How can we save energy in battery production? How can we use our resources more sparingly - in agriculture, for example? Which new drives and mobility concepts on land and in the air are climate-friendly?
In addition to acute measures to save energy in the context of the energy crisis, the TU Braunschweig is actively researching forward-looking technologies for more sustainability and economical energy consumption. This is also reflected concretely on campus and in teaching - for example, in the introduction of a sustainability course of study and through the installation of photovoltaic systems.
Nine solar photovoltaic systems were added to TU Braunschweig’s power supply system in 2020, and more are planned. However, TU Braunschweig consumes as much electricity as a small town, so there’s still a long way to go before the University campus is carbon-neutral.
From pilot project to large scale implementation: The process of agricultural food production with the help of recycled water, which was successfully developed in the HypoWave research project, is being applied on a large scale for the first time; what this actually involves is hydroponic vegetable production with recycled irrigation water.
The future of construction is digitally printed: the Collaborative Research Centre Transregio 277 "Additive Manufacturing in Construction" (AMC) aims to take part in the shaping of the digitalisation of construction. Materials, processes and optimised design are being completely rethought through the use of innovative 3D printing processes. The research focuses on resource- and energy-efficient as well as sustainable construction.
The new degree course Sustainable Power Systems and Electromobility (NEEMO) was launched in the Winter Semester 2022/23. A particular focus here is on the energy transition—the move away from use of fossil fuels and towards sustainable power generation. Graduates will not only gain an understanding of the technological basis for this but will also learn how to encourage acceptance of the new technologies.
By means of function integration during vehicle construction it is possible to reduce weight, space requirements and costs as certain components are no longer required. However, it is to some extent the integration of electrical cables, for example, that first makes possible integral combination of parts as this means it is no longer necessary to provide access for installation work. TU Braunschweig is participating in the consortium project “TechnoHyb” in which hybrid construction techniques employing function integration are being investigated.
How can farming businesses cultivate their fields in a way that is both more efficient and more environmentally friendly? Agricultural machines and extensive production chains were the focus of a research project in which TU Braunschweig developed a method to evaluate efficiency-increasing measures.
In the context of work on a Master’s thesis, the Battery LabFactory Braunschweig (BLB) was able to reduce the energy consumption of its dry room by more than 20%. This reduction was achieved by modifying the technical appliances used by the dry room.