Highlights from the Technological Development

Come and visit us at the Future Hub > Hall2, Booth B35

Net-Zero Circular Concrete – Concrete without Emissions Harmful to the Climate

An innovative circular approach is pursued to produce concrete with a low consumption of resources and without emissions affecting the climate. Concrete waste resulting from the demolition of buildings is crushed and sorted into coarse and fine fractions. Limestone is added to the fine fraction to produce a binder at moderate process temperatures. The coarse fraction absorbs the carbon dioxide (CO₂) produced in the course of the process. Together with the binder, it is used for producing new concrete. The pilot plant that is being set up at KIT will be used to gain the know-how for the production of larger quantities.

Data Sheet

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Come and visit us at the Energy Solutions > Hall13, Booth C76

Heat Transfer with Liquid Metals

Thermal energy storage systems can store energy in the form of heat as needed by industrial high-temperature processes in chemical or metal processing industries. Liquid metals enable heat storage at very high temperatures. They are combined with ceramic beads having a high storage density and long-term storage capacity. A pilot plant will demonstrate operation of a liquid metal-based heat storage system.

Data sheet

BiFlow – Hybrid Storage System for Power and Heat Supply

The energy transition and extended use of renewable energy sources require large storage capacities. The BiFlow project focuses on the development of a hybrid storage system that combines specific advantages of the lithium-ion battery with those of the redox-flow battery. The electrolyte tanks of the redox-flow battery are additionally used to store heat. In connection with a thermal coupling module, it increases the storage capacity and total efficiency of the system. This opens up new options for cost- and space-efficient co-storage.

Data sheet

Litona – Materials for Sustainable Sodium-ion Accumulators

KIT’s startup Litona develops energy storage materials for sodium-ion accumulators. Sodium-based accumulators can be produced with inexpensive and easily accessible resources. This will reduce future costs of batteries and the dependence of Europe on imports of resources. Litona’s work presently concentrates on Prussian white analogs. These storage materials are of interest for stationary energy storage and automotive applications in particular.

Data sheet

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Safe Hydrogen Storage Systems

Hydrogen (H₂) is a clean, efficient, and reliable energy carrier for many applications. KIT has more than 30 years of experience in H₂ safety research. Its hydrogen test center HYKA accommodates worldwide unique infrastructures for experiments covering various release and combustion scenarios. The PET (partially vented explosion tube) is used to study turbulent combustion processes in hydrogen-air mixtures found in partially vented geometries. These may be leaky H₂ storage tanks in rooms with doors and windows. Researchers also develop 3D simulation programs to specifically analyze and improve safety conditions.

Data sheet

KIT at Other Stands

The Center for Electrochemical Energy Storage Ulm & Karlsruhe (CELEST) will also be present at the stand of Baden-Württemberg international (hall 12, stand D15). KIT, Ulm University, and the Center for Solar Energy and Hydrogen Research Baden-Württemberg (ZSW) cooperate in CELEST, the biggest platform for electrochemical storage systems in Germany.

At the stand of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (hall 2, stand A28), the AppLHy! exhibit highlights the design and implementation of a combined transport route for liquid hydrogen and electric power. Power will be transmitted with the help of high-temperature superconductors.

KIT’s Contributions to the Conference Program

Tech Transfer Conference Stage (Hall 2, Stand B02)

Tuesday, April 23 2024, 14.50 hrs
Presentation in English with live interpretation: Net-zero Circular Concrete
Dr. Peter Stemmermann, Institute for Technical Chemistry of KIT.

ENERGY 4.0 Academy (Hall 12, Stand D35/26)

Thursday, April 25, 2024, 10.00 hrs
Presentation in German: Methane pyrolysis as a key element for emission-free hydrogen and carbon production
Prof. Dr.-Ing. Thomas Wetzel, Institute of Thermal Process Engineering of KIT

lookKIT 2024/1: Ressources. Circular Economy. Energy.

source: PDF

Global resource consumption is increasing rapidly. According to calculations, we would have needed significantly more than one earth to meet demand two years ago. This emphasizes that we need to use materials and energy more carefully and efficiently. Therefore circular economy and intelligent storage technologies are important keywords At the Hannover Messe, KIT researchers present solutions to this problem.

