Press releases and news 2021

From pilot project to large-scale implementation: The process of agricultural food production with water reuse successfully developed in the HypoWave research project is entering large-scale application for the first time. In the course of the follow-up project HypoWave+, the research network has started preparations for hydroponic vegetable production with recycled irrigation water on a one-hectare area.

How can viruses be effectively eliminated from indoor air? This question is now becoming more important as fall approaches. Efficient indoor air purification is essential, especially in schools. Fraunhofer researchers are investigating and optimizing various filter and air purification techniques in the AVATOR project.

For a climate-neutral economy, every opportunity must be exploited to reduce energy requirements and use resources efficiently. Highly efficient industrial processes are a key element in this. To this end, in the R2R-Net network, 18 European partners from industry and research are further developing reel-to-reel systems and processes that are used in production in a variety of ways. Companies benefit from the expertise, the support during scale-up and ramping up of the production, and the technical exchange. On September 7, 2021, the partners will present current developments, success stories and novel production equipment in a workshop. The network is open to additional partners.

Carbon dioxide is one of the main drivers of climate change – which means that we need to reduce CO₂ emissions in the future. Fraunhofer researchers are highlighting a possible way to lower these emissions: They use the greenhouse gas as a raw material, for instance to produce plastics. To do this, they first produce methanol and formic acid from CO₂, which they convert via microorganisms into building blocks for polymers and the like.

TotalEnergies announced the launch of the e-CO2Met project at the Hydrogen Lab Leuna together with the electrolyser manufacturer Sunfire, the Fraunhofer Center for Chemical-Biotechnological Processes CBP and the Fraunhofer Institute for Microstructure of Materials and Systems IMWS. Methanol can be produced from low-carbon hydrogen and captured carbon dioxide, which is an important approach to reducing climate-damaging greenhouse gas emissions. With the ambition to produce climate-neutral methanol on site, this demonstration project will integrate the various components required to this end, such as the use of renewable energy.

Effective drugs for the treatment of diseases of the central nervous system, such as multiple sclerosis, do exist. However, the blood-brain barrier, which protects the brain as the body's control center, makes it especially difficult for therapeutic biomolecules to pass through. Thus, researchers from an international consortium coordinated by the Fraunhofer Institute for Interfacial Engineering and Biotechnology IGB have spent the last four and a half years developing a novel system in the EU project "N2B-patch" that can be used to bypass this barrier. The new approaches will be presented at a virtual international final symposium on June 17, 2021.

A strong alliance of Saxon scientific institutions, with numerous supporters from business and the region, wants to find groundbreaking solutions to challenges that are on the global agenda and are also particularly visible in the Saxon coal-mining region in the new “Future Factory Lusatia”. The project partners are proposing a large-scale research center to the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), in which interdisciplinary teams will combine modern technologies and circular economy principles on a realistic scale to drastically reduce the consumption of water, energy and usable land.

The amount of plastic waste increases every year. Some of this waste is due to plastic packaging used to protect food. As part of the “BioActiveMaterials” project, researchers at the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft have developed an eco-friendly coating for paper packaging. With this, not only is plastic saved, but the coating of plant-based proteins and waxes also extends the shelf life of the food. After use, the packaging can be placed in the waste paper recycling bin for disposal.

India's cities are growing rapidly and need an efficient infrastructure for supplying water and disposing of wastewater. Many German companies offer innovative solutions in this area, but often struggle to find access to the Indian market. Thanks to its extensive experience with projects in India, the Fraunhofer Institute for Interfacial Engineering and Biotechnology IGB can help to bridge the gap between demand and supply. To this end, the institute is now setting up the innovation network "AQUA-Hub" to mediate between German water technology suppliers and the Indian market.

Proteins are vital for life. At the same time, there is a protein shortage in the global food supply. Due to extreme weather conditions as a result of climate change as well as soil and water pollution caused by the use of pesticides and fertilizers, this shortage can increase in the future. One approach to tackle this challenge is to open up novel protein sources as a sustainable alternative for animal source foods suitable for the masses. In the lighthouse project “FutureProteins”, six Fraunhofer institutes develop new cultivation systems, which can produce nutritious proteins from selected plants, insects, fungi and algae.