Reference projects

Fraunhofer IGB is working successfully in numerous (joint) projects funded by German Federal Ministries, by the European Union or by foundations. Here we present a selection of current and completed projects.

New:

February 2021 – January 2024

ExpandChi

Expanding the possible applications of renewable raw materials in textile finishing based on the biopolymer chitosan

April 2023 – March 2024

Pro-Pec

Customized pectins from sugar beet for pharmaceutical applications

November 2023 – October 2026

ECOMO

Electrobiocatalytic cascade for bulk reduction of CO2 to CO coupled to fermentative production of high value diamine monomers

January 2024 – December 2026

eCO2DIS

Simulation-guided development of an electricity or H2-driven in-vitro acetyl-CoA production module as platform chemical from CO2 for diversity oriented synthesis

 

January 2023 – December 2026

POWER2HYPE

Electrochemical synthesis of hydrogen peroxide from water, air and renewable electric energy

October 2022 – September 2023

RiboZid

mRNA as biobased fungicide to control phytopathogenic fungi

September 2022 – August 2025

CoalCO2-XTM

In the project, CO2 from South African coal-fired power plants will be converted to fuels and fertilizers using green ammonia and hydrogen.

September 2022 – August 2023

KoBaOx

A project that combines base-catalyzed and oxidative depolymerization of lignin

  • Electrodialysis.
    © Fraunhofer IGB

    Electrodialysis.

    Funding: BMBF || Duration: April 2019 – March 2022 || In the “abonoCARE®” project, nine small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have joined forces with six research institutions in order to develop economic value chains for nutrient recycling from organic residues and to offer sustainable high-performance fertilizer products for efficient agriculture. For this purpose, different technologies for the processing and formulation of organic residues are being developed.

    more info
  • Funding: Fraunhofer and Max Planck cooperation program || Duration: January 2019 – December 2022 || The "eBioCO2n" project, which is being carried out jointly by Fraunhofer and Max Planck scientists, pursues an ambitious approach to converting CO2 into chemicals with electricity from renewable sources: Similar to photosynthesis, CO2 is to be fixed with electron-transmitting biocatalysts and then linked to further enzymatic conversion steps.

    more info
  • Test rig for parallel characterization of three humidifying membranes.
    © Fraunhofer IGB

    Test rig for parallel characterization of three humidifying membranes.

    Funding: BMWi || Durationt: June 2018 – March 2021 || Membrane humidifiers play an important role in the fuel cell as external components for water management. In the AMBITION project, an extensive infrastructure and the necessary know-how were established to comprehensively characterize humidifier membranes. Thus, the water transfer of hollow fiber and flat membranes can now be determined automatically (24/7) and tools for rational membrane selection are available.

    more info
  • Wastewater treatment plant in India

    Wastewater treatment plant in India.

    Funding: BMU || Duration: Novemver 2020 – October 2022 || India's fast-growing cities are faced with the task of modernizing their water supply and wastewater disposal systems. In order to support German companies in opening up the Indian market, the AQUA-Hub project is implementing two Water Innovation Hubs in selected "smart cities" and flanking them with demonstrations of German measurement technology.

    more info
  • Funding: »Fraunhofer vs. Corona« || Duration: October 2020 – September 2021 || Aerosols pose an increased risk of infection with SARS-CoV-2. This is where the "Virus Grill" project comes in. The aim is to inactivate viruses by heating the air, to reduce the probability of infection via droplets suspended in the ambient air. Virus Grill is a subproject of the AVATOR project exploring ways to reduce the risk of infection from aerosol-borne viruses in enclosed spaces.

    more info
  • Early stem cell (red) adhesion on albumin coating (green) after one minute.
    © Fraunhofer IGB

    Early stem cell (red) adhesion on albumin coating (green) after one minute.

    Funding: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft || Duration: June 2014 – May 2018 || As part of Fraunhofer's “Theranostic Implants” lighthouse project, Fraunhofer IGB developed an albumin coating for titanium implants that significantly accelerates the adhesion of mesenchymal stem cells. The layers can be sterilized with standard methods (gamma sterilization, electron beam sterilization) without any loss of function.

    more info
  • Funding: BMBF || Duration: November 2020 – November 2023 || With fossil-based resources becoming more scarce, the textile industry has an ever growing need to identify and develop alternative raw materials for manufacturing textiles fibers. In the AlgaeTex project, researchers are striving to manufacture a variety of polymers using algae-based fatty acids as the main constituent. Their goal here is to develop polyesters and polyamides suitable for melt spinning processes, so they can be widely used in the textile industry.

    more info
  • Samples of different cellobiose- and mannosylerythritol lipid variants ready for shipment.
    © Fraunhofer IGB

    Samples of different cellobiose- and mannosylerythritol lipid variants ready for shipment.

    Funding: BMBF || Duration: July 2021 – June 2024 || The Biosurfactants Innovation Alliance is the first strategic alliance of renowned companies and research institutions in Germany aiming at finding sustainable and scalable alternatives to chemically synthesized surfactants, which have so far been produced from fossil raw materials. Therefore, we are examining and developing the process engineering production of biosurfactants in the alliance using biotechnological methods based on domestic renewable raw materials and residues. Together with our project partners, we systematically investigate their potential applications – for example, as components of detergents and cleaning agents, in cosmetics, bioremediation, crop protection and food.

    more info
  • Organic loading rate as a function of hydraulic retention time.
    © Fraunhofer IGB

    Organic loading rate as a function of hydraulic retention time.

    Duration: July 2014 – June 2017 || In an extensive study, Fraunhofer IGB investigated the potential of high-load digestion of sewage sludge for producing biogas, which can be used to generate electricity and heat. The experts at the Institute evaluated the overall potential of all wastewater treatment plants in Baden-Württemberg in size class 4.

    more info
  • AquaBioTox-Demonstrator.
    © Fraunhofer IOSB

    AquaBioTox demonstrator.

    In the "AquaBioTox" project, we at the Fraunhofer IGB, together with the project partners Berliner Wasserbetriebe, bbe Moldaenke and the Fraunhofer IOSB, are developing solutions for the continuous online monitoring of drinking water pipes with the aim of establishing a biological broadband sensor that reacts immediately and reliably to hazardous substances in the water and makes this visible by means of automatic image evaluation.

    more info