In the context of the project InCUBE a new paper has been published entitled "Energy Performance Analysis of the Renovation Process in an Italian Cultural Heritage Building". Among the authors there are the FBK-SE researchers Silvia Ricciuti and Diego Viesi. 

Abstract

Renovating buildings with cultural heritage significance is an important step toward achieving sustainability in our cities. The benefits are not only energy-related but also encompass social aspects that make these renovations a high apriority. The present work investigates the renovation process of a cultural heritage building in the Municipality of Trento in Italy, specifically focusing on achieving energy savings and renewable energy integration by implementing various renovation actions. These renovation actions include improvements to the building envelope, such as roof insulation and window replacements. Additionally, the renovation actions for active systems involve the installation of a ground-source heat pump for heating / cooling coupled with a borehole thermal energy storage system, which is an innovative technology for the renovation of cultural heritage buildings. The electrical systems of the building are upgraded through the addition of standard rooftop photovoltaics, innovative building-integrated photovoltaics (shingles), and the installation of an LED lighting system. The baseline and the renovation scenarios are studied using the dynamic simulation tool INTEMA.building, written in the programming language Modelica. This tool simulates both the building envelope and the energy systems with a high level of detail, using advanced control systems and adjustable time steps. According to the simulation analysis, the primary energy demand is reduced by 30.49%, the final energy demand by 36.74%, and the net electricity demand by 8.72%. Results from this study can be useful to interested stakeholders (e.g., building owners, architects, construction companies, public agents, and urban planners) dealing with the renovation of cultural heritage and protected buildings. Also, the results can be exploited for estimating energy savings by applying advanced renovation strategies for cultural heritage buildings.

DOI: 10.3390/su16072784

Citation: Ziozas, N.; Kitsopoulou, A.; Bellos, E.; Iliadis, P.; Gonidaki, D.; Angelakoglou, K.; Nikolopoulos, N.; Ricciuti, S.; Viesi, D. (2024). Energy Performance Analysis of the Renovation Process in an Italian Cultural Heritage Building. Sustainability 2024, 16, 2784.

Read the article in Open Access here: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/7/2784 

How to create the district heating of the future between efficiency, sustainability and flexibility? This is the question that the 12 speakers and around 100 participants asked themselves at the workshop organized by Alto Garda Servizi, Cartiere del Garda and Alto Garda Power within the new European project USES4HEAT at Riva del Garda.

The workshop addressed various topics of interest, including technological innovations in the district heating sector, strategies to increase energy efficiency, sustainable approaches for the production and distribution of thermal energy as well as the role of renewable energies in the future of district heating. Industry experts, institutional representatives and local stakeholders participated in the event, sharing their experiences and perspectives to outline an increasingly sustainable and cutting-edge future in the field of district heating.

The workshop illustrated the general characteristics of the USES4HEAT project, started in December 2023 for a duration of 4 years. The project will develop two units for the seasonal storage of thermal energy in an underground environment (Borehole Thermal Energy Storage - BTES and Aquifer Thermal Energy Storage - ATES) at two demonstrator sites (Oslo in Norway and Riva del Garda in Italy). The two units will be connected to large-scale district heating networks capable of accumulating various sustainable heat sources.

8 project partners will be active in the area of Riva del Garda (4.1 M€ budget of which 3 M€ of EU funding): Fondazione Bruno Kessler, Cartiere del Garda, Alto Garda Power, Alto Garda Servizi, Hydra, Hiref, Endef, Energenius. The goal is to integrate four different innovative technologies:

1. New seasonal, large-scale ATES through advanced drilling technologies - provided by partner Hydra;

2. New groundwater heat pump with high temperature, low Global Warming Potential (GWP) and connected to both ATES and district heating - provided by partner Hiref;

3. Hybrid solar panels (PVT) - provided by partner Endef;

4. Intelligent energy management using artificial intelligence, big data and cloud-based IT tools – provided by partner Energenius.

The event was introduced by a welcome speech from Ruggero Moser, General Director of Alto Garda Servizi (AGS), and Stefano Cenedese, Technical Director at Cartiere del Garda (CDG) and Alto Garda Power (AGP).

“It is a pleasure to open this event - underlined Ruggero Moser - which means bringing innovation in the energy sector to Riva del Garda through the use of European resources, with a green project in line with the directives, linked to the storage of energy that is produced in excess in certain periods of the year. This energy is functional to the business activity of the three local companies involved in the project, Alto Garda Servizi, Cartiere del Garda and Alto Garda Power. It is equally a pleasure to have the presence at this event of national and European bodies and companies, innovative in the district heating sector, as well as technical firms, universities and many professionals.”

“Alto Garda Power was founded in 2006 - explained Stefano Cenedese - and is 80% controlled by Cartiere del Garda and 20% by Alto Garda Servizi. The aim of this company was immediately to create and manage a new cogeneration plant capable of satisfying the thermal and electrical needs of its shareholders. Precisely in that period, a new European cutting-edge electric and thermal cogeneration system was created with an efficiency increased from 71% to 85%, connected with the new Riva del Garda district heating system. Now, almost 20 years later, the challenge is to further increase efficiency, sustainability and flexibility, fundamental ingredients to guarantee competitiveness for local businesses. A project promoted at a local level by the Bruno Kessler Foundation, through the Sustainable Energy Center, which has proven particularly attentive in supporting the Trentino area with its excellence and potential, networking with other important national and European research and business entities.”

The first presentations of the workshop were dedicated to the local context which was presented by Aldo Bronzini (Technical Director of AGS) regarding the district heating of Riva del Garda and by Luciano Lucchi (Energy and Cogeneration Manager of CDG and AGP) for the power cogeneration plant of Alto Garda Power. Diego Viesi, FBK researcher and local scientific manager, presented the USES4HEAT project, while Gianfranco Bazzoli and Carlo Piemonte illustrated the geological and engineering design activities at Riva del Garda respectively.

The activities of the USES4HEAT project were then inserted into a broader framework linked to the energy transition in the district heating sector (Lorenzo Spadoni, AIRU President), to the potential of geothermal energy (Bruno Della Vedova, UGI President) and to research at a European level (Gabriele Fish, Euroheat & Power).

Finally, multiple case studies were presented including the "Montegrotto Geothermal District Heating Project" (Jacopo Vivian, UNIPD Researcher), "Practical experiences of integrating geothermal energy and heat pumps in district heating in Italy and Europe" (Carlo Piemonte, SAI Associate Engineering Studio), "State of the art of Low, Medium and High Temperature ATES in the Netherlands" (Bas Godschalk, IF Technology) and "Study of the ATES potential in Italy, modeling and guidelines" (Gabriela Squarzoni, Researcher RSE).

Author:

Alice Pesarin

+39 3477067069

pesarin.a@altogardaservizi.com 

Read the entire press release in Italian: at this link.

The PNRR has allocated over 3 billion euros to promote the production, distribution and use of hydrogen, considered a fundamental component for the energy transition process. Many of these funds were allocated during 2023, raising the awareness of the need for a national strategy capable of combining decarbonisation objectives with a clear vision of industrial development around this vector.

Yesterday, 27 March 2024, the Partners of the Zero Carbon Community of The European House - Ambrosetti met in Trento with the various public and private stakeholders,  to stimulate a concrete debate about the critical success factors for the birth of a national hydrogen supply chain.

During the meeting, the state of the art of hydrogen in Italy and results achieved during the first year of activity of the Zero Carbon Community were presented and themes and stages of the 2024 path was launched.

The meeting has also been the opportunity to discuss the strategies through which to promote industrial initiatives around the development of hydrogen valleys with a focus on the opportunities offered to companies by the ecosystem of the Autonomous Province of Trento.

Among the speakers, there was Luigi Crema - Director of the Center and Vice-President of H2IT, and Matteo Testi - Head of HyRES Unit.

Luigi spoke about the "Political and regulatory conditions for the development of a market for hydrogen applications in Italy" while Matteo Testi presented the activities and  the future steps of the Center SE.

Among the speakers: 

• Dr. Steffen Bäuerle (CEO, Globe Fuel Cell Systems)

• Dr. Federico Boschi (Head of the Energy Department, Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security)

• Jorgo Chatzimarkakis (HYDROGEN EUROPE, Chief Executive Officer)

• Ms. Jane Toogood (UK Hydrogen Champion)

• Eng. Alessandro Viviani (Associate Partner, The European House - Ambrosetti)

• Dr. Bernhard Wienk-Borgert (Co-Founder and CTO, Globe Fuel Cell Systems)

Check the agenda and presentations at this link: https://innotechhub.ambrosetti.eu/it/incontri/view/13630 

The first edition of the European PhD Hydrogen Conference (EPHyC) recently concluded!

The conference is aimed solely at EU-based PhD researchers working on a hydrogen-related research topic, and provides a nurturing environment for early-stage researchers to grow, learn and establish their academic presence. 

The event was organized by BE-HyFE and Hydrogen Europe Research and  took place from 20 till 22 March 2024 in Ghent (Belgium).

EPHyC gathered together over 160 Ph.D. students to unveil the future of hydrogen technology. Among them, there was also Giulia di Gregorio.

"My PhD project focuses on the development of novel platinum-group metal-free electrocatalyst materials for anion exchange membrane water electrolysis (AEMWE)" explains Giulia di Gregorio, PhD student at the Center for Sustainable Energy of FBK. 

Giulia gave the presentation "Radio Frequency Sputtering deposition of MoS2 electrocatalyst thin films for Anion Exchange Membrane Water Electrolysis" where she outlined a one-step method for fabricating ionomer-free MoS2 electrocatalysts onto graphite laminate substrates using radio frequency sputtering. A preliminary ex-situ screening of the functional properties was conducted to evaluate the influence of sputtering operating parameters, using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). The as-sputtered samples were integrated into a 25 cm2 AEMWE cell setup as cathode electrodes, alongside commercial anodes and anion exchange membranes. Under optimal sputtering conditions, the obtained current density values were comparable to those achieved with benchmark materials. This highlights the potential of radio frequency sputtering for tailoring the physicochemical and electrochemical properties of electrocatalysts, thus contributing to the advancement of AEMWE technology.

Luigi Crema as President of HER made the keynote welcoming speech, in collaboration with Marijke Mahieu, Project coordinator BE-HyFE.

More information on the event: https://www.ephyc2024.com/program 

Last week the 2024 National Ski Championships of Engineers and Architects were held in Corvara in Badia. The event was organized by the Order of Engineers of the Autonomous Province of Bolzano, the Order of Engineers of the Province of Trento, the Order of Architects PPC Bolzano and the Trento Order of Architects with the support of the National Council of Engineers and the National Council of Landscape Architects, Designers, Landscape Architects and Conservators.

Numerous engineers and architects from all over Italy participated in the event. Fundamental part of the initiativa has been the conference "Mobility and sustainable construction in mountain areas".

Our researcher Eleonora Cordioli was invited as speaker during the conference and presented the opportunities and challenges of hydrogen in the sector, with the speech "Hydrogen mobility in the Alpine context: technologies, opportunities and barriers". With her presentation, the researcher illustrated the state of the art of hydrogen applications and the initiatives in the Alpine mobility sector, and therefore the possibilities of integrating hydrogen in mountain areas and the priorities to be managed.

Among the initiatives mentioned, also the AMETHyST project, which aims to define the role of hydrogen in the Alpine context, share best practices and support the development of policies and strategies for the creation of hydrogen-based ecosystems at Alpine level.

More information on the event, at this link.

Programme: https://www.ingbz.it/it/modulistica-docman/lingua-italiana/news/80-campionato-nazionale-sci-ingegneri-architetti-2024/file 

_____________________________________________________

La scorsa settimana a Corvara in Badia si sono tenuti i Campionati Nazionali di Sci degli Ingegneri e degli Architetti 2024, organizzati dall'Ordine degli Ingegneri della Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano, l'Ordine degli Ingegneri della Provincia di Trento, l'Ordine Architetti PPC Bolzano e l'Ordine Architetti Trento con il patrocinio di Consiglio Nazionale degli Ingegneri e Consiglio Nazionale Architetti Pianificatori Paesaggisti e Conservatori. 

Numerosi ingegneri e architetti da tutta Italia hanno partecipato all'evento. In questo contesto ha preso luogo il  convegno "Mobilità e costruzioni sostenibili nelle zone montane". 

Tra i relatori era presente anche Eleonora Cordioli, ricercatrice del Centro Sustainable Energy della Fondazione Bruno Kessler, che ha presentato le opportunità e le sfide dell'idrogeno nel settore, con l'intervento "Mobilità a idrogeno nel contesto alpino: tecnologie, opportunità e barriere". Con la sua presentazione la ricercatrice ha illustrato lo stato dell'arte delle applicazioni a idrogeno e le iniziative nel settore della mobilità alpina, e quindi le possibilità di integrazione dell'idrogeno in territori montani e le priorità da gestire. 

Tra le iniziative menzionate, anche il progetto AMETHyST, che mira a definire il ruolo dell'idrogeno nel contesto alpino, condividere best practice e supportare lo sviluppo di policy e strategie per la creazione di ecosistemi basati sull'idrogeno a livello alpino.

Maggiori informazioni, at this link.

Programma: https://www.ingbz.it/it/modulistica-docman/lingua-italiana/news/80-campionato-nazionale-sci-ingegneri-architetti-2024/file 

A new scientific article has been published!

The work is entitled "Modelling of the leaching process by the extended quadrature method of moments"  and has been written by Mohsen Shiea - researcher of the Battery and Electrification Technologies (BET) Unit at the Center SE - with Luigi Crema and Edoardo Gino Macchi.

Abstract

An approach based on the extended quadrature method of moments (EQMOM) has been developed to solve the population balance equation written for the evolution of shrinking-core particles in transient leaching processes. It has been shown that the EQMOM can naturally address the dependency of the shrinkage-core model on the unreacted core size and outer size of particles. The approach has been validated by comparing its predictions with either analytical or reference solutions for several test cases. Moreover, the approach has been employed to simulate an experimental leaching process taken from the literature. The obtained results confirm the significance of considering the particle size distribution in the simulation of the leaching process, hence the importance of solution methods such as that presented in this work. Finally, it has been shown that the proposed approach is also useful for the simulation of the dissolution process with shrinking particles.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ces.2024.119987 

Have a look at the article here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0009250924002872 

Last week, on the 13th and 14th of March 2024, CINEA - European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency organised the LIFE-CET Energy Communities Contractor’s Meeting.

Cinzia Morisco, researcher at the Center SE of FBK and Coordinator of the ECOEMPOWER project was in Brussels to participate in the event to foster collaboration and synergies between European project working on Energy Communities.

A lot of interesting discussions sparkled between projects and with CINEA on the energy systems of the future and how to support this transition in the best way through our projects.

The meeting was an opportunity for our on-going projects dealing with energy communities to get to know each other and identify cooperation opportunities. Several discussions happened on subjects related energy communities such as financing, One Stop Shops, capacity building and energy poverty. CINEA members, project referents and EU policy officers animated the discussions to understand how to provide the best support to the growing and active number of energy communities in Europe.  

In addition, the participation of relevant policy officers from different DGs provided the opportunity to carry out exchanges on policy recommendations and reflect on future needs. 

More information on the project: https://ecoempower.eu/ 

After the great success of the EHEC 2022 with over 1100 attendees and 200 + speakers from across the entire hydrogen value chain, the event took place again last week. 

From the 6th to 8th of March 2024, Bilbao (Spain) hosted EHEC, the European Hydrogen Energy Conference 2024 and the Center for Sustainable Energy could not miss the opportunity to participate!

Luca Pratticò, researcher at the Center for Sustainable Energy at Fondazione Bruno Kessler, presented the work entitled “From direct use of ammonia in solid oxide fuel cells to the next generation of ammonia fuel cell systems“, in the cotext of AMON Project. 

In its presentation, Luca the objectives and results of AMON and updated the audience about the activities implemented and the progress achieved so far, as well as the next steps and expected impact.

Hossein Namdar, PhD student at the Center SE, also participated in the event presenting the work "Investigating PEMWE commercial membrane performance using argon-oxygen plasma and ALD-TiO2 technology".

As reported in the website: “The European Hydrogen Energy Conference (EHEC) is Europe’s conference of reference in the hydrogen sector. Hosted every two years, EHEC is organized by the Spanish Hydrogen Association (AeH2) and brings together experts, researchers, and industry leaders in the field of hydrogen, providing a platform for sharing the latest advances, innovations, and developments in hydrogen-based technologies.

With a focus on promoting sustainable and clean energy solutions, EHEC seeks to play a crucial role in advancing the adoption of hydrogen as a clean energy source across Europe and the world."

More information on the agenda at this link: https://ehec.info/   

The online journal Watergas interviewed Director Luigi Crema.

After a year as President of Hydrogen Europe Research (HER), Luigi Crema takes stock of the situation and outlines future objectives.

In this interview given to Watergas, Crema - who is also vice president of the Italian Hydrogen Association - H2IT - underlines the importance of HER's role in shaping European research policies on hydrogen, highlighting the involvement in the Clean Hydrogen Governing Board Partnership and commitment to the adoption of innovative strategies.

In particular, Crema illustrates the launch of two new working groups within HER, focused on advanced research and technological infrastructures, highlighting the intention to promote transversal collaborations to address the challenges of the sector.

Looking to the future, the president identifies advanced hydrogen technologies, such as new materials and electrochemical processes, and highlights the key role of research in the industry, proposing collaboration to accelerate innovation and reduce development times.

