Chair for Management Science and Energy Economics/Faculty for Economic Sciences/IBES City as Storage

Goal of the project “Stadt als Speicher” (en.: “City as Storage”) is the energy efficient and economical bundling of diverse local storage capacities within urban load centers to compensate for the fluctuation of renewable infeed. In this context, the investigation of to which extend already existing urban load centres and generators can be used in the compensation of the fluctuating supply of renewable energies, is part of the project. For this purpose, the point of infeed of respectively electrical energy extraction from the power grid of decentralised energy systems is tried to be coordinated in such a way that the overall system serves as a virtual electrical energy storage.

Especially the shift load potential of heating facilities will be provided and extended through thermal energy storages. In this way, a virtual electric storage potential can be developed by the use of rather inexpensive thermal energy storages. Furthermore, electrical battery storages as well as e-mobility can extend the aggregation concept flexible and adapt to future needs of the energy supply.

Urban areas are ideal as the electrical demand meets a high density of thermal facilities which can be used in the above described way to form a virtual energy storage.

Topic 11 of the European Green Capital: Energy Efficiency

Engineer Sciences, Institute of Hydraulic Engineering and Water Resources Management Pump Storage Factories and the Energy Transition

How can energy rechieved from wind, water, and sun be economically and ecologically efficiently buffered? Pump storage factories are one proofed way to do so and might be implicable in the Ruhr Area and open mine shafts. Research on the possibilities of such an implementation is, for instance, practised by the University of Duisburg-Essen (UDE). Pump storage factories are well-established storage systems, which have to be integrated in new production and supply infrastructure. This leads to a lot of insecurities, discussions, and scenarios.

Topic 11 of the European Green Capital: Energy Efficiency

Centre for Nanointegration (CENIDE) Thermoelectic Generators Concepted Made of Nano Layers

They can wrap hot industry tubes or exhaust fumes pipes from cars: Thermoelectric generators produce electricity from heat and gain back energy by this process. However, they predominantly consist of rare, and/or toxic materials. Scientists from the University of Duisburg-Essen’s (UDE) Centre for Nanointegration (CENIDE) proofed that this state can be changed, and are patentig their technology. Thermoelectric generators only work, if one of their sides is very hot, and the other considerably cold. Consequently, they should properly conduct electricity, but rarely heat. To combine those criteria is challenging, but a material combination of very thin oxid layers offers an opportunity to do so. UDE-physician Prof. Dr. Rossitza Pentcheva und Dr. Benjamin Geisler had the idea to integrate this material, which is intoxic and remains stable despite heat.

Topic 11 of the European Green Capital: Energy Efficency

Centre for Urban Epidemilogy, Insitute for Medial Informatics, Biology, and Epidemiology Risk Factors, Evaluation of Coronary Calcium and Lifestyle (Recall) across two Generations of Families Living in the Ruhr Urban Area in Germany: the Heinz Nixdorf Recall and the Heinz Nixdorf Recall MultiGeneration Study

The Heinz Nixdorf Recall (HNR) study is a population-based research study and since the year 2000, participants form the metropolitan Ruhr region (Essen, Bochum and Mülheim/Ruhr) returned continuously to the study center to assess health status und to determine the risk factor profile for coronary artery diseases. Additionally, environmental conditions like air pollution or the influence of built environment on health were assessed. For instance, analysis showed that long-term exposure to air pollution and night-time traffic noise are independently associated with atherosclerosis, the chronic disease that remains asymptomatic for decades and can lead to cardiovascular disorders such as stroke or heart attack. This long-term study includes about 4800 people.
Additionally, we hypothesize that clustering of lifestyle-related, social and environmental factors or social relationships are important factors in the emergence of atherosclerosis and subsequent events as well as other diseases. Therefore, the Heinz Nixdorf Recall MultiGeneration Study was designed with a unique clinical, psychosocial and environmental approach to create a broad and comprehensive knowledge base for research by recruiting children and spouses/partners of the original participants of the HNR Study. These family study began in 2013 and approximately 2900 people were assessed and interviewed in detail.

The research refers to topics 3, 5, 6,and 12 of the European Green Capital: Climate Change, Air Quality, Acoustic Ambiente, and Environmental Management

Chair for Management Science and Energy Economics/Faculty for Economic Sciences/IBES enera: the Next Big Step in the Energy Transition (SINTEG)

In 2050, the electrical energy consumption in Germany shall be covered by 80 percent renewable energies. To achieve this ambicious goal, on manyaction fields, new solutions have to be developed.

