This year’s Validation Award goes to three outstanding projects from the VIP+ program that successfully transformed their research findings into innovative applications. Among them is the Next-Gen-Chlor project by the Nano Cats GmbH, a spin-off supported by UniSysCat. The two projects BioCORE from the Technical University of Munich and robust3D from the Fraunhofer Institute for Computer Graphics Research IGD also received equal honors. Our warmest congratulations!
Nano Cats GmbH develops coatings for electrodes and other components that can be used to make catalytic processes more sustainable. Due to their special nanostructure, the coated materials exhibit increased catalytic activity, for example in electrolysis to produce hydrogen. This reduces the amount of electrical energy required for electrolysis. The savings can be impressively quantified using the example of chlorine production: By using Nano Cats' coatings, the energy required to produce chlorine can be reduced, leading to a reduction in CO2 emissions of around 700,000 tons per year.
The award was given for the Next-Gen-Chlor project which was conducted at the TU Berlin: Chlorine is one of the most important intermediate products in the chemical industry. At the moment, it is produced almost exclusively by electrochemical means using an energy-intensive chlor-alkali process. In order to produce chlorine more efficiently, the Next-Gen-Chlor project team used the innovative electrode technology from Nano Cats. The project offers considerable economic potential. The replacement of all catalytic electrodes currently used industrially in chlor-alkali and hydrochloric acid electrolysis could save around EUR 73 million in energy costs and EUR 1.7 million worth of precious metals per year in chlorine production in Europe alone.
We are particularly pleased about the success of Nano Cats, not only because their developments belong into the field of catalysis research but also because UniSysCat is closely associated with the start-up: The two UniSysCat group leaders Prof. Dr. Reinhard Schomäcker and Prof. Dr. Peter Strasser from the TU Berlin supported the founding team as mentors. We wish Nano Cats all the best for the future! Currently, they are pursuing partnerships and collaborations in order to use their technology for other applications, like the production of green hydrogen.
About the VIP+ program
The Federal Ministry of Education, Research, Technology and Space (BMBFTR) launched the “Validation of the technological and social innovation potential of scientific research (VIP+)” funding program in 2015. The program supports scientists in examining excellent technological and non-technological results of their research with regard to application. The supported projects test their results for their practical suitability and feasibility, for example in areas of application with high economic or social benefits.