In this interview, Crema finally expresses confidence in the Italian potential and says he is satisfied with the working groups recently activated by MASE to create a national strategic plan for hydrogen, even if he underlines that "resources are needed" to develop a market framework that allows to attract investments.

Read the entire article in Italian: https://www.watergas.it/it/News/INTERVISTA-Hydrogen-Europe-Research-bene-tavoli-su-piano-strategico-nazionale-dell039-idrogeno-Ma-servono-risorse 

The SMHYLES project, coordinated by FBK is funded by the EU under Horizon Europe with around €6 million for a period of four years from January 2024 on.

One of the greatest challenges of the 21st century is the transition to climate-neutral energy sources. Here, reliable energy storage plays a key role, as production and load peaks in the electricity grid require flexible storage systems that can be used for a wide range of applications. The recently launched EU project SMHYLES aims to develop innovative, sustainable, and safe salt- and/or water-based hybrid energy storage systems. These combine two storage technologies and their respective advantages: long duration capacity and high power density. The new low-CRM (critical raw materials) systems will also contribute to Europe’s energy independence. The SMHYLES project, coordinated by the “Fondazione Bruno Kessler” (Italy), is funded by the EU under Horizon Europe with around €6 million for a period of four years from January 2024 on. The consortium includes 16 partners from seven countries.

Each storage technology has technical and economic characteristics that are ideally suited for a specific application. These characteristics include, for example, energy and power density, reaction time, environmental sustainability, and safety. Redox flow and salt batteries have a large storage capacity but can only be charged and discharged slowly. A supercapacitor, on the other hand, has fast charging times but cannot store large energy quantities over a long period of time. Only the efficient combination of both functionalities provides the necessary performance and flexibility in use.

“Modern energy storage systems need to guarantee security of supply, performance and safety, have flexible management software and be manufactured and operated in the most sustainable and environmentally friendly way possible,” explains SMHYLES coordinator Edoardo G. Macchi, Head of Battery and Electrification Technologies Unit at the Fondazione Bruno Kessler in Trento, Italy. 

The central goal of the SMHYLES project is to develop and demonstrate such innovative, safe, and sustainable hybrid energy storage systems on an industrial scale. [...] In SMHYLES, a water-based supercapacitor and, either a redox flow battery or a salt battery, are to be combined to create innovative hybrid energy storage systems. During the second half of the project, various use cases will be trialled for 12 months in the three pilot plants in Portugal and Germany [...].

Fondazione Bruno Kessler, through the Center for Sustainable Energy, will be the Project Coordinator and also a work package leader, where it will be responsible for the development of new digital tools. These will be used to support techno-economic analyses on the sizing of the aqueous-based and salt-based hybrid energy storage systems (HESSs) and the optimization of control strategies and operations. In this work package, FBK will also supervise the identification of the most promising use and business cases for the proposed hybrid systems along with the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA).

“We are really proud to coordinate SMHYLES project. It is for us an important initiative to scale up and implement in several EU territories hybrid energy storage solutions. This is developing further the concept of a specific technology and looking for the best integration approach for end use applications, following their specific requirements. This is indeed a general approach we are favouring and supporting, trying to develop more integrated solutions and going beyond the technology silos approach” states Luigi Crema, Director of FBK’s Center of Sustainable Energy.

Read the full press release in English: https://magazine.fbk.eu/en/news/eu-project-smhyles-develops-novel-salt-and-water-based-hybrid-energy-storage-systems-hess-on-an-industrial-scale/ 

Read the press release in Italian: https://magazine.fbk.eu/it/news/il-progetto-ue-smhyles-sviluppa-nuovi-sistemi-di-accumulo-ibrido-di-energia-hess-a-base-di-acqua-e-sale-su-scala-industriale/ 

The kick-off meeting of the Horizon Europe project Hy-SPIRE “Hydrogen production by innovative solid oxide cell for flexible operation at intermediate temperature” was held in Warsaw on 8-9 February 2024, hosted by coordinator – the Institute of Power Engineering – National Research Institute (IPE-NRI).

According to long-term goals of EU, green hydrogen produced using renewable energy sources will become an energy vector for decarbonisation of the EU economy, in particular the hard-to-abate industry and transport sectors. 

Water electrolysis is the most well-known technique used for zero-emission production of hydrogen and the technology of solid oxide electrolysers (SOEL) can become a key technological advantage for EU to become a world leader in hydrogen economy. 

What is the aim of the Hy-SPIRE project?

The overarching objective of Hy-SPIRE project is to further boost the potential of SOEL by lowering the operating temperature below 700°C and increasing its flexibility in order to match the profiles of electricity generation in renewable energy sources (RES). 

Through the development and application of new materials, advanced manufacturing techniques and optimized cell as well as compact stack designs, the project focuses on the creation of novel oxygen ion- and proton-conducting cells (O-SOE and P-SOE, respectively) on both, ceramic and metallic supports. Among the key goals of the Hy-SPIRE a low degradation equal to or lower than 0.75% per 1,000 h, operation at high current densities ca. 1.2 A/cm2 and ability to operate dynamically and fast ramping, can be listed. 

Furthermore, the technoeconomic analysis with the support of life cycle assessment (LCA) will be used for the evaluation of project novelties and the market potential, as well as the definition of barriers and research directions to achieve the objectives of the Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda. This, among others, includes the reduction of hydrogen production cost to 3 €/kg by 2030, reduction of CAPEX 520 €/(kg/kW) and OPEX 45 €/(kg/kW).

These goals will be reached thanks to the collaboration of the consortium coordinated by the  Institute of Power Engineering – National Research Institute (Poland). The partners of the project are prominent research institutes such as Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale De Lausanne (Switzerland), German Aerospace Center (Germany), Fondazione Bruno Kessler through the Centre for Sustainable Energy (Italy),  Fundació Institut de Recerca en Energia de Catalunya a (Spain), Technical University of Denmark (Denmark), and one of the key European supplier of solid oxide cell electrolysers SolydEra (Italy).

Fondazione Bruno Kessler, through the Center for Sustainable Energy, will lead the Work Package 4, therefore managing the activities of communication, dissemination and exploitation, and providing a techno-economic analyses supported by life cycle assessment (LCA) addressing the recycling and end-of-life scenarios for the developed technology. FBK will also be in charge of the testing of the stack and the development of dedicated protocols and procedures for the testing activity on novel SOE stack based on metal and electrode supported cells.

“The HyRES unit of the Center for Sustainable Energy is honoured to participate in the Hy-SPIRE project” states Matteo Testi – Head of Hydrogen technologies and Resilient Energy Systems Unit. “HyRES will provide expertise and perform activities for Work Package 3 concerning the test of the short-stack solution developed in the project, and in Work Package 4, managing communication, dissemination, and exploitation efforts, including the techno-economic analysis of the iconic and proton cell solutions, providing valuable insights into the market potential and sustainability of these technologies.”

“FBK, through the Center for Sustainable Energy, is proud to participate and support Hy-SPIRE project. FBK-SE is preparing to support the hydrogen sector and be a key stakeholder for industrial players in the next future” states Luigi Crema – Director of the Center Sustainable Energy of FBK. “Hydrogen is part of the political agenda, a market framework is under development but, in any case, and even more it is necessary to support research and innovation on actual and next generation hydrogen technologies, to keep Europe in the forefront of the global hydrogen competition”.

Read the full press release in English: https://magazine.fbk.eu/en/news/innovative-solid-oxide-electrolyzers-to-produce-hydrogen-will-be-developed-in-the-hy-spire-project/ 

Read the press release in Italian: https://magazine.fbk.eu/it/news/al-via-il-progetto-hy-spire-che-sviluppera-innovativi-elettrolizzatori-a-ossidi-solidi-per-la-produzione-di-idrogeno/ 

Last 8th of February 2024, Luigi Crema and Luca Prattico’ were in Rome at the Info Day of the Clean Hydrogen Partnership that took place at the Congress Center of Rome, Italy. 

The Clean Hydrogen Partnership is the public-private financing program established with the aim of contributing to fostering the transition towards a clean hydrogen economy.

As it is possible to read on the event poster, the tender was opened on January 17, and a total of €113.5 million will be made available through Horizon Europe for projects covering research and innovation activities along the entire hydrogen value chain. An additional amount of 60 millions of euros (from the RePowerEU plan budget) will be used to support various activities including the creation and management of a “Hydrogen Valleys Facility” to increase the number of valleys of hydrogen in Europe.

ENEA and H2IT organized this national event to present the 2024 Call, addressed to all public and private entities interested in participating in thetender: Universities, public and private research centres, small businesses and large industry.

In his role of President of Hydrogen Europe Research, Luigi Crema gave an overview of the European associations members of the Clean Hydrogen Partnership.

The researcher Luca Pratticò presented AMON Project which was among the success stories invited to the event to provide suggestions for submitting competitive proposals. 

More information at this link: https://www.h2it.it/info-day-nazionale-clean-hydrogen-partnership/ 

In these days, the green hydrogen roadshow is taking place in four districts of the Mantova territories. The event is organised by Confindustria Mantova and wishes to present the "Mantua model" in order to raise the awareness on the potential of the green hydrogen for the industrial districts and the entire territory. 

The project HYMANTOVALLEY represents an represents an ambitious collaborative effort aimed at creating a Hydrogen Valley in the province of Mantua, Italy" outlines Matteo Testi - Head of the Hydrogen Technologies and Resilien Energy System Unit. 

With a total investment of around 9 million euros, co-financed by the European Union through various programmes including the Interregional Innovation Investments Instrument (I3), the project aims to demonstrate the possibility of local decarbonisation in a of the most polluted regions in Europe, the Po Valley.

"FBK is happy to participate in this new growth opportunity in the H2 sector, located in a context with a high multimodality potential that will be able to optimize the management and economic aspects of hydrogen" continues Matteo Testi.

This integrated ecosystem is based on the river port of Valdaro, a logistics platform and a three-modal transport system (inland water, rail, road) to make the most of the strategic position of the site. The project aims to produce more than 1,500 tonnes of green hydrogen per year from renewable sources, reducing CO2 emissions by more than 14,000 tonnes per year.

The project involves 16 partners from 4 European countries: Italy, Austria, The Netherlands and Belgium. Among the partners there are public institutions such as the Province of Mantua, companies specialized in energy management such as AGIRE and SAPIO Srl, prestigious universities such as the Polytechnic of Milan and the Bruno Kessler Foundation, and other key organizations in the sector.

Fondazione Bruno Kessler - through the Center for Sustainable Energy - will participate in HYMANTOVALLEY with several activities such as the techno-economic assessment of the H2 transport solutions to be adopetd in the context of the hydrogen valley. The Center will also coordinate the activities connected to the business case definition and will participate in the definition of a R&D hub that will be created within the valley. 

Read more about the roadshow here (article in Italian - press release of Confindustria Mantova)

Read more about the kick-off meeting here (article in Italian - Gazzetta di Mantova)

In these days, Antwerp hosted the event EIGA Winter Summit 2024 – Enabling Hydrogen together! 

The European Industrial Gases Association (EIGA) is a "safety and technically oriented organisation representing the vast majority of European and also non-European companies producing and distributing industrial, medical and food gases". 

The event was divided in 5 "steps" in order to allow participants to embark on a journey to discover, aware, understand, believe and act on the present and future of hydrogen, with the leading voice in safety, health and environmental care in the handling of industrial gases in Europe."

Luigi Crema, Director of the Center SE and President of HER, participated in the Undestand session, with the speech entitled The perspective of hydrogen in the field of energy storage.

More information on: https://www.eiga.eu/ws/2024_ws_programme/ 

Within the Interreg Alpine Space AMETHyST project, Eleonora Cordioli and Jacopo de Maigret - researchers of the Center Sustainable Energy - developed a report entitled "Green Hydrogen in the Alps. Identification of needs and targets for the deployment of green H2 solutions with a focus on touristic uses".

The document dives into the heart of sustainable energy innovation through the exploration of hydrogen solutions, with a special focus on transforming the Alps into a hub of green excellence.

The report reviews the state-of-the-art of hydrogen solutions, with a focus on touristic uses in the Alpine regions, gathering insights from local stakeholders, identifying the barriers to and the solutions for the development of local Alpine hydrogen ecosystems, and uncovering the immense potential of hydrogen.

What is the purpose of the document?

The objective is twofold. Firstly, the study aims to map the level of interest and commitment of local communities and authorities in pursuing higher sustainable development objectives. Secondly, it seeks to identify their specific needs for the implementation of hydrogen-based pilot initiatives. The analysis is intended to outline the role of hydrogen in the Alpine territories, informing and sharing knowledge among local stakeholders, thus paving the way to the creation of Alpine hydrogen ecosystems.

Have a look at the report, at this link. 

More information on the project here.

AMETHyST supports the deployment of Alpine green H2 ecosystems for a post-carbon future in the Alps. It reinforces the role of public authorities by increasing their capacity, designing support services to roll out green H2 solutions. This is done through 6  pilot territories in 5 countries which work together to implement the most appropriate solutions and test the ecosystem models.

Charting the Future of Green Fuels Bunkering at Trincomalee Port is the title of the Sri Lanka Hydrogen and Green Fuels Forum 2024, which took place last Thursday 18 January 2024 and was organised by the Ceylon Italy Blue Economy Association (CIBEA) and supported by the Sri Lankan Ministries and by the Italian Embassy in Sri Lanka.

As outlined by Vittorio Coco, President of CIBEA, "l'evento mira a generare attenzione ed interesse per una audience italiana ed internazionale qualificata di investitori, fornitori, autorità governative, operatori nel settore dei servizi ed imprese anche piccole e medie sull'opportunità di partecipare direttamente alla catena del valore dell'idrogeno e derivati verdi nell'Oceano Indiano [The conference aims to generate interest in the opportunity of actively participating in the Indian Ocean value chain of hydrogen and green fuels. The event addresses an Italian and international audience of investors, suppliers, policy-makers. service providers and companies].

Gionata Luca, researcher of the FBK Center for Sustainable Energy, presented the Key Note speech on the topics of costs behind the Italian green hydrogen supply chain. In particular, the researcher focused on the production costs of the green hydrogen, the cost gap with the reference fuel to be substituted (grey hydrogen for industries, natural gas for heating and diesel for mobility), and the strategies to reduce these costs. 

In his speech, Gionata presented some results of a research work done within the HyRES Unit of FBK-SE to evaluate possible incentives that can fill the cost gap with the reference fuel and launch the green hydrogen market. 

What are the strategies presented to reduce the green hydrogen production costs?

• The impact of the plant complexity (modular and standardised solutions can reduce the investment capital cost);

• The increase of the electrolyser load factor that can lead to the absorption of the capital cost;

• The impact of the scale effect; 

• The support of the investment costs through the active participation in calls and tenders to promote the hydrogen supply chain and the development of a scale manufacturing industry.

Read more here: https://cibea.net/2024/01/03/sri-lanka-h2-forum-future-of-green-fuels-bunkering-at-trincomalee-port/ 

On January 16, 2024, Diego Viesi, Masoud Manafi, Silvia Ricciuti and Francesco Ghionda - researchers of the Sustainable Energy Center of FBK - participated in the first site visit of USES4HEAT Project.

The visit took place in Riva del Garda, at the cogeneration plant of Alto Garda Power which is connected to Cartiere del Garda and the district heating of Riva del Garda.

The objective of this visit was to show the current state of art of the demo site of the project to the  partners that will be involved in the local activities: Fondazione Bruno Kessler,  Alto Garda Power S.r.l., Cartiere del Garda S.p.A., Alto Garda Servizi S.p.A., HYDRA S.r.l., HiRef S.p.A., Endef Engineering, Energenius S.r.l., Università degli Studi di Genova.

The fist analysis to the engineering and geological challenges have been launched in orde to find the optimal integration in the innovative solutions that will be creatd for the Italian demo site: 

1. New seasonal, large-scale, ATES via advanced drilling technologies – provided by the partner HYDRA;

2. New groundwater heat pump at high temperature, low GWP and ATES/DH-connected by HIREF;

3. Hybrid solar panels provided by ENDEF;

4. Intelligent energy management via AI, big-data and cloud-based tools by Energenius.

More information on the project: https://magazine.fbk.eu/en/news/uses4heat-project-launched-to-enable-the-decarbonisation-of-european-heating-and-cooling-through-innovative-seasonal-thermal-energy-storage/ 

This year again PSE will take place the first week of September, in Erfurt (Germany). The 19th International Conference on Plasma Surface Engineering is the established Conference for plasma and ion surface engineering. 

PSE Conferences are established since 1988. The event provides opportunities to present recent progress in research, development and industrial applications. Its topics span a wide range from fundamentals such as e. g., process modelling and simulations of plasmas or thin film physics, through experimental studies which establish the relationships between process parameters and the structural and functional properties of modified surfaces and/or thin films, towards applications in industrial production.

PSE Conferences are organized by the European Joint Committee on Plasma and Ion Surface Engineering. 

Conference Topics of PSE2024

1. Plasma and ion sources

2. Process technologies

3. Properties and applications

4. Characterization and simulation

Important Deadlines

Abstract Submission Deadline: January 31, 2024

PSE Award 2024 Proposals: January 31, 2024

In parallel, an exhibition is also organised. It is an important part of the conference and provides opportunities to stay informed about new developments as well as innovative products and services, discuss new ideas and cooperations with the experts and gives time to take care of customers. Exhibitors use the chance to present their products and services to the community with growing interest. In this exhibition you find providers of coating systems, components, equipment, materials, vacuum and plasma technologies, analytical measurement instruments, simulation tools, products for process automation and coating services. The exhibition will take place from September 3 – 4, 2024.