Most of all, it is necessary to keep global warming below the 2 degree Celsius limit and to reduce CO2-emissions. Furthermore, the expansion of renewable energies requires a smart interaction between all stakeholders within the energy sector. In this context, Smart Grids and Smart Markets, as well as intelligent grids and an adapted energy market are of great importance. These tasks shall by addressed by the project enera, which is part of the by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (ger.: Bundesministerium for Wirtschaft und Energie (BMWi)) supported programme "Smart Enregy Showcases – Digital Agenda fort he Energy Transition“  (ger.: „Schaufenster Intelligente Energie – Digitale Agenda für die Energiewende“).

Within this programme, a multiannual field test shall deminstrate, how sustainable energy systems can be used extensively. It is planned to include selected market participants of all value-chain steps, to show how these sustainable energy systems can be technically put into practise and which additional economic value they provide.

The University of Duisburg-Essen is involved in enera. Its main contribution of will consist in the development of a market design for the trade of regional products; the definition of adequate products; the investigation of more economical and regulatory frameworks; the load forecast from large- and small scale consumers; as well as in the transferability of the results on other regions in Germany and beyond the country.

Topic 1, 11, and 12 of the European Green Capital: Energy Efficiency

Institute for Electrical Power Systems Projects of the Institute for Elecrical Power Systems

The Institute for Electrical Power Systems deals with the calculation, regelementation, and the operation of electric supply networks, especially considering the integration of regenerative energies as wind energy. In ist work, the institute cooperates with different partners form industry and is involved in several projects as Modellregion E-DeMA, or colognE.

For further information about the chair, please consult ist website which also informs about the chair’s research and publications.

Topics 2 and 11 of the European Green Capital: Local Traffic and Energy Efficiency

Machine Engineering Projects of the Chair of Energy Technique

The work at the chair for Energy Technique concentrates on fuel cells and hydorgene technology. When it comes to teaching, the chair’s focus is set on energy technique, regenerative energy technology, fuel cells, alterative power units, and hydrogene technology. For further information, please consult the website of the chair’s teaching. In its research, the chair predominantly deals with the energy efficiency of energetic systems.

The research of the chair takes place in context of the European Green Capital’s eleventh topic: Energy Efficiency.

Faculty for Engineer Sciences/Department Electro Technology and Information Technology Projects of the Chair of Energy Transport and Buffering

The Chair for Energy Transport and Buffering deals with technological aspects in energy networks and is involved into several projects with industrie companies and other universities, as the BMBF-project iShield, or the BMWi-Project ENERGIE. For further information, please consult the website of the chair; more detailled information in respect to reserch can be found here.

Topic 11 of the European Green Capital: Energy Efficiency

Chair for Management Science and Energy Economics Renewable Energies and Networks

The increasing feed-in of renewable energies causes new challenges for those operating network transmission and distribution. Feeds from wind and solar energy are mainly characterized by fluctuating feed-in profiles and poor predictability. The research area Renewable Energies and Networks focuses on the integration of renewable energies into transmission and distribution networks, taking into account the inherent uncertainties.

How uncertainties, resulting from renewable energies, loads and internal trading activities, can be taken into account and modeled in the network planning of transmission system operators is examined in the EU-funded research project Umbrella.

Topic 11 of the European Green Capital: Energy Efficiency

Centre for Logistics and Traffic Project „EnviChain – Environmental and Supply Chain Management for the Water, Energy and Food Nexus“ and Erasmus Programme EnviChain – the Basis for Sustainable Development (Erasmus+)

