Magazine

The ODCC — Offshore Drone Campus Cuxhaven — is a location for the joint application-oriented development and testing of offshore UAS (Unmanned Aircraft Systems) and their operational concepts. The focus of Fraunhofer IFAM is on questions of maintenance and inspection, as well as monitoring of important maritime structures including regulatory framework conditions.

CHARGING MANAGEMENT FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLE FLEETS - SOLVER-BASED, CUSTOMIZED AND COST-EFFICIENT | The experts in the "Research Data" unit at Fraunhofer IFAM use a specifically developed simulation environment to determine the most cost-effective solutions for operating electric fleets on site for individual scenarios.

ELECTRIC CARS AS ROLLING CHARGING STATIONS: In the "ROLLEN" research project, Fraunhofer IFAM and its partners have shown how electric vehicles with bi-directional charging technology can store surplus energy from photovoltaic systems and pass it on in a targeted manner - to buildings, other electric vehicles or even to the public power grid.

ELECTROCHEMICAL RECOVERY OF CRITICAL RAW MATERIALS FROM WASTEWATER | The efficient recovery of critical raw materials from batteries and production waste is a major challenge for the modern battery industry. In the MeGaBat project, we are developing a sustainable, cost-effective, and low-emission technology for the electrochemical recovery of lithium, cobalt, and other critical raw materials from aqueous sources (wastewater) to solid production waste. Our goal: to establish a flexible, scalable process that advances the circular economy in the battery industry and contributes new concepts for the further development of urban mining.

EFFICIENT COOLING FOR HIGH-SPEED DRIVES | Fuel cell systems place high demands on air path components, as a reliable supply of oxygen to the stack is critical to performance. Electric air compressors, in particular, must reach high speeds, which leads to significant heat generation and can affect the system’s efficiency and service life. At Fraunhofer IFAM, an electric air compressor with integrated internal liquid cooling was therefore developed. Thanks to a specifically designed cooling system, the heat generated can be dissipated directly in the rotor via the shaft, thereby avoiding critical temperature ranges. The goal is to significantly increase the power density and reliability of fuel cell systems while ensuring safe operation at high speeds.

With the UAS L USSP HB project, a prototype system for a future U Space Service Provider (USSP) is being developed in Bremen. As a central entity, the USSP enables the safe and efficient integration of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) into existing air traffic in accordance with EU Regulations 2019/945, 2019/947, and 2021/664. The goal of the project is to prepare the UAS Control Center Bremen for certification readiness.

Fraunhofer IFAM is pursuing two focal points in the field of electric drives: Firstly, the transformation of development processes and secondly, manufacturing innovations for electric drives.

PROJECT »TRANSPORTATION IN CHARGE« | In the project "Transportation in Charge", experts from Fraunhofer IFAM are developing concepts for the future planning of charging infrastructure in commercial areas and freight villages. The project aims to gain a better understanding of the demands for public and private charging infrastructure and to identify possible synergy effects through its shared use, thus ensuring the efficient utilization of this cost-intensive infrastructure.

QUALITY ASSURANCE AND GALVANIC CUSTOMER SOLUTIONS FOR IMPLANT MATERIALS | Many properties of implant materials, e.g. biocompatibility, cell adhesion, wetting behavior and corrosion, depend to a large extent on the chemical and morphological structure of the surface. With the aid of quality assurance concepts for the evaluation of surface properties, it is possible to gain detailed knowledge of these; thus, possible damage to health can be avoided. Fraunhofer IFAM provides support in this area and, with its extensive knowledge of surface technology (e.g. also in wet chemistry), can, among other things, create innovative process-oriented development concepts to improve the properties of implant materials.

The aim of the Rapid-KI project is to develop control concepts for the local decoating of encapsulated or protective-coated electronic components. For this purpose, sensor data are collected, evaluated by means of AI and used for a highly dynamic real-time control of the laser processes in order to enable innovative recycling and repair concepts. The high flexibility and scalability of the laser technology also allows subsequent transferability of the development to a wide variety of application fields, e.g. decoating in the wind energy sector, ship, rail and aircraft construction as well as repair applications in the field of e-mobility.

The transformation of natural gas supply is a key component of the heating transition. In the "Quarter by Quarter" project, Fraunhofer IFAM is investigating how existing energy infrastructures can be systematically decarbonized and made fit for the future, as natural gas supply must be transformed in line with the goal of climate neutrality by 2045.