More information on the conference: https://pse-conferences.net/

Information package, at this link

BM Group Holding started the new year with the celebration of its 30th Anniversary. 

For this occasion, the company organised the Convention Inspiring innovation: BM Group per la transizione tecnologica ed energetica dell’industria with three roundtables. The first on the integration of renewable energies to decarbonise industries, the second on the energy challenge of green hydrogen and the third on th Industry 5.0, with the human as main actor of the digital transition. The fil-rouge of the event was the industry decarbonisation through renewable energies and digital transition. 

Luigi Crema, Director of the Sustainable Energy Centre of the Fondazione Bruno Kessler - FBK and President of Hydrogen Europe Research was invited as panelist in the round table "Energy challenge of green hydrogen. 

The panel, moderated by Filippo Astone - Industria Italiana Magazine, saw the participation of Luca Gnali (Executive Board of Iniziative Bresciane and founding partner of CreaConsulting), Paolo Argenta (Executive Vice President, Tenova Metals) and Luca Mion (CEO of HYDROALP).

"To achieve the objectives of decarbonization, a well-developed path is needed. It is not enough to introduce renewables; we need a secure supply of energy, and this requires the integration of energy carriers that allow storage and high density. And one of these energy carriers is hydrogen", as explained by Luigi Crema. "After all, the European Union's objective is to consume 20 million additional tons of hydrogen compared to the current level by 2030. A European Hydrogen Bank has been created, and it is believed that, when hydrogen reaches 3 euros per kg of production cost, it will be ready to replace methane, in addition to fossil fuels used in mobility".

Source: Industria Italiana Magazine | HydroAlp

Read more about the event: https://www.industriaitaliana.it/bm-group-energia-rinnovabile-automazione-industriale-meccatronica/?latest 

The USES4HEAT project kicked off in December 2023 to enable decarbonised and reliable heating supply through innovative large scale seasonal thermal energy storage solutions.

The project “Underground Large Scale Seasonal Energy Storage for Decarbonised and Reliable Heat”, in short USES4HEAT, will demonstrate two innovative, cost-effective, large-scale seasonal underground thermal energy storage (TES) units to maximise the availability and resilience of heating supply, reducing significantly both energy losses and environmental impacts. The two TES units will be fully connected to large-scale district heating networks (DHN) able to accumulate various sustainable sources of heat (waste heat, solar thermal and hybrid, geothermal, power-to-heat). 

Six additional key enabling innovative technologies ensuring maximal optimisation as well as sector and system integration will also be developed along the TES. AI, big-data analytics driven and cloud-based O&M algorithms will maximise the efficiency of the TES, ensuring a more reliable and efficient future heating system. 

Today, residential, commercial and industrial heat needs below 150°C account for more than a third of the EU’s total energy demand and are mainly based on fossil fuels. Achieving a climate neutral economy by 2050, as set out in the European Climate Change Act and the European Green Deal, is a major challenge requiring the decarbonisation of European heating and cooling. In this sense, district heating and cooling is recognised as a key solution as it allows the integration of renewable energy sources and the use of various forms of excess and waste heat, while contributing to the stability and coupling of energy systems. To fully capitalise on this untapped high potential of DHN, the vast deployment and integration of large scale, seasonal TES solutions will be essential. 

In line with the Horizon Europe’s (HE) Cluster 5 Strategic Plan, USES4HEAT is going to contribute to the “Clean and sustainable transition of the energy and transport sectors towards climate neutrality facilitated by innovative crosscutting solutions” developing and demonstrating solutions which could be exploited also for other sectors. USES4HEAT has received more than 9.7 million euros in funding from the EU’s HE Programme and will run from December 2023 to November 2027.

Coordinated by KTH Royal Institute of Technology (Sweden), the USES4HEAT outstanding consortium is composed of 27 partners spanning the entire innovation value chain from all over Europe: Kungliga Tekniska Hoegskolan (Sweden), Svenska Miljöinstitutet AB (Sweden), Università degli Studi di Genova (Italy), Fundación CARTIF (Spain), Fondazione Bruno Kessler (Italy) – through the Center for Sustainable Energy, Chalmers University of Technology (Sweden), Haflsund Oslo Celsio (Norway), Hallingplast AS (Norway), Bengt Dahlgren Stockholm Geo AB (Sweden), Absolicon Solar Collector AB (Sweden), Cartiere del Garda S.p.A (Italy), Alto Garda Servizi S.p.A. (Italy), Alto Garda Power S.r.l (Italy), HiRef S.p.A. (Italy), Energenius S.r.l. (Italy), HYDRA S.r.l. (Italy), Endef Engineering (Spain), Euroheat & Power AISBL (Belgium), Energy Institute Hrvoje Požar (Croatia), Hrvatska Elektroprivreda Dionicko Drustvo (Croatia), Yugoiztochnoevropeyska Tehnologichna Kompania ood (Bulgaria), AquaTonic Ltd. (Bulgaria), Smart Sustainable Social Innovations Single Member P.C (Greece), Ethniko Kentro Erevnas Kai Technologikis Anaptyxis (Greece), Dimotiki Epicheirisi Ydrefsis Kai Apochetefsis Kozanis (Greece), Kvarnholmen Utveckling AB (Sweden), and Veolia (Spain). 

In the project, FBK will be in charge of several activities. First of all, FBK will be the scientific leader of the Demo Riva del Garda in Italy.

The demo will see the involvement of important local industrial stakeholders as Cartiere del Garda, Alto Garda Power and Alto Garda Servizi, and will focus on the integration of the following technologies:

1. New seasonal, large-scale, ATES via advanced drilling technologies – provided by the partner HYDRA;

2. New groundwater heat pump at high temperature, low GWP and ATES/DH-connected by HIREF;

3. Hybrid solar panels provided by ENDEF;

4. Intelligent energy management via AI, big-data and cloud-based tools by Energenius.

Furthermore, the FBK-SE will be leading and involved in several activities, among others:

• Baseline monitoring and demonstration planning;

• Heating and cooling decarbonisation modelling via geospatial mapping and dynamic multi-objective optimization;

• Dynamic/transient modelling;

• Layout definition and engineering;

• Experimental campaign and critical assessment.

Luigi Crema, Director of the Center for Sustainable Energy of Fondazione Bruno Kessler, outlined that “USES4HEAT is yet another contribution of the Center SE to the territorial innovation of the Province of Trento. Over the last 3 years, the Center SE, through the Sustainable Territories Area, has contributed approximately 7.5 million euros of European funding to local demo sites (e.g. in the EU projects InCUBE, FLEXIndustries, COMMUNITAS, NEVERMORE, LIFE-ECOEMPOWER). As FBK we are going to support the territorial innovation with additional projects and efforts in the coming years, including electrification, use of green carriers such as hydrogen and looking for the Net Zero in the future decades.”

Diego Viesi, Head of the Sustainable Territories Area at the Center for Sustainable Energy of Fondazione Bruno Kessler, stated that:
“USES4HEAT represents yet another concrete contribution by FBK in attracting European funding to the Autonomous Province of Trento. This funding is supporting innovative research projects for the local energy transition. USES4HEAT in particular represents a crucial challenge such as the large-scale decarbonisation of the industrial and district heating sectors, with technologies such as heat pumps, geothermal and solar which have enormous but still little exploited potential.”

Link to the FBK Magazine press release in Italian: https://magazine.fbk.eu/it/news/lanciato-il-progetto-uses4heat-con-lobiettivo-di-consentire-la-decarbonizzazione-del-riscaldamento-e-del-raffreddamento-in-europa-grazie-a-un-innovativo-sistema-di-accumulo-stagionale-di-energia-ter/

The researcher Silvia Ricciuti and the Head of Sustainable Area Diego Viesi are involved in the InCUBE Project, where they collaborates with the FBK Center 3DOM - 3D Optical Metrology.

Recently, the article "FROM 3D SURVEYING DATA TO BIM TO BEM: THE INCUBE DATASET" has been published on The International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences.

Abstract

In recent years, the improvement of sensors and methodologies for 3D reality-based surveying has exponentially enhanced the possibility of creating digital replicas of the real world. LiDAR technologies and photogrammetry are currently standard approaches for collecting 3D geometric information of indoor and outdoor environments at different scales. This information can potentially be part of a broader processing workflow that, starting from 3D surveyed data and through Building Information Models (BIM) generation, leads to more complex analyses of buildings’ features and behavior (Figure 1). However, creating BIM models, especially of historic and heritage assets (HBIM), is still resource-intensive and time-consuming due to the manual efforts required for data creation and enrichment. Improve 3D data processing, interoperability, and the automation of the BIM generation process are some of the trending research topics, and benchmark datasets are extremely helpful in evaluating newly developed algorithms and methodologies for these scopes. This paper introduces the InCUBE dataset, resulting from the activities of the recently funded EU InCUBE project, focused on unlocking the EU building renovation through integrated strategies and processes for efficient built-environment management (including the use of innovative renewable energy technologies and digitalization). The set of data collects raw and processed data produced for the Italian demo site in the Santa Chiara district of Trento (Italy). The diversity of the shared data enables multiple possible uses, investigations and developments, and some of them are presented in this contribution.

DOI: 10.5194/isprs-archives-XLVIII-1-W3-2023-175-2023

Citation: Roman, O., Farella, E. M., Rigon, S., Remondino, F., Ricciuti, S., and Viesi, D.: FROM 3D SURVEYING DATA TO BIM TO BEM: THE INCUBE DATASET, Int. Arch. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci., XLVIII-1/W3-2023, 175–182, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLVIII-1-W3-2023-175-2023, 2023.

Link: https://isprs-archives.copernicus.org/articles/XLVIII-1-W3-2023/175/2023/ 

Last week, on the 29th and 30th of November, Adriano Li Matzumura travelled to Barcelona (Spain) to attend the General Assembly of the JIVE and JIVE 2 projects.

The projects involve the implementation of Fuel Cell Electric Battery Buses (FCEBs) and currently have 298 FCEBs in operation in 16 European cities in 6 countries.

Participants had the opportunity to travel on one of Caetano's FCEBs operating in the city and visit the Hydrogen Refuelling Station (HRS) operated by Iberdrola. The station is used to refuel FCEBs and heavy duty mobility, it has a 2.5 MW electrolyzer on site that produces the hydrogen. 

The Fondazione Bruno Kessler, through the Centre for Sustainable Energy, as a partner in the project responsible for collecting data on the perception and satisfaction of the various stakeholders, presented the progress made in recent months. A preliminary analysis was presented showing data on bus users from over 3,700 responses collected in the City of London. 

During the meeting, all partners gave updates on the current status of their city's deployment, the difficulties they are facing, how other cities are solving these problems and possible opportunities for further deployment of more FCEBs.

Recently, the project received the Best Outreach Award from the Clean Hydrogen Partnership. The Award recognises project consortia that communicate their work to the public using a creative, well-planned campaign.

More information here: https://www.clean-hydrogen.europa.eu/media/news/clean-hydrogen-partnership-awards-2023-celebrate-excellence-and-innovation-2023-11-24_en 

WIVA P&G annual event took place on November 27, 2023 at the Tabakfabrik in Linz (Austria).

WIVA P&G is an association for funding the research and development in the fields of application, net and storage technologies for hydrogen and renewable gases. 

For the further development of the European and the Austrian energy system, an increased integration and implementation of renewable hydrogen and hydrocarbons generated from it, such as methane, is required for a variety of ecological and economic reasons. As a central energy storage region, a hub in energy transport and an important location for renewable energy sources, Austria is ideally suited as an energy showcase region. Within the framework of the WIVA P&G association, an overarching overall concept is being developed that shows how existing and future projects can be networked.

The association coordinates the projects of the flagship region “Wasserstoffinitiative Vorzeigeregion Austria Power & Gas” (WIVA P&G). This allows to explore and display the whole value chain of the flagship region.

At the WIVA P&G annual event, Luigi Crema outlined the role of research in developing a European hydrogen value chain.

Lately, WIVA P&G has been awarded as one of the three European H2 Valley of the Year for their outstanding efforts to develop integrated systems of hydrogen production, supply, storage and use in multiple sectors. The other two awarded Hydrogen Valleys were Hydrogen Hub Noord-Holland and Green Hysland on Mallorca, Spain.

More information at https://www.wiva.at/event/save-the-date-wiva-pg-jahresveranstaltung-2023/?lang=en 

News on the Award: https://www.clean-hydrogen.europa.eu/media/news/clean-hydrogen-partnership-awards-2023-celebrate-excellence-and-innovation-2023-11-24_en 

From 22 to 24 November, Fondazione Bruno Kessler - FBK was in Milan for the SISC (Società Italiana per le Scienze del Clima) 11th Annual Conference, presenting the hashtag #NEVERMOREProject.

The conference, titled "Mission Adaptation! Managing the risk and building resilience", at Regione Lombardia premises, was organised in collaboration with Fondazione Lombardia per l’Ambiente and CMCC Centro Euro-Mediterraneo sui Cambiamenti Climatici.

The SISC conference aims to bring together leading scientists, researchers, economists, practitioners, business leaders, and policymakers, serving as an interdisciplinary platform for new advances and research results in the fields of science and management of climate change.

On Friday 24, Sara Stemberger - researcher at the Center Sustainable Energy at Fondazione Bruno Kessler - delved into the NEVERMORE project with a presentation on the Trentino Case Study and its impactful activities, within the session titled "Preliminary steps in co-design for climate change adaptation and mitigation tools in the tourism sector: a case study in the NEVERMORE project."

For more information, have a look at the programme here: https://files.sisclima.it/sisc2023_preliminary-programme.pdf?

Elena Crespi, a researcher with Fondazione Bruno Kessler‘s  Center for Sustainable Energy (SE), was awarded the 2023 Young Scientist Award by Hydrogen Europe Research, an international organisation that includes 150 universities and research centers from 29 countries.

The award ceremony took place on November 22, in Brussels, during Hydrogen Week, the main European event in the field of hydrogen, which hit its fourth edition this year.

The award was established to give visibility to the work of students, doctoral students, postdocs and young (under 35) researchers working within the Clean Hydrogen Partnership, a European initiative to reduce greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere.

The categories of the award are four, including the one dedicated to research in the field of Hydrogen usages, in which the FBK researcher excelled.

Dr. Crespi has carried out research and contributed to several European projects related to the use and production of hydrogen and is currently following, with the SE group at FBK, activities within the PROMETEO and SWITCH projects (the latter recently awarded the Energy Globe Award).

“I am very happy,” Elena Crespi said, “that my research work has received this recognition from Hydrogen Europe Research. I would like to thank the GECOS group at Politecnico di Milano, and in particular professors Giulio Guandalini and Stefano Campanari, with whom I became passionate about hydrogen research, following interesting European projects. And I thank the FBK SE center, directed by Luigi Crema, where in the last two years I have been able to contribute, within a very united and close-knit team, to important research projects on the use and production of renewable hydrogen.”

“As president of Hydrogen Europe Research,” said Luigi Crema, “I consider this award an important event to enhance our young people and their contributions in research. The evaluation process involves the entire European Association Board and ensures impartiality of decision. As Director of the SE FBK Center, I am very grateful to my collaborators for their commitment, which has received important awards over the years, including those in 2020 with Matteo Testi and 2022 with Michele Bolognese, in addition to this year’s award with Elena Crespi. It is a great satisfaction for the Center and for the entire Foundation”.

The winners of the other categories were:

Hydrogen Production Pillar: Drialys Cardenas Morcoso (Luxemburg Institute of Science and Technology – LIST)

Hydrogen Storage and Distribution Pillar: Tom Depover (Ghent University)

Cross Cutting Pillar: Sergii Kashkarov (Ulster University)

Best Researcher of the Year: Giovanni Di Ilio (University of Naples Parthenope)

Listen to Elena Crespi's interview: https://youtu.be/ZMWvGjXfWtY?feature=shared

Last week, on 15-16 November, the EU Hydrogen Research Days took place online.

Initiated in 2011, this annual appointment held in autumn presents the progress of the portfolio of hydrogen relevant projects funded by the Clean Hydrogen JU and its predecessors, as well as other EU research programmes, identifying key achievements but also potential areas to be addressed or reinforced in subsequent years.

The initiative also provides an excellent visibility platform for projects and technological developments achieved in the sector and provides networking opportunities for the participants while facilitating the exchange of ideas and best practices. Furthermore, a number of awards have been introduced to highlight and celebrate annually the results of collaboration between research, industry and policy makers, and projects achievements: 

• The European H2 Valley Award 

• The Best Success Story Award 

• The Best Outreach Award 

• The Best Innovation Awards

The winners will be communicated during the EU Hydrogen Week, which will take place in Brussels from 20 to 24 November 2023. 

Luigi Crema, Director of the Center SE and President of Hydrogen Europe Research, participated in two important moment of the event: the opening and closing sessions. 

Have a look at the agenda here: https://www.clean-hydrogen.europa.eu/system/files/2023-11/PRD23%20Agenda_publishable_v10.pdf 

.. and at the project factsheets: https://www.clean-hydrogen.europa.eu/european-hydrogen-week/european-hydrogen-week-2023/european-hydrogen-week-2023-about-our-projects_en 

The recording of the EU Hydrogen Research Days will be soon available on the Clean Hydrogen Partnership website and Youtube channel. 

Today, Edoardo G. Macchi - Head of Battery Technologies Area at the Center SE, participated as panelist in the LIVE session "Implementing the Critical Materials Act for the EU battery ecosystem" of Battery Innovation Days 2023.