The Erasmus+ programme, Key Action 1: Learning Mobility for Individuals, provides opportunities for foreign (PhD) students and scientific staff to improve their skills, enhance their employability and gain cultural awareness. Within the key action, organisations can run “mobility projects” which offer structured study, work experience, job shadowing, training and teaching opportunities to staff and learners. In this frame, the Erasmus+ project “EnviChain – Environmental and Supply Chain Management for the Water, Energy and Food Nexus – the Basis for Sustainable Development” is designed to assist students from Egyptian partner institutions to develop an interdisciplinary perspective on issues related to the main research field of “Water-Energy-Food Nexus” within the research area of Egypt. By opening up to academic courses at the UDE, the participants gain the possibility to attend to relevant courses and contribute within several collaborative measures. The participants stay for a period of six months,whereas scientific staff can apply for scholarships up to ten days. In addition to the scientific support by UDE-scientists from the Centre for Water and Environmental Research (ZWU) and the Centre for Logistics and Traffic (ZLV), the students will be provided with working rooms, and have the access to a wide range of literature for their individual and group works. They are expected to develop concepts and solutions according to the main context of W-E-F Nexus in Egypt and to integrate those findings into their academic dissertation. The student’s outputs will be presented and discussed in a colloquium at the end of their stay along with scientific experts and the project coordinators. Moreover, a conjointly publication is aspired. The programme is in English. The cooperation with both Egyptian institutions developed through the research network „ECoL – Emerging Concepts of Logistics“.

Topics 8, 9, and 11 of the European Green Capital: water Economy, Eco-Innovation, and Energy Efficiency

Chair for Management Science and Energy Economics/Faculty for Economic Sciences/IBES Field of Research: Energy Applications and Innovations

Facing the challenges of climate protection and scarce resources, the importance of an efficient energy use is rising. Additionally, and due to the increasing infeed from fluctuating renewable energy sources, the balance between supply and demand on the electricity market is becoming more and more difficult. Storage is attributed an important role, which can absorb electricity in times of a large supply and inject it back into the system when demand is high. Hence, the Energy Applications and Innovations group at the Chair for Management Science and Energy Economics at the faculty for economic science is particularly concerned both with economic evaluation of storage and load shifting potentials and the integration of electric mobility into the electricity grid.

Topics 1 and 11 of the European Green Capital: Klimate Change and Energy Efficiency

Institute for Business and Economic Studies Quantitative Modeling of Energy Market with Focus on the Impact of Renewable Energy

Sustainability, energy transition and renewable energies are important topics at the University of Duisburg-Essen (UDE). They are researched and taught extensively. The energy transition has got an enormous influence on the changes of today's electricity market, as more and more renewable energy is produced. Dr. Florian Ziel is a new assistent professor for environmental economics, especially economics of renewable energy at the Faculty of Economics at the University of Duisburg-Essen. He investigates the influences of energies as well as developments in the energy sector with the research focus on quantitative modeling and forecasting of energy markets. The main focus is on electricity feed-in of renewable energies as well as fundamental and econometric modeling and forecasting procedures for electricity markets. The results increase the efficiency of energy trading and help to improve the security of the electricity supply.

The research refers to topics 3 and 11 of the European Green Capital: Climate Change and Energy Efficiency

Faculty of Engineering Institute for Combustion and Gasdynamics (IVG) Thermodynamics Research Group Multi-functional Conversion of Chemical Species and Energy

The research unit investigates the potential of using combustion engines to achieve a flexible and simultaneous conversion of fuel to chemicals and different forms of energy along high temperature paths. The produced base chemicals can either be used in chemical industry or, due to their high energy density, for storing energy. The project draws on the considerable amount of knowledge gained from combustion science with respect to the experimental and theoretical investigation of high-temperature processes. However, instead of promoting complete combustion and reducing concentrations of other chemical components in the exhaust gases, the aim is now to identify useful chemicals and increase their concentrations under exergetically sound conditions. The strategy is guided by theory and experimental verification. In the basic-theory part, elementary kinetics reaction models are developed, the thermodynamics of the conversion are investigated and mathematical optimization is used to find promising paths for efficient conversion. In the basic validation part, chemical kinetics experiments under well-defined conditions are conducted in order to improve and validate the predictive theoretical basis. Finally, in the machines-motors section (piston) engines are used to prove the concept of flexible chemical and energy conversion with small irreversibilities. The quality of the chemicals and conversion processes will be judged holistically by analyzing the exergy (availability) balances. Making exergy the defining criteria to judge the quality of a process is a clear deviation from prior work in this field with the traditional aim of improving conversion efficiencies and reducing pollutants. Flexible machines could be used to provide base chemicals or to store available energy in form of chemical compounds. The concept could contribute to securing the energy supply for the future.

