end products for solar thermal processes over the next three years. The project partners German Aerospace Center (DLR) (lead), thyssenkrupp MillServices & Systems GmbH and LWK-PlasmaCeramic GmbH are researching sustainable solutions for a green circular economy. Fraunhofer UMSICHT is evaluating the new products and processes to be developed from an ecological perspective. The project is funded by the EU and the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Industry, Climate Protection and Energy of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia.

Dr. Kevinjeorjios Pellumbi was awarded the doctoral prize of the Chemistry & Energy division of the German Chemical Society (GDCh) for his dissertation “Creating Holistic Pathways for the CO2 Electroreduction and Electrochemical Hydrogenations”. The award ceremony took place yesterday in Duisburg – albeit in the absence of the research scientist from the Fraunhofer Institute for Environmental, Safety and Energy Technology UMSICHT. Ulf-Peter Apfel (Head of the Electrosynthesis Department) accepted the award on his behalf.

On March 12 and 13, everything revolved around new solutions, ideas and developments for the realization of a circular economy: The Circular Valley Convention 2025 took place for the first time in Düsseldorf and brought together numerous interested parties from industry, research, politics and society. Messe Düsseldorf organized the event in collaboration with the Circular Valley Foundation and with scientific support from Fraunhofer UMSICHT, the lead institute of the Fraunhofer Cluster CCPE.

Carbon2Chem®, a collaborative project coordinated by thyssenkrupp in close cooperation with the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Energy Conversion (MPI CEC) and the Fraunhofer Institute for Environmental, Safety and Energy Technology UMSICHT, is now entering its third phase.

Prof. Eckhard Weidner was honored with the Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany for his outstanding achievements in research, teaching and honorary office on February 28, 2025. The Fraunhofer UMSICHT team warmly congratulates its former institute director.

An opportunity for nutrient-recovering agricultural production that has received little attention to date and is indispensable for Germany on the way to a genuine bioeconomy. The SUSKULT vision continues to gain in importance. In the second funding phase, the aim is now to further optimize the novel hydroponics-based production system. With the clear aim of laying the foundations for its successful establishment on the market.

Is the storage of chemically bound hydrogen in the form of metal hydrides an economically and safety-wise attractive alternative to storage as a pressurized gas or cryogenic liquid? Fraunhofer UMSICHT, Duisburger Hafen AG and GKN Hydrogen have investigated this question as part of a feasibility study in the HYINPORT project. The focus: the possible integration of a large-scale storage facility into the infrastructure of the Duisburg inland port.

Banks along inland waterways are exposed to shipping and tidal forces. In order to prevent erosion, these are usually technically secured by stone embankments or walls. However, this has a negative impact on the ecosystems. In the joint research project "Bioshoreline" - funded by the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture - the researchers, led by Fraunhofer UMSICHT, developed a biodegradable geotextile made from renewable raw materials that serves as a temporary filter for bank protection on inland waterways.