Batteries are crucial to the enabling of technology that will allow the EU to achieve its zero-emissions goals through a responsible and sustainable market. This 2-day event gathered research community, policymakers, industry players and end-users to boost battery research and innovation in Europe.
Result of the collaboration between the platform Batteries Europe, the European research initiative Battery 2030+, the Batteries European Partnership Association - BEPA, and IPCEI, BID aims to increase knowledge and encourage exchange around the deployment of cutting-edge technologies in battery materials, cell design, manufacturing and recycling.

The panel saw the participation of

• Fabrice Stassin (Director Government Affairs Electromobility Projects at Umicore)
  TOPIC: "A truly sustainable battery is one that functions effectively, is affordable and leaves the minimum negative footprint both on #environment & society"

•  Emmanuelle Robins-Ouagne (Project leader – Europe and International, Pôle AVENIA)
  TOPIC: "Let's not forget training. You need workers that take sustainability into the field and citizens who demand it at every level"

• Edoardo Macchi on "recycling vs long lifetime? It's not a zero sum question but to explore the best balance"

Read more about the event and check the agenda at this link: https://clerens.eu/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/BID-Conference-Brochure_Web.pdf

Source: https://www.accelevents.com/e/battery-innovation-days-2023 

The Global Manufacturing and Industrialisation Summit (GMIS) is the world’s first cross-industrial and crossfunctional platform that offers a voice and venue for leaders to transform manufacturing and utilise technology as a tool for global cooperation and collaboration to encourage greater investment in capabilities, foster innovation and drive global skills development. Co-chaired by the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) and the United Arab Emirates, GMIS aim to discuss, debate and shape the future of the manufacturing sector and place manufacturing at the heart of economic regeneration and government policymaking.

Luigi Crema - as President of HER - participated in the event GMIS Connect Roadshow "Powering Sustainable Manufacturing: The Rise of Green Hydrogen" that took place today in Trieste.

The agenda saw the presence of influential delegates from the global manufacturing and technology communities, including leaders from governments, expert industry CEOs and specialist researchers and academics. 

Crema participated in 1 panel discussion and moderated 1 roundtable.

The panel was entitled and focused on Government Policies and Regulations for Green Hydrogen in Manufacturing and Services. The roundtable regarded The Role of the Research in the NAHV Ecosystem. 

Read more about the event and check the agenda at this link: https://gmisummit.com/pdfs/GMIS_Trieste%202023_Conference_Programme.pdf 

Source: https://gmisummit.com/

On November 8, 2023, Luigi Crema participated in the Conference #ReskillEU - new jobs for energy and transport in Europe.

The one-day event organised by the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) and DG Research & Innovation (DG RTD, European Commission) aimed to discuss the need for new skills in the areas of clean energy and transport focusing on skills development through R&I activities. Horizon Europe supports skills development to make the EU's green and digital transitions successful, in line with the objectives set in the European Skills Agenda for 2025 and against the background of the European Year of Skills.

In the energy domain, the EU renewables sector today needs over 1.2 million skilled workers, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency, this will lead to an enormous demand for EU action to ensure the required skills. The numbers are expected to increase annually until 2050. Research and innovation also plays a central role in developing new skills in the energy sector.

The transport sector now employs over 15 million people in the EU. This sector is rapidly evolving, changing, and being influenced greatly by the development of automation, electrification and greening of transport. The full decarbonisation of the transport sector can only be successful if this goes hand in hand with a workforce that has the right skillset.

The conference brought together relevant stakeholders, notably civil society organisations, education networks, academia, industry, research organisations and European institutions to discuss the contribution of research and innovation activities to the skills agenda for Europe. 

Luigi Crema, Director of the Center SE and President of HER, was invited to participate in the panel on Sustainable Energy, and discuss with Arthur Daemers (Policy Advisor, SolarPower Europe), Abderrahim Al Mazouzi (Senior Researcher, Électricité de France/EDF) and Marco Gervasi ("Energy Transition Careers Compass" COP28 Task Force, European Youth Energy Network – EYEN).

Hava look at the recording at this link, and at the the presentations here.

Source of information: https://www.eesc.europa.eu/en/agenda/our-events/events/conference-reskilleu-new-jobs-energy-and-transport-europe/programme 

A new meeting for the Italian Local Council of NEVERMORE Project.

The objective of the event of the NEVERMORE's Local Council in Trentino has been to better understand aspects of hazards, risks and vulnerabilities of the Case Study in relation to tourism, outlining a picture of the affected and most exposed assets. 

In particular the work organized with local stakeholders focused on vulnerable elements of the territory such as social groups, environmental elements or geographic areas, vulnerable sectors of the economy, structures and infrastructures exposed to 3 particular hazards: increase of average temperatures, droughts and extreme events particularly heavy rainfall.

15 stakeholders participated to the discussion tables organized at the Museum of Natural Science - MUSE in Trento.

The meeting has been organised by the Autonomous Province of Trento - Tourism and Sport Service in collaboration with the Case Study Supporters Sara Stemberger and Diego Viesi, from the Center for Sustainable Energy of FBK, with the colleagues of the FBK Center Digital Society (DIGIS).

More information on the project: https://www.nevermore-horizon.eu/ 

The award was assigned by the Austria Trade Consul, Christoph Plank.

The renowned award for sustainability was bestowed last 2nd November by the Trade Consul of Austria, Christoph Plank, to the director of the FBK Sustainable Energy Center, Luigi Crema and to the project coordinator, Matteo Testi. 

“This award”, highlighted Luigi Crema, “is an acknowledgement to the commitment of our researchers and innovators and adds value to our local collaboration with the company SolydEra. We wish to thank the European program of the Clean Hydrogen Partnership for funding with European funds the SWITCH project”.

Coordinated by the FBK researcher Matteo Testi, SWITCH is a Horizon 2020 European project aiming to develop a prototype of an innovative system for hydrogen production, based on the solid-oxide cell technology.

“The SWITCH system”, explains Matteo Testi, “is going to be a technology for hydrogen production designed for refueling stations but also for any industrial user interested in decarbonizing processes guaranteeing at the same time their continuity. The innovation of the SWITCH concept is the production of hydrogen both through electrolysis by renewable resources and through low-Co2-emission processes, guaranteeing supply, as much renewable as possible, and producing also electricity and heat.”  

Smart Ways for In-Situ Totally Integrated and Continuous Multisource Generation of Hydrogen: the project

The heart of the technology will be a reversible solid oxide cell (SOC) that operates in two ways: electrolysis (SOE) and fuel cell (SOFC). In the SOE mode, the SWITCH system will use electricity generated from renewable sources to produce green hydrogen. Through electrolysis, renewable electricity will be used to split water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen. The SOFC mode power supply can be natural gas or biomethane.

By offering a cost-effective and continuous supply of H2 to hydrogen refueling stations, the SWITCH system aims to become a key technology for the transition to a carbon-neutral energy and mobility system in Europe, with crucial consequences for people’s health and improved infrastructure.

The Energy Globe Award

With more than 180 participating countries, the Energy Globe Award is defined as the most prestigious environmental award internationally. It is awarded annually to environmental protection, sustainable projects or sustainability awareness campaigns.

The award at the national level qualifies for participation in the international award to be decided in the coming months.

This project was funded by Fuel Cells and Hydrogen 2 Joint Undertaking (now Clean Hydrogen Partnership) with the Subsidy agreement n. 875148. This partnership receives the support of the Horizon 2020 research and innovation program of the European Union, of Hydrogen Europe and of Hydrogen Europe Research.

Read the article in Italian: https://magazine.fbk.eu/it/news/il-progetto-switch-vince-lenergy-globe-award-2023-per-litalia/

On 11-12 October 2023, the event "Green Hydrogen Generation, Transport And Application: German-Italian Perspectives On The Energy Transition And Hydrogen Economy" took place at the Turbinenhalle Berlin, in Germany. 

On the first day, attention was drawn on the National Hydrogen Strategies in Germany and Italy, about their status quo, the future demand and usage and how to go further with e. g. their hydrogen flagship projects or hydrogen valleys. 

Luigi Crema, Director of the Center SE and Vice-President of the Italian Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Association - H2IT participated in the subsequent panel discussion on the topic "From the Mediterranean to Southern Germany - A Future Hydrogen Corridor" with  

• Mr Mansmann, Innovation Commissioner for Green Hydrogen - Federal Ministry of Education and Research - BMBF

• Mr Langham - cruh21 GmbH, coordinator of TransHyDE

• Mr Lualdi - Decarbonization Project Unit at Società Nazionale Metanodotti -SNAM

• Ms Bien - Senior Manager Energy and Climate Policy at Federation of German Industries

• Mr Winkler - Area Manager Hydrogen Infrastructure at HyCentA Research GmbH.

The debate can be summed up with the following statements:

1. Green hydrogen from non-EU countries is crucial and the establishment of a European hydrogen economy and a southern hydrogen corridor is necessary. 

2. Austria should not only be seen as a transit state, but also for storage and generation. 

3. A stable demand for hydrogen has to be created for suppliers and hydrogen valleys and gas pipeline networks have to be realised. 

4. Overall, it is essential that green hydrogen becomes acommodity that it is cheap and abundantly available, and that acceptance by society and the public is increased.

The second day was devoted to the green hydrogen value chain and accompanying research needs. Three working groups discussed the challenges and opportunities of production, transport and use of green hydrogen.

Read the press release the message of the Ministry of University and Research (MUR): https://www.mur.gov.it/it/news/mercoledi-11102023/ricerca-bernini-rafforzata-la-cooperazione-scientifica-con-la-germania 

The Center of Sustainable Energy launches a new initiative! A series of videos with researchers who conduct research and development activities in collaboration with industry, academia and public institutions in the energy sector.

The EU aims to become climate neutral - an economy with net zero greenhouse gas emissions – by 2050.  This goal is at the heart of the European Green Deal and in line with the EU’s commitment to global climate action under the Paris Agreement. The transition to a climate-neutral society is both an urgent challenge and an opportunity to build a better future for all. All parts of society and economic sectors will play a role, from the energy sector to industry, mobility, buildings, agriculture and forestry. The EU can lead the way by investing in realistic technological solutions, empowering citizens and aligning actions in key areas such as industrial policy, finance and research, while ensuring social equity for a fair transition.

In this context, the Sustainable Energy research center (FBK SE) promotes the efficient and effective implementation of innovative energy solutions. The underlying belief is that this will help balance our ecological footprint and ensure a sustainable future for the next generations.

To move in this direction, investment in research and innovation is crucial. At the same time, since these are major social and infrastructural changes, they will only be possible if there are broad collaborations, system-wide actions and transformations of production chains.

FBK-SE aims in particular to support the development of low-carbon and zero-emission solutions for energy production, distribution, and storage that will minimize environmental impacts and improve climate resilience. To this end, SE provides its know-how, expertise, and facilities in the field of energy to help develop new methods, models, and technologies that can improve the efficiency and flexibility of energy systems in a sustainable and cost-effective manner.

The big challenge of decarbonization is not an impossible task as long as there is a convergence of extensive knowledge and experience, all united by a single common goal: sustainable energy. To move in this direction of change, it is essential to explore the fields of specialization in depth and follow their developments over time. We met with the center’s researchers to have them tell us what they are dealing with in practice, what contribution they are making to the ongoing green transition and the opportunities for collaboration that are opening up.

Francesca Panaccione and Davide Ragaglia are part of the Hydrogen Technology work area.

In her interview, Francesca Panaccione provides an overview of the main aspects related to hydrogen production, focusing on the importance of reducing the environmental impact generated by electrolyzer technologies.
For this purpose, the Life Cycle Assessment is a very important tool to assess this impact and AEM electrolysers seem to be a promising solution to have a fully sustainable and green hydrogen.

Davide Ragaglia‘s research mainly focuses on the implementation of control strategies for complex hydrogen systems, on the control system architecture, starting from a preliminary validation of PFDs and P&IDs, and on the definition of appropriate alarm machines, state machines and control loops. In this regard, control strategies have been developed for the European projects Prometheus, Switch and Hycare, to integrate and efficiently operate different hydrogen systems and respond to different end uses.

William Morais conducts research and development on battery storage technologies (redox flow and next generation battery chemistry). In his testimony, William provides an overview of the importance of battery research, summarizing current challenges. He also explains FBK-SE’s approach to the development of these technologies, its guidelines and European support for the IPCEIproject.

“The spotlights aim to touch on how much research contributes to solving open challenges about our future, with the specific contributions of individual researchers and innovators. We give voice and image to our collaborators, who with so much commitment and the best of their skills, put our projects, our collaborations in the open challenge of the energy transition, with passion and with dedication.” – Luigi Crema, Sustainable Energy (FBK SE) Director

Read the entire article in English: https://magazine.fbk.eu/en/news/the-faces-of-sustainable-energy/ 

Read the entire article in Italian: https://magazine.fbk.eu/it/news/i-volti-dellenergia-sostenibile/

Have a look at the video playlist, at this link.

The researchers Mohsen Shiea, Mattia Duranti and Edoardo G. Macchi participated in the General Assembly of the project FREE4LIB - Feasible REcovery of critical raw materials through a new circular Ecosystem FOR a Li-ion Battery cross-value chain in europe. 

The meeting took place on the 24th and 25th of October, in Brussels. This annual event gathers partners  and will host presentations, workshops and interactive sessions that currently engage all the Consortium team.

FREE4LIB is a Horizon Europe project with an consortium of 22 partners involved in the battery value-chain. This project aims to develop technologies to create new sustainable and efficient processes for the recycling of end-of-life lithium ion batteries (EOL LIBs), providing innovative recycling solutions for efficient recovery of materials in order to improve the availability of secondary resources at European level. FREE4LIB will also develop a Battery Passport methodology to improve traceability. Finally, second-life batteries and new batteries produced from recycled materials will be made to validate the developed technologies. 

Within the project, FBK - through the Sustainable Energy Center - is responsible for the Work Package 2 entitled "EOL LIBs Collection and Characterisation, Digital Tools and Battery Passports deployment" which focuses on activities relating to the characterization of EOL cells and materials, and to the modeling of cells and recovery processes. Furthermore, FBK deals with electrochemical tests and material analysis of lithium-ion batteries, develops electrochemical models for lithium-ion batteries and models for recycling processes for end-of-life lithium-ion batteries (EOL LIBs).

Read more about the project: https://www.freeforlib.eu/

The Clean Energy Transition Partnership is a initiative co-funded by the European Union that brings together public and private stakeholders in the research and innovation ecosystems, from European and non-European countries and regions. CET Partnership aims to foster transnational innovation ecosystems and overcome a fragmented research and innovation landscape. 

Today start the 2-day annual conference, which will be held online and consist of panels, workshops, talks and a policy conference where participants will learn about RDI projects, and identify how the CETPartnership can contribute to the urgent topic of Sustainable Supply Chains for the Energy Sector.

Luigi Crema, Director of the Center SE and President of HER, has been invited to participate in the panel discussion "CETPartnership: Cooperating in Europe and beyond: on common challenges, approaches and cooperative RDI ways forward". The discussion sees the participation of representatives of EU institutions, international agencies, industries and research Institutes:

• Rosalinde van der Vlies, European Commission, Directorate-General Research and Innovation, Director for Clean Planet

• Philippe Jacques, Energy Material Industrial Research Initiative (EMIRI) and Battery European Partnership Association (BEPA)

• Tae-Yoon Kim, International Energy Agency

• Dr. Paula Kivimaa, Finnish Environment Institute Syke

• Dr. Luigi Crema, Fondazione Bruno Kessler, President European Hydrogen Research

• Jochen Kreusel, Hitachi Energy, President T&D Europe

• Michael Hübner, Coordinator of CETPartnership

Read more about the event: https://www.cetpartnership.eu/cetpartnership-annual-conference-journey-future 

Hydrogen Energy Summit & Expo is the main Italian initiative focus on the new technologies for the production, transportation and storage of hydrogen. 

The event took place from 11 to 13 October 2023 in Bologna and presented a rich programme of seminars, workshops and panels.  

Our Director Luigi Crema was invited as Vice President of H2IT and President of HER in the panel "FROM ZERO TO HERO - Asset building and development opportunities for Italy in the context of international hydrogen financing".

Luigi Crema discussed with Giorgio Graditi (ENEA) and Marcello Capra (SET Plan MASE) about the different funding tools currently available to support hydrogen initiatives.

IPCEI, Horizon Europe and the Clean Hydrogen Partnership, Innovation fund, Mission Innovation and Hydrogen Bank are just some of the funding initiatives aimed at supporting the development of the hydrogen carrier and the related supply chain; reinforced by the instruments put in place by member countries (such as those related to the PNRR) they represent an important set of tools to subsidize all stages of project development. Start from the already funded projects to highlight the assets we can count on and at the same time understand the spaces for action on the European (and international) instruments available to fill the gaps and fully develop Italy's international competitiveness potential on hydrogen.

Check the programme: https://www.hese.it/en/Programme/Institutional-programme 

Panel information (in Italian) at this link.

After 10 years, the Electrochemical Society (ECS) returned to Europe for its first biannual meeting. 

This Symposium brings together scientists, engineers, and researchers from academia, industry, and government laboratories to share results advancing theory and practice at the forefront of electrochemical and solid state science and technology.

Mattia Duranti and William Gomes de Morais, researchers of the Battery Technologies Area of the Center for Sustainable Energy, participated with two poster presentations in the 244th ECS Meeting which is taking place in these days in Gothenburg, Sweden.