Energy Solutions

Hall 13, Booth C70

Energy Lab 2.0: Test Field for Future Energy Systems  

Europe’s largest infrastructure for renewable energy focuses on the intelligent networking of environmentally compatible options to generate, store, and supply energy. At Hannover Messe, researchers will provide information on the following topics in particular.

Europe’s largest infrastructure for renewable energy focuses on the intelligent networking of environmentally compatible options to generate, store, and supply energy. At Hannover Messe, researchers will provide information on the following topics in particular.

• Data Sheet
• Video: Energy Lab 2.0

Energy Solutions: From May 30 to June 2, 2022, KIT will present selected highlights from the technological development.

Energy Transition and Circular Economy

CarbonCycleLab 

The CarbonCycleLab covers the complete process chain of the future carbon cycle: From residues and waste materials to basic chemical substances produced on their basis that will replace fossil fuels in chemical industry. The CarbonCycleLab combines the energy transition with circular economy and thus contributes to making future economy resource-efficient, climate-neutral, and competitive. 

Data sheet

From a Climate-damaging Greenhouse Gas to an Economically Viable Material

NECOC – Negative Emissions by Separating Atmospheric CO₂ into Economically Viable Carbon Black and Oxygen

A consortium of KIT institutes and industrial companies has developed an integrated process to achieve negative emissions. Atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO₂) is decomposed into elemental carbon (carbon black, C) and oxygen (O₂). The solid carbon in the form of microgranular powder is separated and then, as a high-priced educt, used in rubber, construction, or electrical industries.

Towards Competitive Renewable Fuels

Startup ICODOS 

KIT’s startup ICODOS has developed a technology that efficiently combines carbon dioxide separation and methanol synthesis and, hence, contributes to making renewable fuels competitive. Initial implementation will concentrate on biogas. However, it is planned to also use the technology for other CO₂ point sources in cement industry, for instance. A pilot plant is under construction and will be integrated in KIT’s Energy Lab 2.0. 

Further information

• Press release on the Hannover Messe 2022
• Magazine lookKIT on digitalization and sustainability
• Technology transfer  - ICODOS ∂ IMVT website

Mr. Harald Ebner, Member of the German Parliament and Chairman of the Committee on the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection visited KIT on March 31, 2022. In a discussion with scientists, Mr. Ebner informed himself, on the current context of the Ukraine crisis, how the dependence on fossil raw materials, such as oil, natural gas, and coal, can be overcome quickly.

On the one hand, this can be achieved by using biomass and carbon dioxide as a carbon source in industrial production processes, since today's industrial value networks are almost entirely based on fossil carbon.  On the other hand, the carbon cycle must be closed within the framework of a circular economy. KIT is researching the technologies required for this:

• At the Carbon Cycle Lab we are researching the chemical recycling of mixed plastic waste;
• At the bioliq® pilot plant, we are researching how fuels and chemical feedstocks can be efficiently produced from residual biomass;
• At the Energy Lab 2.0, we are researching various technologies for storing renewable electricity in the form of chemical energy carriers.

The extraordinary importance of plastics recycling is due to the following reasons: Few of today's products are made of only one type of plastic, which could be recycled by simple mechanical collection by type. The processing of multiple types of plastics with additives for specific functions in laptops, cars, packaging and construction plastics makes it necessary to separate them back into their basic chemical building blocks. Pyrolysis is a chemical recycling process that converts plastic waste into gaseous, liquid and solid products in an inert atmosphere and at elevated temperature to replace fossil petrochemical feedstocks. So far, only a very small part of the world's annual plastic production (> 350 million tons) is actually recycled, therefore these techniques are crucial for a Circular Carbon Economy to implement the European Green Deal and become climate neutral by 2050.