A broad spectrum of additive manufacturing processes is being researched at the Bremen and Dresden sites. All of them are characterized by enormous geometric freedom, a high degree of individualization and excellent raw material efficiency. Occuring along the entire value chain: from the generation of 3D data models and manufacturing to the final machining and inspection of the components.

The joint project HERA, funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy within the framework of the Aviation Research Program LuFo VII-1, aims at the development and validation of CFRP technologies for innovative, high-rate capable and sustainable fuselage backstructure parts (frames, door surround structures, small components) for future aircraft generations. The industrial research focuses on the specialist discipline of manufacturing processes for CFRP structures as well as the development of optimized architectural concepts in fiber composite construction in order to achieve maximum weight savings for the entire fuselage. By the end of the project period, the technological feasibility is to be demonstrated through the production of validators and the process chains are to be evaluated with regard to high-rate capability, cost efficiency and sustainability.

MORE SUSTAINABILITY IN ELECTROMOBILITY THROUGH APPLICATION OF NEW METHODS TO IMPROVE BATTERY SERVICE LIFE | In the Fraunhofer Attract project "ProLIBs: A Battery Cell ID Card", the service life of batteries for electric vehicles and other applications is predicted and improved. The new method for lifetime prediction is based on a combination of measurements of battery properties and models of battery cell behavior. These measurements can be made directly while a battery is in use, for example, in an electric car. By applying this method for more accurate lifetime prediction of high energy lithium ion battery cells and other cell types such as solid-state batteries in the battery management system (BMS), it is possible to achieve increased lifetime with optimal charge and discharge profiles.

SAFE AND POWERFUL SOLID-STATE BATTERIES BASED ON POLYMERS AND SULFIDES FOR ELECTRIC CARS, AIR TAXIS, MOBILE ROBOTS AND CO. | Solid-state batteries are an important building block for the electrification of mobility: They are safer and enable higher range and shorter charging times than conventional Li-Ion batteries. New cell concepts allow even higher energy densities. Fraunhofer IFAM is developing polymer and sulfide-based solid-state batteries for various electric mobility application areas. The research is oriented towards industrial battery production and ranges from development of new materials for solid electrolytes and battery components (electrodes and separators) to manufacturing process steps and cell assembly.

SUSTAINABLE AND EFFICIENT ROTOR BLADE MANUFACTURING WITH EMISSION-REDUCED SURFACE FORMATION PROCESSES | The manufacturing of large fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) structures for wind turbine rotor blades is a complex process. Until now, release agents have been used that not only require labor-intensive reworking, but also have critical health and environmental impacts. Residues of these release agents on the surfaces prevent direct paintability of the components, making a time-consuming post-orocessing e.g. a sanding process necessary. This process generates considerable amounts of critical grinding dust. In addition, accessibility is limited due to the dimensions of modern rotor blades, both onshore and offshore. Fraunhofer IFAM has developed an alternative solution: a transfer-free release film that does not require any release agents and thus enables clean surfaces that can be painted directly. Building on this, the research project NEOFOIL has been launched.

Fraunhofer IFAM has tested optical components in collaboration with the Japanese company Asahi Kasei. The Japanese company Asahi Kasei manufactures the specially developed WGFTM polarizing film, which withstands strong mechanical and thermal stresses. Additionally, this film has good and uniform transmission and reflection properties across the entire visible and infrared spectral range. In the latest development, this film has been incorporated into finished optical components such as camera filters and polarizing beam splitters.

COUNTERING DIFFUSION AND EMBRITTLEMENT IN THE STORAGE AND TRANSPORT OF HYDROGEN | Green hydrogen will play a decisive role in a successful energy transition. The development of new hydrogen technologies requires techniques and processes that enable the safe production, storage, distribution and use of hydrogen. Central material science challenges are the diffusion of hydrogen and the associated embrittlement of used material. The "Plasma Technology and Surfaces" department at Fraunhofer IFAM is researching how surfaces can be protected against this diffusion and embrittlement by treatment with plasmas or lasers. The focus is on internal coatings for tanks and pipes, but possible applications for electrolysers, bipolar plates, and fuel cells are also being investigated.