On Monday 9 October, Mattia Duranti presented the work entitled "Effect of Glycine on a Fe-Based Electrolyte for Redox Flow Batteries". 

This research investigates an optimized pH-neutral catholyte for Zinc-Iron RFBs, focusing on the use of Glycine to avoid Iron-induced hydrolysis. The study is carried out on highly concentrated solutions of Iron chlorides, with the addition of Glycine as ligand at various concentrations. The aim is to preserve the performances of Fe(II)/Fe(III) kinetics and to avoid insoluble hydroxides formation by an accurate choice of the Gly-Fe ratio. 

William Morais' poster focused on the "Electrochemical Characterization of Stable Cu(II)/Cu(I) Electrolytes for Redox Flow Battery". 

In this study, the effect of the copper-chloride complexes used to stabilize electrolytes for CuRFB was investigated, as well as the influence of secondary cations from the supporting electrolyte, e.g., Ca2+, K+, H+. Different solutions with Cu:Cl ratio varying from 1:4 to 1:9 were characterized by physical-chemical and electrochemical methods. 

Both works are done in the framework of the IPCEI European Battery Innovation.

More information on the event:  https://www.electrochem.org/244 

From 4 to 6 October 2023, Trieste hosted the Barcolana Sea Summit in occasion of the Barcolana55, the largest sailing race in the world.

The Summit encompassed three days of discussions, addressing both general and local topics: from the need for transnational agreements and actions, such as the Mediterranean "bioregion", to the commitment to create a new generation of specialists and technicians capable of influencing and governing industrial and economic processes, prioritizing the environment, from territorial control to the latest frontiers of technology, with particular attention to hydrogen and the delicate issue of dredging.

On Thursday the 5th of October 2023, Luigi Crema participated in the panel "NAHV North Adriatic Hydrogen Valley. Idrogeno: nuove opportiunità senza frontiere" as President of Hydrogen Europe Research. 

With Crema, on stage there were Cristian Fabbri (Gruppo Hera), Zeno D’Agostino (Autorità di Sistema Portuale del Mare Adriatico Orientale / ESPO), Massimo Canali (Difesa dell’Ambiente, Energia e sviluppo sostenibile – Regione FVG) and Giorgio Graditi (ENEA). The panel has been the occasion to discuss this new energy opportunity among representatives of the economic, academic and institutional world.

More information on: https://www.barcolana.it/en/barcolana-sea-summit and the programme, at this link.

Read the article on Il Piccolo: https://ilpiccolo.gelocal.it/trieste/cronaca/2023/10/06/news/polo_idrogeno_trieste_bando-13679342/

Last 3 October, the first Italian hydrogen train has been presented during the event Expo Ferroviaria 2023 in Milan. 

The train has been realised by Alstom, leading global company in the field of sustainable mobility. 

The researchers of the Center for Sustainable Energy of FBK were present at the presentation ceremony which took place in the presence of the Italian Institutions as the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport Matteo Salvini, the Undersecretary to the Presidency of the Council of Ministers Alessandro Morelli, and the CEOs of the three companies involved in the project: Alstom, FNM and Trenord.

The Center SE provided support in the process of engineering review for the realization of the innovative train, which will start working between the end of 2024 and the beginning 2025 along the not electrified line Brescia - Iseo - Edolo, in the context of the project H2iseO that aims to realise the first hydrogen valley in Lombardy.

Read more about the event in this article (in Italian): https://hydronews.it/i-treni-a-idrogeno-diventano-realta-anche-in-italia-alstom-ha-presentato-a-milano-il-primo-coradia-stream-destinato-alla-valcamonica/ 

On October 4, the second project meeting of the AMETHyST project took place in Innsbruck hosted by the Project Partner Standortagentur Tirol GmbH.

During the meeting, each partner gave un update on the development of the activities.

Eleonora Cordioli, researcher at the Center for Sustainable Energy and leader of the first work package of the project, showed the results of the two questionnaires sent to different stakeholders located in the Alpine region. The first questionnaire aimed at assessing the knowledge on the final uses, the technologies and regulations in the field of hydrogen as well as gathering the perception of the stakeholders on the priority and barriers for the successful deployment of hydrogen in the Alpine context. 

The second questionnaire, instead, had the purpose to collect information on the hydrogen projects and initiatives that are already in place in different regions of the Alps. As explained by Sara Stemberger, researcher in the Sustainable Territories area of the Center, one of the main goals of the project is the development of a map and a platform that should gather in a single virtual place all information regarding the projects and technologies in the Alpine region related to hydrogen. 

Ilaria Alberti, Knowledge Manager at the Center SE, underlined the need to show the platform and the results achieved during the Mid-term Conference expected for October 2024, in Trento.

The project meeting continued on October 4, with a roundtable organised by Agenzia CasaClima which stimulated high interest and saw the participation of numerous stakeholders. The event concluded with the site visit to MPREIS in Völs, with its electrolyzer and hydrogen refueling station for logistic trucks installed within the Demo4Grid project, presented by the Green Energy Center team.

See the streaming of the roundtable, at this link.

FBK is an Associated Partner of the project IPCEI European Battery Innovation (EuBatIn).

IPCEI is the abbreviation of „Important Project of Common European Interest“. It’s a transnational project with an important contribution to the growth, employment and competitiveness of the European Union industry and economy funded by state aid.

A two-part IPCEI has been implemented to promote battery production: the IPCEI on Batteries and the EuBatIn. Both IPCEIs have in common that their participants represent the complete value chain, from material through the cells to the battery system and the final step of recycling. At the same time, there is a high degree of networking between the companies themselves and the two IPCEIs.

Last week, from 27 to 29 September, the German coordination team for IPCEI EuBatIn and the Austrian IPCEI EuBatIn organised in Vienna the EuBatIn Vienna Networking Days.

The three-day event targeted different stakeholders and to each of them a day was dedicated. Edoardo Macchi, Head of Battery Technologies area at the FBK Center SE, participated in the third day where the Matchmaking event took place.

Matchmaking is a networking event that offer a convenient and efficient method to connect with potential partners for collaboration.

More information on the event: https://ipcei-eubatin-vienna-networking-days3.aws.b2match.io/ 

More information on IPCEI Batteries: http://ipcei-batteries.eu/

The long-awaited start of the North Adriatic Hydrogen Valley (NAHV) is here at last. The first transnational initiative of this kind under the Horizon Europe programme, supported by the Clean Hydrogen Partnership, is being launched in Portorož-Portorose, Slovenia. [...]

Beginning on 1st September 2023, the NAHV will run for 72 months. It includes 17 pilots to be developed in different locations in all three partner countries. The partnership, which has been awarded a grant of €25 million by Clean Hydrogen Partnership, and is led by HSE, Slovenia’s largest electricity producer and trader and the largest producer of electricity from renewable sources, includes 37 organisations: companies, universities, institutes and other public entities from the three participating countries. The project design covers the entire value chain of renewable hydrogen use, from production, through storage and distribution, to its end use in various sectors, notably industry and land and maritime transport, creating leverage to accelerate the transition to renewables on three target pillars: hard-to-abate industries, and the energy and transport sectors. These are the main reasons why the NAHV has received the Seal of Excellence, which is awarded under Horizon Europe to projects that have been highly rated. [...]

The key aim of the initiative is to create a market for green hydrogen on both the demand and supply sides, making it a competitive energy source for the future. Key industry players from all three countries will develop pilot projects to produce up to 5,000 tonnes of renewable hydrogen per year from renewable energy sources, destined for energy storage, distribution and use. It is expected that some 20% of the produced renewable hydrogen will be exchanged between the participating countries, thus creating a primary regional market for hydrogen. [...]

Fondazione Bruno Kessler as partner in the project, will be in charge of several activities such as the safety plan, the modelling of the digital twin of H2 valley and definition for a certification scheme for the green H2 guarantees of origin.
FBK will assist the project and project partners in identifying hazards and associated risks, in prevention and/or mitigation of them through a proper safety plan, in implementing the safety plan, and reporting safety related events.
A high-level model of the H2 valley digital twin will be developed by FBK with other scientific partners, including all connections, handling, and transport of H2 between production and consumption site, as well as the input/output to connect the single plant's models, developed by an industrial partner and the universities involved in the task.
Furthermore, FBK will coordinate the development and establishment of the renewable hydrogen certification scheme in the context of H2 valley (NAHV), managing the contact with issuing body and the industrial partners, that will allow making autonomous any production and consumer plant. Finally, FBK will be responsible of the activities related to exploitation and replication of the results. 

“FBK is enthusiastic about taking part in this H2 Valley that gathers together Italy, Croatia and Slovenia” outlines Matteo Testi, Head of Hydrogen Technologies Area at the Center SE and reference of the NAHV Project for FBK, and continues “FBK will be actively involved and in charge of different aspects of the project: the development of the H2 Valley digital Twin, the conceptualisation and implementation of the safety plan, the definition of a guarantee scheme related to the origin of the produced and distributed hydrogen, and finally, the exploitation of the project results and the replication of NAHV in other territories”.

Luigi Crema, Director of the Center for Sustainable Energy at Fondazione Bruno Kessler stated that “Hydrogen Valleys are the pathway indicated by the European Commission to develop local hydrogen ecosystems. The Hydrogen valleys are complementary to the development of the enabling infrastructures on a continental scale. They create a first market and expand the supply chain development. As FBK, we are deeply involved and highly motivated to support hydrogen valley projects through the participation in numerous European and national initiatives, where the NAHV is example of excellence.”

Read the entire press release, in English: https://magazine.fbk.eu/en/news/north-adriatic-hydrogen-valley-launches-in-portoroz/ 

Read the entire press release, in Italian: https://magazine.fbk.eu/it/news/north-adriatic-hydrogen-valley-launches-in-portoroz/ 

More information on: https://www.nahv.eu/

Last Friday, 29 September 2023, the well-know annual event "The Night of Research" took place at MUSE - Museo delle Scienze, from 5 to 11PM. 

Promoted by the European Commission, this initiative has become an unmissable appointment where citizens of all ages can see science with their own eyes and meet the researchers of Trento University, Fondazione Edmund Mach and Fondazione Bruno Kessler.

The researchers of the Center for Sustainable Energy participated in the event as well showing the activities they are carrying out in the field of energy from different angles: innovations in the sectors of hydrogen and batteries technologies, as well as project in the field of energy efficiecy and community involvement.

Read more about the event here (in Italian): https://www.fbk.eu/it/press-releases/la-scienza-illumina-trento/ 

The Associazione Italiana Pressure Equipement (AIPE) is a non profit organization representing the Italian manufacturers operating in the Pressure Equipment sector and its related industries. The aim of AIPE is to promote the technological, scientific and economic development of its member companies by sharing resources and information in order to face in a fast and effective way the main issues for the Pressure Equipment manufacturers category, not only at local level but following an international point of view.

On the 29th of September 2023, AIPE organised the Congress entitled "Idrogeno. Technologies e prospettive di un nuovo mercato" to explore the innovations and opportunities in the hydrogen sector. 

Luigi Crema was among the invited speakers. The Director of the Center SE made the presentation "La prospettiva di sviluppo del mercato idrogeno in Europa: opportunità, sfide e barriere" where he presented the opportunities, challenges and obstacles for the hydrogen market development in Europe both from a wide and strategic point of view, as President of Hydrogen Europe Research, but also from a national and technological perspective as Director of the Center SE. 

Read more about the event here: https://www.aipe.it/en/idrogeno-tecnologie-e-prospettive-di-un-nuovo-mercato-29-settembre-2023/ 

SOLAR2CHEM is an interdisciplinary European Training Network under Marie Skłodowska Curie Actions focused on photo(electro)chemical research, with the goal of filling the existing gap in the European industrial landscape in the area of solar chemicals production and usage in technical, economic and policy aspects.

From the 18th to 22nd of September 2023, the network organised the Solar2Chem conference in Terragona (Spain). The event entitled "From Sunlight to Fuels: uniting science and environmental responsability" targeted an audience of 150 people among professionals from academia, industry and policymakers, with topics ranging from experimental and theoretical (photo)catalysis, solar fuels production, materials and devices for energy conversion and policy frameworks.

The Director of the Center SE, Luigi Crema, was invited to the conference in two different roles: as plenary speaker and as a panelist. 

In his 45-minute presentation on "Hydrogen Europe Research and the priorities for the direct solar hydrogen production", Crema gave an overview on the challenges and key opportunities that surround the recent innovations of the hydrogen market.

Then, during the Solar Chemicals and Fuels Cluster Roundtable, the Director explained his perspective on public private partnership supporting research and innovation activities in hydrogen technologies in Europe.

For more information, check the programme on the conference website.

Read about Solar2Chem at this link. 

The awarded PhD thesis is entitled "Electrical grid balancing with fast-ramping Fuel Cell and electrolysis systems: analysis, modelling and optimization" and was carried out by the researcher Elena Crespi during her PhD at Politecnico di Milano, in the Group of Energy Convesion System (GECOS).

The thesis includes two main objectives. The first one is the evaluation and optimization of the dynamic performance of PEM electrolysis and fuel cell systems through numerical simulations and experimental simulations. The second objective is the assessment of the economic competitiveness of Power-to-Power systems for local energy storage or grid flexibility provision through a techno-economic optimization.

L'Associazione Italiana delle Macchine a fluido e dei sistemi per l'Energia e l'Ambiente - AIMSEA (the Italian Association of fluid machines and systems for energy and environment) is a no-profit association that aims to promote the scientific research related to fluid machines and systems for energy and environment, through the definition of strategies which are harmonised with the development perspectives of the field from a technical, economical and social point of view. 

More information on the AIMSEA website (in Italian), at this link.

Photos of the cerimony can be found on AIMSEA Facebook page.

ECOEMPOWER project officially started with the kick off meeting that was organized in Trento on September 19th and 20th, gathering the 10 partners of the consortium from Italy, France, Germany, Czech Republic and Greece. 

The project is financed by EU programme LIFE, and it aims at creating, in the 5 participating regions, a One Stop Shop (OSS) as a physical and virtual hub where citizens and stakeholders can access integrated services and digital tools for setting up energy communities. The OSS raises awareness about the benefits of collective energy initiatives, assists in project feasibility analysis, business model development and capacity building, and it fosters networking between energy communities, public authorities, and technology providers.

On the second day of the Kick off meeting, the consortium visited two of the three pilot sites selected by the Provincia Autonoma di Trento and part of the project: Valle dei Laghi and Villa Banale di Stenico (the third pilot site is Levico Terme).

Energy communities in Valle dei Laghi and Villa Banale di Stenico – yet to be legally created – will benefit from the services of the One Stop Shop to be created by the Provincia Autonoma di Trento and, thanks to their feedback, high level services will be created, that will be beneficial to all energy communities in Trentino. The same process will happen in the other 4 regions of the project, where every region will involve 3 pilot sites/energy communities that will test the services offered by the One Stop Shops.

This experience will then be valorized as a methodology and policy recommendations will be created to support regional One Stop Shops and energy communities in all Europe.

Fundamental for the project is the interdisciplinary consortium of 10partners coordinated by Fondazione Bruno Kessler, through the Centre for Sustainable Energy. In addition to FBK there are other 2 research centers such as Università degli Studi di Trento (Italy) and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Energie Environnement (France); five public bodies/association such as Provincia Autonoma di Trento (Italy), Association Centrales Villageoises (France), Energie-& Umweltzentrum Allgäu (Germany), Pražské společenství obnovitelné energie (Czech Republic) and PERIFEREIA STEREAS ELLADAS/Region of Central Greece (Greece) and renowned industrial partners as BAUM consult (Germany) and UBITECH Energy (Belgium).

For any information, please contact ECOEMPOWER project coordinator:

Diego Viesi, FBK | viesi@fbk.eu

Read the entire press release, in English: https://magazine.fbk.eu/en/news/ecoempower/ 

___________________________________________________________________________________________

Nuovo slancio alle comunità energetiche grazie al supporto del progetto LIFE ECOEMPOWER

Il Progetto ECOEMPOWER ha avuto ufficialmente inizio con il kick off meeting che si è tenuto a Trento nelle giornate del 19-20 settembre, riunendo i 10 partner del consorzio provenienti da Italia, Francia, Germania, Repubblica Ceca e Grecia. 

Il progetto è finanziato dal programma europeo LIFE, e mira a istituire, nelle cinque regioni partecipanti, degli One Stop Shop per la creazione e il sostegno alle comunità energetiche, sia costituite che in divenire. Questi OSS svilupperanno servizi non solo di assistenza tecnica, ma anche di supporto economico, finanziario, legale, nonché di comunicazione, coinvolgimento sociale e formazione.

Nella seconda giornata il consorzio di ECOEMPOWER ha visitato due dei tre pilot sites, individuati dalla Provincia Autonoma di Trento e parte integrante del progetto: Valle dei Laghi e Villa Banale di Stenico (il terzo sito è la comunità energetica di Levico Terme). Le comunità energetiche di Valle dei Laghi e Villa Banale- non formalmente costituite - beneficeranno dei servizi dello One Stop Shop che verrà creato dalla Provincia Autonoma di Trento, e grazie ai loro feedback sarà possibile creare un servizio di eccellenza di cui potranno usufruire tutte le comunità energetiche del Trentino. Lo stesso accadrà con le altre quattro regioni coinvolte nel progetto, dove ogni regione coinvolgerà 3 pilot sites/comunità energetiche che testeranno i servizi sviluppati dagli One Stop Shop creati grazie al progetto. Il consorzio, quindi, creerà sia delle linee guide che potranno essere seguite da tutti i futuri One Stop Shop europei, ma anche delle policy reccomendations per le istituzioni locali ed europei.