Topic 11 of the European Green Capital: Energy Efficiency

Aquatic Microbiology Group for Aquatic Microbial Ecology (GAME)

As head of the research group Group for Aquatic Microbial Ecology (GAME) at the Aquatic Microbiology at the University of Duisburg-Essen, biologist Dr. Alexander Probst’s and his colleagues’ research focuses on biological recycling in 100 meters deepness and about how microorganisms behave in groundwater.

The research takes places in context of the fourth, seventh, and tenth topic of the European Green Capital: Biodiversity, Waste Management, and Eco-Innovation

Working Group Anorganic Chemistry Heterogene Oxidation Katalysis in Liquid Phase

Chemical Katalysators allow an energyefficient production. This advantage is addressed by the NRW programme Strong Science Chemistry.NRW (Ger.: Starke Forschung Chemie.NRW). The programme also supports the research initiative „Heterogenic Oxidation Katalysis in Liquid Phase (Ger.: „Heterogene Oxidationskatalyse in der Flüssigphase“), which is planned by the University of Duisburg-Essen (UDE), the Ruhr-University Bochum, and the Mülheim Max-Planck-Institutes, and which unites 23 working groups from chemistry, physics, and engineer sciences. The common research initiative aims at creating new, efficient katalysators, and developing a better understanding, how they work exactly.

Topic 11 of the European Green Capital: Energy Efficiency

Institute for Incineration and Gas Dynamincs Research Branch Thermo Dynamics

The research branch thermo dynamics at the institute for incineration and gas dynamics, deals with the discipline of themo dynamics, the modelling of reactive systems, phase- and reaction balances, heat- and material broadcasting, and thermic systems. For further information about the chair, please consult https://www.uni-due.de/ivg/td/. In terms of research, the institute deals with resource engineering and tailored materials. More detailed information about this research is listed at https://www.uni-due.de/ivg/td/forschung.php, a list of publications can be consulted via https://www.uni-due.de/ivg/td/zeitschriften.php.

Topic 11 of the European Green Capital: Energy Efficency

Mechanical Engineering Chair for Stream Machines

The Chair of Stream Machines is led by Dr. Friedrich-Karl Benra and Dr.-Ing. Dieter Brillert and deals with the appliances if gas turbines, steam turbines, turbo consolidations and circle pums. For more information about the chair, please consult its website.

Topic 11 of the European Green Capital: Energy Efficiency

Faculty of Physics Science for Raw Material Efficient Use of Solar Energy

Sun energy sends an inexhaustible amount of energy to earth. How it can be used with the smallest raw material use possible is focus oft he research of Prof. Dr. Martina Schmid (35), who is new at the University of Duisburg-Essen. Nano- and microscope processes play an important roe in her research.

Topic 11 of the European Green Capital: Energy Efficiency

Institute for Incineration and Gas Dynamics Research in the field of Reactive Fludis

To understand and control incineration processes and nano material synthesis in gas phase is what Prof. Dr. Christof Schulz and his team deal with in their research field reactive fludis. For further information about the chair, please consult this adress; More detailled information about the research is listed here.

The research in the field of reactive fluids refers to topic 11 of the European Green Capital: Energy Efficiency

Faculty for Economy Science/Institute for Business Administartion Research of the Chair for Management Science and Energy Economics

The chair of Management Science and Energy Economics, led by Prof. Dr. Christoph Weber, deals with questions of energy creation, transformation, distribution, and use. In doing so, the chair works transdisciplinarly by involving other disciplines as national economics, engineer and social sciences in its research. For more detailled information about the chair, please consult https://www.ewl.wiwi.uni-due.de/en/research/research-focus/.

The research of the Chair for Management Science and Energy Economics refers to topic 11 of the European Green Capital: Energy Efficiency

University Alliance Ruhr (UA Ruhr) Competence Field Metropolitan Studies

In the future, the University Alliance Ruhr (Ger.: Universitätsallianz Ruhr, UA Ruhr) will put together its urban researach in the competence field Metropolitan Research. The alliance’s universities Bochum, Dortmund, and the University of Duisburg-Essen, will share their knowledge in the heterogenous topics of urban studies, which cover issues like energy efficiency, water circles, diversity, logistics, demographic change, controlling, and participation. A target of the alliance’s work will consist in developing solution strategies to recent urban challenges.

All 12 topics of the European Green Capital