By 2045, all German electricity must come from renewable sources. In order to achieve this goal, the Fraunhofer Research Institute in Germany has stepped up research and development in the field of energy. Three of these projects are particularly noteworthy.
In the Copernicus project SynErgie, the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation IPA is working with partners to develop an energy synchronization platform that enables industrial companies to balance energy fluctuations and synchronize production with power generation. In addition, the institute's researchers are currently implementing the first energy-saving application for the platform. Manufacturers can thus avoid peak electricity consumption.
In another project, the Fraunhofer process increases methane production in biogas plants. Biogas plants produce methane - and about 40 percent of carbon dioxide, which has so far not been used. Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Microtechnology and Microsystems IMM are now also converting this waste into methane, thereby significantly increasing the methane production of biogas plants. The process is running and the research team is currently scaling up the demonstration plant to 5 cubic meters of methane per hour.
In the SPARTACUS research project, researchers at Fraunhofer ISC used a number of different sensors to observe the internal state of the battery. This data enables the battery management system to optimize the charging and discharging process and the loading of the individual cells in the battery module. This significantly speeds up charging and even extends battery life.
"Achieving the energy transition is a clear goal for Germany. The Fraunhofer R&D project shows that Germany is making strides on the road to sustainable development of renewable energy. The German R&D institute and the expertise of its scientists once again show that Germany is a country status as a high-tech investment location," said the General Manager of Germany Trade & Invest.
German Trade and Invest is the foreign trade and inward investment agency of the German federal government. The agency advises and supports foreign companies entering the German market and assists companies established in Germany to enter foreign markets.