Fondamentale per il progetto è il consorzio interdisciplinare di 10 partners coordinati dalla Fondazione Bruno Kessler, attraverso il centro Sustainable Energy. Oltre a FBK, partecipano altri due centri di ricerca, come l’Università degli Studi di Trento (Italia) e Auvergne Rhone Alpes Energie Environment (Francia); 5 istituzioni pubbliche/associazioni territoriali come la Provincia Autonoma di Trento (Italia), Association Centrales Villageoises (Francia), Energie- & Umweltzentrum Allgäu (Germania), Pražské společenství obnovitelné energie (Czech Republic) and PERIFEREIA STEREAS ELLADAS/Region of Central Greece (Grecia) e importanti partner industriali come  BAUM consult (Germania) e UBITECH (Belgio).

Per maggiori informazioni sul progetto, di seguito i contatti del coordinatore:

Diego Viesi, FBK | viesi@fbk.eu

Read the entire press release, in Italian: https://magazine.fbk.eu/it/news/ecoempower/ 

Last week, Rome hosted the event NanoInnovation2023, Conference and Exhibition. 

Among the numerous topics of the event, a symposium was dedicated to the Important Projects of Common European Interest (IPCEIs), within the session IPCEI: the key role of Italy in the microelectronics, digital, health and energy large- scale EU industrial research projects.

These projects are EU large-scale industrial research initiatives, aiming to overcome important market or systemic failures in strategic value chains, to promote sustainability and competitiveness of the national and EU economy. 

Fondazione Bruno Kessler has a strong participation in several IPCEIs related to microelectronics, batteries, hydrogen and cloud. Edoardo G. Macchi gave a presentation on the IPCEIs on batteries entitled "Toward sustainable made in EU batteries: state of play of two IPCEI projects and Italy's position in the battery value chain".

The Head of Battery Technologies Area at the Center for Sustainable Energy gave an overview of the two large-scale projects that wish to promote a European battery value chain: IPCEI on Batteries (2019) and IPCEI EuBatIn (2021). Macchi also explained the overarching objectives and the differences between the two projects, and he also described the current situation of the European battery cell production. 

Edoardo Macchi concluded the presentation summarising the status and perspectives of the batteries chain: the IPCEI boosted the establishment of a solid EU Battery ecosystem and industry through the creation of synergies between companies working along the battery value chain. However, the competitiveness of the EU battery ecosystem is currently at risk. Simplifying permitting procedures and increasing the specialised workforce through education and trainings can help but the EU needs to act urgently to restore its sustainable competitiveness and investment attractiveness. 

More information on the event, at this link.

More information on IPCEI: https://www.ipcei-batteries.eu/ 

Updated 16/10/2023: Have a look at the article published by AIRI
https://www.airi.it/event/ipcei-il-ruolo-dellitalia-nei-grandi-progetti-europei-di-ricerca-nella-microelettronica-digitale-energia-e-salute/ 

The European Energy Research Alliance (EERA) has a Joint Programme on Energy Storage (JP ES) which was officially launched in 2011 and is coordinated by Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in Germany. This JP strongly fosters the efficient development of new energy storage technologies. At present, 40 research organizations and universities from 15 different European countries are participating in the JP on Energy Storage. Each JP ES participant has a wide experience in specific fields pertaining to energy storage, important research infrastructures and relevant ongoing research activities, funded by national or European resources is achieved. 

On September 14, EERA JP ES organised a workshop in conjuntion with the EFC23 on: “Exploring similarities, synergies and perspectives of open electrochemical reactors for long duration energy storage".

The first session "Setting the Scene" saw the involvement of the Helmholtz Association (Germany), the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission (Belgium) and of Hydrogen Europe Research and Fondazione Bruno Kessler with Luigi Crema's presentation. Luigi's speech was entitled "Clean Hydrogen Partnership: support for hydrogen storage, priorities and strategic research agenda and possible hybridization H2 and batteries".

Check the entire agenda of the workshop at this link.

The 10th edition of the "European Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Piero Lunghi Conference (EFC23)" took place in Capri from 13th to 15th September 2023. 

Several collaborators participated in the conference presenting the activities of the Center SE and the work done on different projects. 

The Director Luigi Crema was invited as President of Hydrogen Europe Research as keynote speaker on 13 September 2023. Luigi talked about the status and objectives of the research sector in implementing the hydrogen transition in Europe. 

On September 14, Matteo Testi - Head of Hydrogen Technologies Area - chaired two different sections. The first session focused on "PEM electrolysers" while the second on "Hydrogen and energy storage".

The researchers Francesca Panaccione, Farhad Farajimoghadam and Luca Prattico' presented three works respectively on the projects PROMETEO, HyUSPRe and AMON. 

Francesca Panaccione presented the work entitled "Testing and characterization of a 5 kW SOE stack: full load, partial load and hot-standby mode analysis" within the session High temperature electrolysis. 

The work presented by Farhad Farajimoghadam was entitled "A Numerical Investigation of Underground Hydrogen Storage" within the session Hydrogen and energy storage.

Luca Prattico' presented the work entitled "From direct use of ammonia in solid oxide fuel cells to the next generation of ammonia fuel cell systems" within the session Alternative Fuels. 

More information on the above three presentations can be found in the book of proceedings. 

EFC23 is well-known conference in the fields of hydrogen energy and fuel cell technologies is held biannually in Italy, and aims to discuss the scientific progress and the most modern applications of hydrogen and fuel cell-based technologies, to prove that the need for change is a resource to cultivate. Such a view is reflected in the cross-cutting topics and wide range of applications considered one of the pillars of future European energy and transport systems, making a valued contribution to the transformation to a low carbon economy by 2050.

More information on the conference: https://www.europeanfuelcells.com/  

Check the agenda at this link, and the book of proceedings at this link.

The Smart Energy Systems International Conference - SESAAU2023 took place in Copenhagen on 12-13 September 2023. 

Silvia Ricciuti, researcher at the Center SE within the Sustainable Territories Area, presented the work entitled "Modelling the optimal transition of an urban neighborhood towards an energy community and a Positive Energy District" within the Session 3 Integrated energy systems and smart grids.

The work explores PED and energy community scenarios on an urban district of 6 buildings - Santa Chiara District - in Trento (Italy). This area is also one of the 3 case studies of the Horizon Europe InCUBE Project. Firstly, the 6 buildings were modelled with the Urban Modeling Interface (UMI) tool to evaluate the environmental performance with respect to operational and embodied energy use. Then, the EnergyPLAN software coupled with a multi-objective evolutionary algorithm (MOEA) was used to investigate energy decarbonisation scenarios based on different RESs, energy system integration and energy sharing.

Read more about it on the book of abstracts (p.235), at this link.
Authors: Silvia Ricciuti, Gregorio Borelli, Alessandro Sartori, Md Shahriar Mahbub, Matteo Brunelli , Francesco Pilati, Andrea Gasparella, Giovanni Pernigotto, Federico Battini, Diego Viesi.

The aim of SESAAU2023 is to establish a venue for presenting and discussing scientific findings and industrial experiences related to the subject of Smart Energy Systems based on renewable energy, 4th Generation District Heating Technologies and Systems (4GDH), electrification of heating and transportation sectors, electro fuels and energy efficiency.

The conference has grown to become a main venue for presentations and fruitful debates on subjects that are pertinent to the development and implementation of smart energy systems to fulfill national and international objectives.

More information on: https://smartenergysystems.eu/

Check the agenda at this link.

The jury has carefully evaluated the record number of applications – 228 in total – and selected 30 finalists. Among them, Smart Altitude, a European Interreg Alpine Space project partnered by FBK Center for Sustainable Energy, that aims at implementing new tools to improve the use of energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Alpine ski areas.

Smart Altitude is an Alpine Space project whose purpose was to implement new tools to improve the use of energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Alpine ski areas. The project developed new decision-making tools for ski operators and policy makers and innovative technical solutions tested in four living labs. It helped to overcome differences in territorial governance and infrastructure management among winter tourism destinations.

Winter tourism in the Alps generate an annual turnover of € 40 billion. However, it has increasingly high energy and environmental costs. On the other hand, this economic activity is strongly affected by the consequences of climate change on the weather and natural conditions. The implementation of low-carbon policy in Alpine regions therefore requires adaptation but also mitigation strategies to reduce carbon emissions.

What are the next steps? 

There are three dates to be marked on the calendar:

• 14 September, with the start of the online public vote on the competition platform.

• 11 October, with the final round of project pitches happening during the EU Regions’ Week in Brussels

• 16 November, with REGIOSTARS ceremony and announcement of winners happening in Ostrava, Czech Republic

Read the entire press release, in English: https://magazine.fbk.eu/en/news/smart-altitude-european-project-enters-the-final-stage-of-regiostars-2023/

Read the entire press release, in Italian: https://magazine.fbk.eu/it/news/il-progetto-europeo-smart-altitude-entra-nella-fase-finale-di-regiostars-2023/ 

Competition portal: https://regiostarsawards.eu/ 

The Italian Physical Society (SIF - Società Italiana di Fisica) founded in 1897 is a non-profit association with the aim to promote, favour and protect the progress of Physics in Italy and worldwide. SIF represents the Italian scientific community, in the research, the educational and professional fields, either private or public, relative to all areas of Physics and its applications (Medicine, Biology, Informatics, Economics and Finance, Meteorology and Climate, Environment, Archeometry, Cultural Heritage and others). 

SIF organises the Annual National Congress which gathers about 600 Italian physicists for a whole week, represents the meeting point of our scientific community. In spite of the various cultural and scientific facets of contemporary physics, the world of Italian researchers and physicists finds here its common background. 

The Congress is composed of Plenary Sessions and 7 Parallel Sessions:

Section 1: Nuclear and Subnuclear Physics

Section 2: Solid State Physics

Section 3: Astrophysics

Section 4: Geophysics and Physics of the Environment

Section 5: Biophysics and Medical Physics

Section 6: Applied Physics, Accelerators and Physics applied to Cultural Heritage (Archaeometry)

Section 7: Physics Education and History of Physics

Every year the Congress takes place in a different location, and in 2023 the event took place from 11 to 15 September hosted by the University of Salerno.

On September 11, Luigi Crema opened Section 6 of the SIF National Congress with the work "Materials, methods and priorities for the development of the hydrogen value chain". 

Abstract: 

Hydrogen is seen as one of the most promising energy carriers to enable the deep decarbonization of our society, contributing to the development of a resilient energy system. Research will be a key driver to develop novel solutions and technologies provided with high performances, lower costs, without critical raw materials: from production, to handling and storage, to end uses. Advanced materials for electrolysis, novel technologies with innovative functionalities, breakthrough solutions will require dedicated support to enable a hydrogen sector in line with the European policies underway. Several key solutions will leverage the conversion efficiency of electrolysis up and beyond 80%, reducing the need for scarce or costly materials such as iridium or other transition metals. Novel solutions can directly produce hydrogen splitting water from direct solar radiation. New proton conductive ceramic cells can add functionalities to hydrogen production such as compression, purification, separation of hydrogen or co-electrolysis processes. Mature technologies can be then improved through novel collaboration schemes between research and industry, enabling a levelized cost of hydrogen compatible with the market needs. This will change the perspective of having a novel, clean, diffuse gas sector in form of 100% hydrogen.

Congress proceedings (page 2) can be found at this link. 

Have a look at the recording of the opening cerimony at this link.

More information on the SIF National Congress: https://2023.congresso.sif.it/info 

Hossein Namdar is a student of Trento University who is doing his PhD at the Center for Sustainable Energy of Fondazione Bruno Kessler.

In particular, Hossein works with the Low-Carbon Research area on on manufacturing and modifying membranes for use in proton exchange membrane water electrolysis.

Hossein presented his work at the 17th European Congress and Exhibition on Advanced Materials and Processes - FEMS EUROMAT 2023, which took place in Frankfurt am Main (Germany) between 03 - 07 September 2023.

The event is the premier international congress for the latest advancements in materials science and technology and gathers leading experts, researchers and innovators offering a unique opportunity for researchers, scientists, engineers, and students to exchange ideas, share their research, and learn about the latest advances in materials science and engineering.

Hossein Namdar presented the study entitled "Investigation the effect of Argon plasma pretreatment on the performance of Aquivion membranes coated with TiO2 films by ALD technique in proton exchange membrane water electrolysis", within the session on Membranes and Membrane-Electrode Assemblies for PEMFCs and PEMELs.

Proton exchange membrane water electrolysis (PEMWE) is a promising approach for high-purity hydrogen production. In this study, Aquivion membranes modified by Argon (Ar) plasma and coated with a thin layer of TiO2 by ALD technique were investigated. Ar plasma pre-treatment was applied to Aquivion membranes for varying durations ranging from 300 to 1800 seconds, and TiO2 nanofilms were grown onto the treated membranes using TiCl4 and H2O as precursors in the ALD technique. The performance of the resulting hybrid membranes in terms of proton conductivity, surface wettability, water uptake, ion exchange capacity (IEC), and hydration number was evaluated. The results showed that increasing the duration of Ar plasma significantly increased the proton conductivity of the Aquivion membranes, from 0.0066 (S/cm) for the neat membrane to 0.0295 (S/cm) for the Aquivion 1800s membrane. The maximum IEC value was observed for the Aquivion 1080s membrane as 1.21 (meq/g), compared to 1.10 (meq/g) for the neat membrane. Furthermore, the presence of TiO2 on the surface and inside the membranes directly affected their hydration numbers. Similarly, the water uptake of the membranes increased with increasing plasma process time, while the contact angle remained the same due to the uniform TiO2 film on the surface of each membrane. In conclusion, the modified Aquivion membranes with TiO2 thin films exhibited improved proton conductivity and IEC, making them promising candidates for use in PEMWE for high-purity hydrogen production.

Check the agenda on: https://euromat2023.com/program/scientific-program

The article entitled “Multi-objective optimization of an energy community: an integrated and dynamic approach for full decarbonisation in the European Alps” has been published on the International Journal of Sustainable Energy Planning and Management. 

The article is the result of the collaboration between the researchers of Fondazione Bruno Kessler (Italy), of Ahsanullah University of Science & Technology (Bangladesh), Aalborg University (Denmark) and University of Bozen-Bolzano (Italy).

Abstract:

At the local level, energy communities are at the forefront of the European Green Deal strategy offering new opportunities for citizens to get actively involved in energy markets. The scope of this study is to apply a multi-objective optimization framework to minimize both carbon dioxide emissions and total annual costs in an energy community, considering, within different constraints, a wide availability of decision variables including local renewable energy sources, sector coupling, storage and hydrogen. 

The methodology involves the coupling of the software EnergyPLAN with a multi-objective evolutionary algorithm, considering 2030 and 2050 as target years and modelling a set of eight types of scenarios, each consisting of 100 optimal systems out of 10,000. The case study is an energy community in the European Alps. 

The results show, on the one hand, the key role of sector coupling technologies such as cogeneration, heat pumps and electric vehicles in exploiting local renewable energy sources and, on the other hand, the higher costs in introducing both electricity storage to achieve a complete decarbonisation and hydrogen as an alternative strategy in the electricity, thermal and transport sectors. More specifically, it has been identified that, by 2030 a complete decarbonisation cannot be achieved considering the replacement rates of the technologies included in the Baseline 2018, but nevertheless the European target of -55% of CO2 emissions can be reached with costs similar to those of the Business As Usual trajectory, while, by 2050 a complete decarbonisation is possible with costs within 24% higher than those of the Business As Usual trajectory.

Citation: 

Viesi, D., Mahbub, M. S., Brandi, A., Thellufsen, J. Z., Østergaard, P. A., Lund, H., Baratieri, M., & Crema, L. (2023). Multi-objective optimization of an energy community: an integrated and dynamic approach for full decarbonisation in the European Alps. International Journal of Sustainable Energy Planning and Management, 38, 8–29. 

DOI: https://doi.org/10.54337/ijsepm.7607

The article is available in Open Access. 

Read the article here: https://journals.aau.dk/index.php/sepm/article/view/7607/6471

Read the appendix here: https://journals.aau.dk/index.php/sepm/article/view/7607/6459

The new Hydrogen Hub will be hosted in Rovereto at the Arcese area. This is provided for in the memorandum of understanding signed by Trentino Sviluppo with the industrial group.

The new hydrogen hub will be built in Rovereto in a portion of the compound now used by Arcese. The logistics and trucking industrial group will retain its Office Building on Via Fornaci, while Palazzina Officina, the workshop building, will be occupied again by Trentino Sviluppo and will become a technology hub for  hydrogen. In fact, the new laboratories of Fondazione Bruno Kessler‘s Sustainable Energy Center, a flagship in renewable energy research on the national and European scene, will be hosted there. This completes the strategic plan for new science and technology hubs in Trentino, which sees the Province and Trentino Sviluppo committed to building in the coming years, alongside Polo Meccatronica and the Progetto Manifattura green hub, the new Life Sciences Hub – also in Rovereto in the area now available after Ariston left – and the Hydrogen Pole.

The Palazzina Officina workshop building will become the heart of the new Hydrogen Hub, where a laboratory will be set up to study battery, flow and next-generation energy storage technologies and hydrogen fuel cell accumulators. The hub will also house the new headquarters of Fondazione Bruno Kessler‘s Sustainable Energy Center, which is committed to researching innovative solutions for green hydrogen production and initiatives related to energy networks, microgrids, distribution and transmission networks.  In this regard, the location in Via Fornaci proves to be strategic, as it fosters local and system policies for the expansion of the hydrogen and battery supply chain, including infrastructure projects, such as the introduction of hydrogen along the Brenner freeway axis.

