Working together for the energy storage systems of the future
At Fraunhofer ZESS, three Fraunhofer Institutes pool their expertise to drive forward battery and hydrogen technologies – from materials and production to system integration. Learn more about the expertise and locations of our member institutes and how they are working together to find solutions for the energy and mobility transition.
The Fraunhofer Institute for Surface Engineering and Thin Films IST in Braunschweig, headed by Prof. Dr.-Ing. Christoph Herrmann, is an innovative partner for research and development in surface engineering with expertise in the associated product and production systems. The institute focuses its work in the field of innovative energy storage and conversion systems in the “Sustainable Battery and Hydrogen Systems” department headed by Prof. Dr.-Ing. Sabrina Zellmer. The focus of its activities is on material and process development for recyclable energy storage systems and the associated design of factory systems for the production of recyclable and sustainable energy storage systems and hydrogen technologies.
The “Material and Process Development” working group focuses on the production and functionalization of novel battery materials, such as solid electrolytes and lithium metal anodes. The institute's traditional core competencies in the field of surface technology, such as the application of protective coatings or the production of ultra-thin metal layers, are of essential importance here. A key focus here is the challenge of scaling the associated production processes from laboratory to pilot scale. The “Sustainable Process Chains for Battery Systems” working group addresses the holistic design of the production system for energy storage. In doing so, it takes into account the diverse and complex interactions between products, processes, technical building equipment, and buildings. The focus is particularly on “digital factory” methods such as simulation and the creation of “digital twins” of products and processes. In order to consider the entire product life cycle, sustainability indicators for energy storage systems are also quantified and evaluated using methods such as life cycle assessment and life cycle costing to support sustainable product design. Security of supply and social aspects such as working conditions during the extraction of the necessary raw materials are also taken into account in the sustainability assessment. This allows the advantages and disadvantages of new generations of energy storage systems to be comprehensively compared in advance and problems to be identified and avoided at an early stage, e.g., shifting from product use to the upstream production chain.
The Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials IFAM – founded in 1968 and part of the Fraunhofer Society since 1974 – is now one of Europe's leading independent research institutions for adhesive bonding technology, surfaces, shaping, and functional materials. At seven locations – Bremen, Dresden, Stade, Wolfsburg, Braunschweig, Helgoland, and Cuxhaven – around 700 employees work toward a single goal: practical solutions that quickly find their way into industrial applications.
Our portfolio addresses key future industries such as mobility, energy, aviation, maritime technologies as well as medical technology and life sciences. In addition, mechanical and plant engineering, electronics and electrical engineering, shipbuilding and rail vehicle construction, or the packaging and construction industries also benefit from our developments. Our work is based on seven closely interlinked core areas of expertise: metallic and polymer materials, surface technology, adhesive bonding, shaping and component manufacturing, energy storage and conversion, and automation and robotics. These enable us to cover the entire value chain: from material development and product design to pilot production, quality assurance, and integration into production processes.
In detail, the spectrum of our contract research ranges from materials, shaping, and joining technology to the functionalization of surfaces, the development of complete components or complex components and systems, as well as current issues relating to digital transformation and its practical implementation. Fraunhofer IFAM covers the entire value chain from material development and product design to integration into industrial manufacturing. At the same time, we strengthen the industry's expertise through certified continuing education in adhesive bonding technology, fiber composites, and electric mobility, so that new technologies can be quickly and safely put into practice.
Our goal is clear: to create innovations that are ecologically sound, economically viable, and socially valuable. That is what we stand for – today and in the future.
Based on its many years of expertise in powder technology, interface research, polymer chemistry, and electrical energy storage, the development of solid-state batteries based on polymer and sulfide composites is a key research focus at Fraunhofer IFAM. In addition to questions regarding material selection, suitable process technologies for such battery cells on an industrial scale are also important.
In the field of chemical hydrogen storage, the institute is developing novel materials and their processing technologies as well as technical components for demand-oriented hydrogen production for fuel cell systems, which allow very high volumetric and gravimetric energy and power densities at low system pressures.
With more than 800 employees, Fraunhofer IKTS is one of the world's largest institutions dedicated to working with inorganic non-metallic functional materials. This class of materials forms the basis for many batteries, fuel cells, and derived technologies such as electrolysis. Fraunhofer IKTS covers the entire value chain for the manufacture of such systems, from the synthesis of active materials to process engineering for the preparation and refinement of materials, the formulation of suspensions and feedstocks for the manufacture of core components, the application of a wide variety of forming processes, and system integration, testing, and operation of battery cells, fuel cells, process engineering reactors, and complete systems. Fraunhofer IKTS deals in principle with all types of battery cells to which specific ceramic technologies can be applied, i.e., lithium cells of all three generations and sodium solid electrolyte cells. To date, Fraunhofer IKTS has developed and constructed complete process engineering systems, particularly in the field of fuel cell and electrolysis technology, and in some cases also for power-to-X systems. Non-destructive testing methods for inline/end-of-line quality assurance are developed to accompany the process, integrating a wide variety of methods from acoustics, electromagnetics, optics, and microscopy into innovative systems. At Fraunhofer IKTS many years of experience in the energy, automotive, and production engineering sectors are being applied and further developed into integrated concepts for networked and adaptive production. A unique area of expertise is the consolidation of multiple data sources (sensor fusion) and the analysis and optimization of production parameters using state-of-the-art machine learning methods.
Fraunhofer Center for Energy and Systems ZESS