The Sustainable Energy Center also has a strong international reputation. Evidence of this is the recent award to Fondazione Bruno Kessler of the “IPCEI Batterie 2 – Eubatin” project, in which 12 European countries and some 40 companies are participating, approved in May 2022 by the Ministry of Economic Development. In parallel, the foundation is engaged in the preparation and start-up phase of the “IPCEI Idrogeno 1” project, together with ENEA and other six Italian companies.

In compliance with the planned timeframe, it was decided to temporarily set up spaces to be dedicated to laboratories inside the new “Be Factory” area of Progetto Manifattura, that is expected to be available by early summer 2024, where the machinery financed by these research projects can be installed and put into operation, pending the completion of the work on the new Hydrogen Hub.

Source: Trentino Sviluppo press release (m.d.c.) 

Read the entire press release here, in English: https://magazine.fbk.eu/en/news/fbks-sustainable-energy-center-laboratories-at-the-new-hydrogen-hub-in-rovereto/

Read the entire press release here, in Italian: https://magazine.fbk.eu/it/news/i-laboratori-del-centro-sustainable-energy-della-fbk-nel-nuovo-polo-dellidrogeno-a-rovereto/ 

Since 1949, the European Forum Alpbach has taken place annually in the Tyrolean village Alpbach. The event brings together young people from Europe and from all over the world with the most innovative minds from politics, business, civil society, culture, and science to drive ideas for a strong and democratic Europe.

European Forum Alpbach 2023 lasts one week and gathers several initiatives, among them the Euregio Days and the Euregio Summit on energy transition.

Luigi Crema, Director of the Center for Sustainable Energy of FBK, has been invited to participate as Jury member of the Euregio Final Innovation Award. Among the nine finalists, the Prize was assigned to Windcity, from Rovereto (Trentino). The company has developed, patented and produced a variable geometry passive turbine. It is a new concept of energy conversion that should allow energy to be efficiently extracted from the turbulent core of the wind and to transform municipal wind waste in a cycle. 

The Director was asked to participate as panelist in the discussion following the Keynote event "Key-note "Transizione energetica e la sicurezza dell‘approvvigionamento [Energy transition and security of supply]“, on Sunday the 20th of August 2023. 

Furthermore, Luigi Crema was invited as Expert supporting the individuation of future project that can be of interest for the Euregio macro-region, on Monday 21st of August.

Last but not least, the Director of the Center SE participated as speaker in the panel "The potential of scientific and technological and education in the field of energy" with Trentino Sviluppo and the University of Trento, during the EuregioLab entitled Powering the Future: Bridging Perspectives on Renewable Energy in Europe and the Alpine Region, event hosted by the the European Region Tyrol-South Tyrol-Trentino

Have a look at this video:https://fb.watch/mxGJai_mU5/

For more information on the Innovation Award, check this link.

Read about the European Forum Alpbach, on its website.

Third place for Alessandro Sartori (a UNITN PhD Student @ FBK Sustainable Energy Center) at the Tyrol Days of the European Forum Alpbach for his paper "Multi-objective optimization of an energy community: an integrated and dynamic approach for full decarbonisation in the European Alps".

Nowadays, energy communities are at the forefront of the EU Green Deal strategy and are offering new opportunities for citizens of the European Region Tyrol-South Tyrol-Trentino to get actively involved in energy markets. Energy community refers to collective energy actions that foster citizens’ participation across the energy system. It has received increased attention in recent years, developing a wide range of practices to manage energy community projects. Estimates suggest that, by 2030, energy communities could own 17% of installed wind capacity and 21% of solar energy sources. Moreover, by 2050, almost half of EU households are expected to be producing renewable energy.

Developing energy plans requires a number of steps to be completed: i) a baseline study to understand the current status of the energy system in the different energy sectors (electrical, thermal and transport), ii) predicting the future demands in the different energy sectors, iii) identification of local energy sources and realistic constraints, iv) designing and optimizing energy scenarios that fulfill the demand.

The designing and optimizing step should be able to find solutions that, in a specific context, answer the following question: “How (using what technologies) is it possible to meet decarbonisation targets at the lowest transition cost?”. Such research question is the starting point of the study submitted by Alessandro Sartori. Alessandro is doing his PhD scholarship at FBK, in the Center for Sustainable Energy directed by Luigi Crema, inside the Area “Sustainable Territories” led by Diego Viesi.

For the first time, the focus of this research is the multi-objective optimization of an energy community in the European Alps for the years 2030 and 2050, the latter being considered the full decarbonisation target.

With this research work, Sartori has been selected to participate in the final round of the Euregio Young Researcher Award, which was held on Saturday, August 19, 2023 at the European Forum in Alpbach, Tyrol, with the presentation and discussion of the project before a panel of leading experts from research institutions and universities from all three Euregio territories. The awarding of the winners took place during the plenary event of the Tyrol Days on Sunday, August 20, 2023.

In recent years, the Tyrol Days of the European Forum Alpbach have developed into a meeting place and showcase for the research landscape of the European Region Tyrol-South Tyrol-Trentino. On this occasion, young researchers from the Euregio Tyrol-South Tyrol-Trentino have been be invited to present their research papers.
This year, the topic “Energy” has been explored from a wide variety of perspectives.
The young researchers have been asked to establish a connection to the Euregio and place a special focus on sustainable energy security.

Young researchers from all scientific disciplines have been invited to participate. In fact, the variety of topics can range from security of supply, renewable energies to economic and political impacts of energy policy, as well as the field of energy law.

“Getting acknowledged for such a prestigious award means a lot for my PhD journey.” – commented Sartori – “It’s a small proof that I’m really playing my part in making the energy transition happen. Needless to say, I’m looking forward to the next opportunity for measuring the quality of my research.”

Read the press release on FBK Magazine - English: https://magazine.fbk.eu/en/news/fbk-sustainable-energy-among-the-winners-of-the-euregio-young-researcher-award-2023/ 

Read the press release on FBK Magazine - Italian: https://magazine.fbk.eu/it/news/fbk-sustainable-energy-sul-podio-del-premio-euregio-giovani-ricercatori-2023/ 

Listen to Alessandro's presentation, at this link: https://www.europaregion.info/it/euregio/progetti/istruzione-ricerca/premio-giovani-ricercatori-euregio/

Fondazione Bruno Kessler believes in and promotes the development of the scientific and research culture in students. The Unit "Research and Innovation for Schools" focuses on the organization and implementation of a wide-range of activities that allows young people to live the "research world", experience a subject beyond those studied in schools, learn new skills and develop critical thinking, motivating their vocational choises for their future studies and careers.

In this context, the Center for Sustainable Energy is very active!

With the support of the Unit R&I for Schools, the Center hosts trainees, gives lectures in schools and guided tours of the labs.

In 2023,  the Center SE and its researchers were involved in several activities, among others:

• participated in a series of lectures on hydrogen, batteries, solar energy, biomass and geothermal topics. The 40-hour seminar was given to the students of the Alta Formazione Professionale "Energy and Environment" - course offered by the ENAIP Villazzano (TN).

• gave a lecture during the webinar “Energia: conserviamo, generiamo e trasformiamo" for students of secondary schools.

• organised a guided tour in the FBK Laboratories for the students Liceo A. Rosmini - 5th class (Rovereto). 

• hosted three traineeships: one students from the ITT “Marconi” (Rovereto), two students from the Alta Formazione Professionale "Energy and Environment" - course offered by the ENAIP Villazzano (Trento).

For more information on the activities with schools, check this page (in Italian) or contact us!

AMETHyST project is an Interreg Alpine Space project whose aim is to support the deployment of local Alpine green hydrogen ecosystems to pave the way for a post-carbon lifestyle in the Alps. The Center for Sustainable Energy of the Bruno Kessler Foundation coordinates the first of three work packages, which aims at raising awareness in the territories involved on the potential of green and low carbon hydrogen in the Alpine area, with a specific attention to the tourist sector. In the framework of these  activities, all partners that are in charge of a case study had to organise two roundtables.

The case study of FBK will be the ski area of Funivie Madonna di Campiglio, for which FBK researchers will perform a feasibility assessment on decarbonization scenarios and H2 applications adoption. 

The first roundtable tool place on July 7, was organised by Funivie Madonna di Campiglio and had a focus on territorial synergies for hydrogen deployment. 

On July 13th, the Center for Sustainable Energy organized a second roundtable in Trento but this time the attention was pointed on the application of H2 solutions in the Alps (with a focus on the case study), and therefore it saw the participation of three companies that are already providing H2 solutions to the Alpine tourism sector 

Following the presentation of the AMETHyST project and the case study, by Eleonora Cordioli - researcher at the Centre for Sustainable Energy and WP Leader of AMETHyST - and of the potential H2 applications that could be applied to the ski area, by researcher Jacopo de Maigret, the three companies illustrated some ready-to-market applications:

• PRINOTH, with their H2 snow groomers that could be equipped with hydrogen fuel cell or with a hydrogen internal combustion engine; 

• SOLYDERA, with their energy solutions based on the proprietary Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) and stack technology for distributed cogeneration of heat and power; 

• GKN HYDROGEN, with their ready to use solutions based on metal hydrides hydrogen storage: power to power solutions (providing electricity, and heat when needed) or hydrogen storage for long term storage. 

All technologies provide advantages, but there are still some challenges to overcome, in particular when referring to their implementation in the Alpine areas. These challenges and opportunities were discussed between companies, potential adopters (other cable car companies in Trentino) and local stakeholders during the roundtable, identifying the bottlenecks like safety, bureaucracy, and costs, how to potentially overcome these problems and the substantial advantages that these technologies can provide. 

The next step for AMETHyST project will be the mid-term conference that will take place in Trento in 2024.

Read more on the project website: https://www.alpine-space.eu/project/amethyst/ 

By 2045, Germany wants to achieve greenhouse gas neutrality. To achieve these goals, there is need to significantly increase energy efficiency. Germany also needs to decarbonise its energy and raw material supply, which is still largely based on fossil fuels, by switching to renewable or renewable-based energy sources, such as hydrogen. The Federal Government has therefore developed a National Hydrogen Strategy to drive forward the use of climate-friendly hydrogen technologies, including an action plan intended to lay the basis for private investment in the production, transportation and use of hydrogen. The measures laid out in the action plan are divided into eight areas, among these there is "Research, education and innovation". 

Within this area, three Hydrogen Flagship Projects have been identified and one of these is TransHyDE. 

Hydrogen transport infrastructure is fundamental to make the hydrogen economy work. There are many ideas but it is unclear which solution is suitable for which application and how these are best combined. TransHyDE aims to developing, evaluating and demonstrating several technologies for hydrogen transport.

The project has an Advisory Board which saw the participation of Luigi Crema, Director of the Center SE and President of Hydrogen Europe Research. 

Source: https://www.bmwk.de/Navigation/EN/hydrogen/national-hydrogen-strategy.html

Project website: https://www.wasserstoff-leitprojekte.de/projects/transhyde

On July 7, the Center for Sustainable Energy and Funivie Madonna di Campiglio organized a roundtable to discuss with the local stakeholders how to decarbonize the tourism sector in the Alps through hydrogen applications, and to identify the potential for hydrogen development in that area. 

This initiative was organized in the framework of the AMETHyST project, an Interreg Alpine Space project whose aim is to support the deployment of local Alpine green hydrogen ecosystems to pave the way for a post-carbon lifestyle in the Alps. 

Following the presentation of the ski area of Funivie Madonna di Campiglio by general manager Bruno Felicetti,  Eleonora Cordioli - researcher at the Centre for Sustainable Energy and WP Leader of AMETHyST - presented the project, Luigi Crema - Director of the Center - gave an overview of the hydrogen strategic role on a European level and researcher Jacopo de Maigret presented currently available hydrogen technologies. The discussion was then opened and highly participated. 

The key takeaways from the roundtable discussion were the following: 

• The ski area of Madonna di Campiglio holds a key role in potential new hydrogen projects as they have already participated in other R&I projects concerning the application of new technologies to lower their emissions and are engaged in many sustainable activities. 

• Local stakeholders confirm a strong interest in new technologies, hydrogen technologies included, that could help decarbonize the tourism sector in the Alps. In particular, hydrogen is seen as a key element to store renewable energy as they see a mismatch between renewable energy production in the summer and a strong energy request during the winter season. 

• AMETHyST could provide local stakeholders with a preliminary feasibility study to understand the viability of these hydrogen applications. 

A second roundtable will soon take place in Trento, hosted by FBK, and will involve both companies and other local stakeholders.

If you want to know more about the project, please check the press release in English published last April 24, here: https://magazine.fbk.eu/en/news/amethyst-project-to-develop-local-hydrogen-ecosystems-in-the-alpine-region-kicks-off/ and in Italian: https://magazine.fbk.eu/it/news/al-via-il-progetto-amethyst-per-lo-sviluppo-di-ecosistemi-locali-di-idrogeno-nel-territorio-alpino/  

Project website: https://www.alpine-space.eu/project/amethyst/ 

In occasion of the first project meeting, the SINNOGENES Consortium met again in Trento on the 5th and 5th of July 2023, hosted by Fondazione Bruno Kessler. 

"Storage INNOvations for Green ENErgy Systems" in short SINNOGENES aims to develop the Storage INNOvations energy toolkit.

What is it? A complete framework of methodologies, tools and technologies that will enable the grid integration of innovative storage solutions beyond the state-of-the art, while demonstrating sustainability, technical performance, lifetime, non-dependency on location geographical particularities and cost. 

The project innovations will be then demonstrated in six pilots in Portugal, Spain, Germany, Greece and Switzerland.

Fondazione Bruno Kessler, through the Center for Sustainable Energy will be responsible of the Use case definition (T2.2) and will be involved in activities related to the environmental and impact assessment e flexibility markets compliance.

During the meeting, the members of the Consortium were organised in groups  guided by the colleagues Edoardo G. Macchi, Mattia Duranti and Saman Korjani to discuss the project use cases in an engaging workshop.

Read more about the project here: https://sinnogenes.eu/

Elena Crespi, researcher at the Center for Sustainable Energy at Fondazione Bruno Kessler, presented the poster "Control of a Solid Oxide Electrolysis system for hydrogen generation from solar power and thermal energy storage". The poster graphically represents the results of the experimental campaign performed at FBK facility on a 5 kWe stack, and proposes an effective system control strategy for the 25 kWe pilot system built within the PROMETEO project. 

The 8th International Conference on CLEAN ELECTRICAL POWER Renewable Energy Resources Impact (ICCEP2023) took place last week, from the 27th to the 29th of June 2023,  in Terrasini, Sicily (Italy). The aim of the Conference is to promote a permanent scientific forum, where people involved with clean electrical power generation may compare their experiences and present innovations to improve the current state of the art. The conference is attended by representatives from Industry, Research, and Academia sectors.

The poster stimulated the interest of the participants and encouraged the dialogue among the participants.

Read about it at this link: https://prometeo-project.eu/news/fbk-presents-a-poster-at-iccep2023/ 

Last June 20, 2023, the final event of NEWELY Project took place in Bad Zwischenahn (Germany) in the form of a poster exhibition. The event aimed to show the main results of activities carried out during the NEWELY Project. 

NEWELY is a European project funded by the Clean Hydrogen Partnership and coordinated by DLR – the German Aerospace Center (Germany).

The project developed and tested components for the next generation of anion exchange membrane water electrolysers (AEMWE). These can reach twice the performance of the state of the art of AEMWE operating with very low concentration KOH feed. Additionally, a 5-cell stack with elevated hydrogen output pressure was designed and constructed.

Francesca Panaccione and Giacomo Gottardi, respectively researcher and technologist at the Center for Sustainable Energy, participated in the event with a poster related to experimental activities carried out in FBK within the project. 

In the framework of the NEWELY project, FBK collaborated with other project partners (ProPuls, WHS and CEA) in two Work Packages: WP4 and WP5. 

In particular, the researchers of the Center were involved in 

• the development of a testbench in the FBK laboratory, used for the AEM single cell testing activity and for the AEM stack under development (WP4);

• all the experimental activity on the AEM cell, which implied the definition of a common test protocol to be used by all involved partners, the pre-treatments required for each component and the final assembly of the single cell, with the final goal of the electrochemical characterization of the cell. 

Almost 100 stakeholders from academia and industry sectors participated in the event. The poster session stimulated the interest of the participants and encouraged the dialogue on electrolysers and membrane among different stakeholders and experts in the field.

Read and download the entire press release at this link: https://newely.eu/2023/06/28/newely-project-the-opening-event-of-emea-workshop-2023/ 

Read the news about the last project meeting of NEWELY Project, at this link: https://newely.eu/2023/06/22/the-last-meeting-for-newely-consortium/ 

This week started with two big events in Brussels: the CEO Electrolyser Summit and the Forum of the European Clean Hydrogen Alliance respectively on July 26 and 27, 2023.

The 6th edition of the Forum took place at La Maison du Bois in Brussels, and for the first time the Forum will be a high-level Forum with the participation of CEO and equivalent administrators. 

Both events are organised by the European Clean Hydrogen Alliance, which was set up in July 2020 to support the large-scale deployment of clean hydrogen technologies by 2030. It counts over 1700 members from industry, public authorities, civil society, investors and the research community.

The alliance aims to promote investments and stimulate renewable and low-carbon hydrogen production, transmission, distribution and use across various sectors (industry, mobility, residential applications). 

On the first day, Director Luigi Crema - as President of Hydrogen Europe Research - moderated the session "CRMs and advanced materials for a coherent EU's ELY expansion"  with Mr Mark E. Newman - President and CEO of Chemours, Mr Damien Lenoble - CEO of LIST, and Mr Vincent Wille - CEO of Agfain.

Yesterday, Crema participated in the second Panel of the Forum entitled "Skills for the European Hydrogen Economy". The panel saw the participation of Maive Rute - Deputy Director-General DG GROW, Dr Olaf Jedicke from the Karlsruhe Institute for Technology - GreenSkills4H2, and Amy Adams - Vice President Government Partnerships and Funding, Cummins. 

Check the agenda of the CEO Electrolyser Summit at this link.

Check the agenda of the Forum at this link.

The first meeting of the project AMON “Development of a next generation AMmONia FC system” took place on the 19th and 20th of June 2023 and was hosted by Technical University of Denmark in Copenhagen (Denmark).

The meeting, led by the Project Coordinator Matteo Testi, has been an opportunity for Partners to discuss on the activities implemented during the first six months of the project, and to exchange views on the steps to be taken in order to reach all the expected results.

The researcher Luca Prattico' presented the status of technical activities the Center is involved in, while Ilaria Alberti illustrated the work done within the project management and the communication tasks.

Following the meeting, the members of the Consortium had the possibility to visit the laboratories of DTU.

The project is Coordinated by Fondazione Bruno Kessler - through the Center for Sustainable Energy. It will last for 3 years and is funded from the Clean Hydrogen Partnership. 

Read more about the project here: www.amon-project.eu

Today, 22 June 2023, The European House - Ambrosetti organised the event "The Working Group of the Hydrogen Community" at the Be Factory - Progetto Manifattura in Rovereto. 

The event was organised in collaboration with Trentino Sviluppo, H2IT and Fondazione Bruno Kessler; and was sponsored by numerous well-known companies.

The Working Group consisted of different panel discussions focusing on different topics. Starting from the Hydrogen Valleys, then the attention was given to the synergies between the industrial and the research systems, and to the development opportunities where infrastrutures were underlined. Then, the panelists dealt with the transport sector as starting point for the H2 supply chain and to foster the industrial competitivenes. The event ended with a visit to SolydEra. 

Luigi Crema has been the keynote speaker during the panel entitled "Synergies between the industrial and research systems" which saw the participation of Massimo Bertoldi - SolydEra, Antonio Miotello - University of Trento, Alessandro Paneghel - Smart Industry, and Simone Mausoli - Bureau Veritas. 

Check the agenda of the event, at this link.

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Oggi, 22 giugno 2023, The European House - Ambrosetti ha organizzato l'evento "Il Tavolo di Lavoro della Community Idrogeno" presso la Be Factory - Progetto Manifattura a Rovereto. 

Il tavolo di lavoro è stato organizzato in collaborazione con Trentino Sviluppo, H2IT e Fondazione Bruno Kessler; con la partnership di numerose e conosciute aziende.

L'evento è stato strutturato in diverse discussioni con focus diversi. A partire dalle Hydrogen Valleys, l'attenzione si è poi focalizzata sulle sinergie tra il sistema industriale e quello della ricerca, per poi passare alle opportunità di sviluppo e alla necessità di migliorare le infrastrutture. Tra i temi, anche quello del settore trasporti. La giornata si è conclusa con la visita a SolydEra. 

Luigi Crema ha partecipato come keynote speaker nella discussione "Sinergie tra sistema insutriale e sistema ricerca" che ha visto la partecipazione di rappresentanti di entrambi i settori: Massimo Bertoldi - SolydEra, Antonio Miotello - Università di Trento, Alessandro Paneghel - Smart Industry, e Simone Mausoli - Bureau Veritas. 

Svoglia l'agenda dell'evento, a questo link.

On Tuesday 13 June, Luigi Crema gave the presentation "L’idrogeno e le opportunità per le imprese [Hydrogen and opportunities for industries]" at the event Sostenibilità: le opportunità dell'idrogeno e gli investimenti green [Sostenibilità: le opportunità dell'idrogeno e gli investimenti green].

The seminar was hosted by SolydEra, in Pergine Valsugana, and organised by Confindustria Trento, the association representative of the identity, interests and service of almost 600 industries located on the territory of Trentino.  

The aim of the event was to clarify the doubts of companies regarding a hot topic, which is the subject of numerous investments. 

Read more about the event: https://www.confindustria.tn.it/it/eventi/le-nostre-iniziative/seminari-e-webinar/sostenibilita-le-opportunita-dellidrogeno-e-gli-investimenti-green/

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Martedì 13 giugno, Luigi Crema ha presentato la tematica "L’idrogeno e le opportunità per le imprese"  all'evento Sostenibilità: le opportunità dell'idrogeno e gli investimenti green.

Il seminario, ospitato da SolydEra, è stato organizzato da Confindustria Trento, l'associazioneindustriale che rappresenta l'identità, gli interessi ed i servizi di circa 600 aziende presenti sul territorio trentino.

Considerata l'elevata attenzione sul tema, l'associazione ha voluto dedicare un incontro con esperti della tematica e della tecnologia per chiarire i dubbi delle imprese.

Maggiori informazioni a questo link: https://www.confindustria.tn.it/it/eventi/le-nostre-iniziative/seminari-e-webinar/sostenibilita-le-opportunita-dellidrogeno-e-gli-investimenti-green/

On Tuesday 13 June, Luigi Crema was guest of Mattino Insieme programme of Trentino TV.  The main topic discussed has been hydrogen and the developments in the field. 

The Director of the Center for Sustainable Energy explained the reason why hydrogen is relevant for the decarbonisation process and defined hydrogen as "energy mediator". Another point touched during the interview regarded the main applications of hydrogen, which Luigi identified in the sectors where there are  hard-to-abate emissions, therefore industries and heavy-duty mobility, where there are no other options to limit the emissions. Luigi described as fundamental the investments in infrastructures and the need to combine different technologies, such as batteries and hydrogen which are complementary and each one support the development of the other.

Finally, Luigi outlined the activities of the Center for Sustainable Energy of FBK.

Listen to the interview on https://www.trentinotv.it/video-on-demand/mattino-insieme_13-06-2023 (minute 35:00, in Italian)

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Martedì 13 giugno, Luigi Crema è stato ospite di Mattino Insieme, programma di Trentino TV. Il tema principale di discussione è stato l'idrogeno e gli sviluppi in questo campo.

Il Direttore del Center for Sustainable Energy di FBK ha spiegato il motivo per cui l'idrogeno è rilevante nel processo di decarbonizzazione ed ha definito l'idrogeno "mediatore energetico". Un altro punto toccato durante l'intervista riguarda le principali applicazioni dell'idrogeno, individuate nei settori dove ci sono cosiddette emissioni hard-to-abate", quindi industrie e mobilità pesante dove non ci sono altre opzioni attualmente disponibili per limitare le emissioni. Luigi ha definito fondamentali gli investimenti nelle infrastrutture e la necessità di combinare tecnologie diverse, come le batterie e l'idrogeno che sono complementari e supportano l'una lo sviluppo dell'altra.

Ascolta l'intervista su https://www.trentinotv.it/video-on-demand/mattino-insieme_13-06-2023  (minuto 35:00, in italiano)

The second general assembly of the European Technology and Innovation Platform “Batteries Europe” has been held in Brussels on Wednesday, 7th June 2023, with the title "European Battery Ecosystem: how innovation improves competitiveness and resilience in Europe".

Over 100 stakeholders attended the event, including approximately 80 in-person participants and some more online attendees. Among them, there were three representatives of the Area "Battery Technologies" of the Center for Sustainable Energy of FBK: the Head of Area Edoardo G. Macchi and the researchers Mattia Duranti and William Gomes de Morais.  

The Center SE also participated in the first in-person meeting of the joint working groups Batteries Europe/BEPA, on the 8th of June 2023. 

What are the Working Groups? They correspond to six distinct R&I areas that are key to achieving a competitive, sustainable European battery industrial manufacturing capability and enabling zero-emission mobility and renewable energy storage integration. Together, these groups shall cover all segments of the battery value-chain. These six areas are:

• WG1 - New and emerging battery technologies

• WG2 - Raw materials and recycling

• WG3 - Advanced materials

• WG4 - Cell design and manufacturing

• WG5 - Application and integration: Mobile 

• WG6 - Application and integration: Stationary

Edoardo G. Macchi participated in the discussions of WG1 and WG6, Mattia Duranti in the debates of WG5 and WG6, William Gomes de Morais in the WG3 and WG4.

The Batteries Europe is a H2020 project coordinated by BEST (Batteries Europe Secretariat) project, led by InnoEnergy with the participation of VDI-VDE-IT, EASE, EERA, CLERENS, SINTEF (Industry and Energy), INSTM, CIC energiGUNE, ENEA and Zabala. 

The project aims to accelerate and support the establishment of a globally competitive European battery industry and to strengthen the synergies and complementarities among EU initiatives. This will be done through different levels of engagement at European, national and international level. 

Check the project website: https://batterieseurope.eu/ and read more about the WGs here: https://batterieseurope.eu/workstream-bodies/integrated-working-groups/ 

Check the agenda to know more about the event, at this link. 

These days Sara Stemberger and Diego Viesi are participating in the General Assembly of NEVERMORE. The event is taking place in Sitia (Crete) one of the 5 case studies of the project.

This annual event gathers partners  and will host presentations, workshops and interactive sessions that currently engage all the Consortium team!

FBK-SE is partner of this Horizon EU project in technical support of the Case Study Trentino and is here together with the colleagues from FBK Digital Society which lead the project and the engagement strategy.

The NEVERMORE project, coordinated by FBK Digital Society center, is funded under the Horizon Europe programme and aims to support excellence in scientific research on the climate and on climate policies. A particular feature of the project is the activation of the Local Council which will involve the public administration, research institutions, local businesses, trade associations and civil society, creating an environment for reflection and discussion on climate change with a particular focus on tourism and energy.  

Check the project website: https:/www.nevermore-horizon.eu/ 

Watch this video to understand more the project: https://youtu.be/blF56G88VTg  

The THOTH2 consortium has been established with the aim of providing energy measurement value chain and instruments’ability to accurately measure the physical parameters of hydrogen and natural gas mixtures (H2NG) with increasing hydrogen (H2) percentages, up to 100%.

THOTH2 is funded by the European Union with almost 2 million euro over two and a half years.

THOTH2 vision will lead to an acceleration towards the H2 economy, contributing to REPowerEU and NextGeneration EU objectives. The project impact potential includes the establishment of a R&D Hub center, which can include THOTH2 partners and Advisory Board members, to translate into value the results achieved by the project, aiming to the development/update of international standards, foster innovation in the field of H2NG blending measuring devices, and supporting H2 value chain development leveraging on the EU gas infrastructure.

To maximize hydrogen blending potential in natural gas (NG) networks, a systemic and multi-disciplinary approach to make NG infrastructure resilient to the challenges of tomorrow is needed, together with industrial and research players’ competences. 

Two different centres of FBK will be involved in the project: the Centre for Sustainable Energy (SE), which promotes R&I on new energy solutions, for the production, distribution and storage of energy in order to minimize environmental impact and contribute to the deep decarbonization of our society, targeting technology transfer in collaboration with industrial and territorial partners, and the Centre for Sensor and Device (SD), the centre of reference for the development of novel concepts in sensors and devices for Big Science and for industrial and technical applications. 

For more information on the project, read the press release: https://www.fbk.eu/en/press-releases/launch-of-the-eu-funded-project-thoth2/

Check the project website: https://thoth2.eu/ 

The researchers Silvia Ricciuti and Diego Viesi participated in the General Assembly of the InCUBE Project. The meeting took place on the 30th and 31st of May 2023, in Barcellona, and was hosted by the project partner ITeC.

The event gave the opportunity to discuss on the different technologies and solutions that will be demonstrated at the three demo sites and and strengthen the collaboration between all the different European partners. 

The Centre for Sustainable Energy of FBK is partner of the Project, coordinates the activities of the Work Package 7, and is also leader of the Trento Demo. 

The InCUBE demonstration site is located in the Santa Chiara District which lies in the South-East of the historic centre of Trento. The project will mainly focus on the deep renovation of the Centro Servizi Culturali Santa Chiara owned by Comune di Trento. The energy needs of the building will be reduced by half and the renewable energy production will be increased to 864 MWh per year. Besides this specific building, five other publicly owned buildings will be deeply renovated for tertiary uses and residential spaces to enhance the district-level approach favouring the emergence of a Renewable Energy Community. 

For more information on the project, visit www.incubeproject.eu 

The First Italian Workshop on Ammonia Energy has been held from 14.30 on 31 May 2023 in Florence, at the Auditorium of Santa Apollonia.

Ammonia Energy is emerging as a key topic towards the decarbonisation of power, heat and transportation sectors. 

The event organised by the Istituto di Scienze e Tecnologie per l'Energia e la Mobilità Sostenibili del Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR-STEMS), the Italian Section of the Combustion Institute - ASICI, and the Universities of Pisa, Perugia and Florence, gathered experts from Academia, SMEs and Industrial companies discussed on the "ammonia economy" open issues.

The Head of Hydrogen Technologies Area at the Centre of Sustainable Energy of FBK was invited as speaker at the event. Matteo Testi outlined the activities of the Centre in this field and focused on the project AMON, which aim at developing a novel system for the utilization and conversion of ammonia into electric power at high efficiency using a solid oxide fuel cell. The AMON Project is coordinated by FBK through the Centre SE. 

More information on the event and the agenda, at this link.

AMON website will be soon available at www.amon-project.eu 

On Tuesday 30 May, the Director of Center for Sustainable Energy of the Fondazione Bruno Kessler Luigi Crema gave a speech on hydrogen during the event Wired Digital Day, in Lecce. 

The presentation entitled "La scommessa sull'idrogeno per far correre l'economia [The bet on hydrogen to get the economy going]" underlined how the energy transition is an obligation that cannot be waived, but renewables alone cannot be enough to guarantee continuity of supply. Luigi explained how hydrogen is one of the most concrete possibilities for a green turning point in the entire energy chain: the infrastructure for transmission is there and the raw material is not lacking.

As reported in the article of Wired Italia, at the beginning of the year 2023, the Apulia Region started the Hydrogen Valley tender to encourage companies to submit projects to build renewable hydrogen production plants in abandoned industrial areas. 

“Hydrogen could become a pillar of the future energy system, accompanying deep electrification, thus creating the need to develop a complete market" remarked Luigi Crema. "For Europe, hydrogen has become an important theme, the industry has collaborated with research for several years and in fact the European industry is an industry that plays it on a global level”.

Source: https://www.wired.it/article/wired-digital-day-2023-racconto-puglia/

Wired Digital Day took place on May 30 at the Apollo Theater in Lecce, and it consists of an entire day of talks, presentations and debates to discover the future. Sustainability, energy transition, manufacturing 4.0, healthcare and aerospace are changing the rules of the world; those who lead the change will tell how to build a society that respects the environment, is creative and capable of looking beyond traditional borders.

The new materials that science makes available to industry, the hydrogen that will power factories in the next decade and the micro-satellites that will assist us from low Earth orbit are an opportunity for the economic development of territories. Technological innovations that find their home in Puglia, thanks to companies, scientific and biomedical centers that work to found the Italy of 2050.

Source: https://eventi.wired.it/digitalday2023/home 

On the 4th of May 2023, Giulia di Gregorio gave the presentation entitled "Sputtering Techniques for Catalyst Fabrication in Water Electrolysis" at the Industrial Days in Rovereto. 

Giulia is a PhD student of the Doctorate Program in Industrial Innovation at the University of Trento. At the Industrial Innovation Day 2023, Giulia spoke about the research that she is doing at the Centre for Sustainable Energy of Fondazione Bruno Kessler, in collaboration with the company ENPHOS. 

The studies are focusing on the development of novel high-performant and cost-effective PGM-free electrocatalysts for Anion Exchange Membrane Water Electrolysis using sputtering techniques.

The Industrial Innovation Day took place at the Polo Meccatronica in Rovereto, on May 4. The initiative is organised by The Doctorate Program in Industrial Innovation - co-founded by the University of Trento and the Fondazione Bruno Kessler. It is an interdisciplinary program that offers a wide range of courses by the Fondazione Bruno Kessler and the Departments of Information Engineering and Computer Science (DISI), Industrial Engineering (DII), Economics and Management (DEM), Civil, Environmental and Mechanical Engineering (DICAM) and Physics (DIF) of the University of Trento.

Companies are the key players of the Program that propose specific research problems (e.g. research topics) to solve and participate in the design of individual educational paths

For more information on the above, check this this link.

On the 24th and 25th of May, Edoardo Gino Macchi - Head of Battery Technology Area, and the researcher Adriano Li Matzumura travelled to Toulouse (France) to participate in the General Assembly of the projects JIVE and JIVE 2. 

The projects involve the implementation of Fuel Cell Electric Battery Buses (FCEBs) in 16 different cities around Europe. 

Fondazione Bruno Kessler, through the Centre for Sustainable Energy, is partner to the projects and is responsible to get data on the perception and satisfaction of different stakeholders, such as bus passengers, bus drivers, and policy makers. 

During the Assembly, all partners presented the activities state-of-art, and exchange the challenges faced in implementing FCEBs as a new form of public transportation. Following the meeting, the participants had the opportunity to make a site visit to FCEBs.

For more information on the above and similar projects at this link.

On Tuesday 23 May 2023, the third edition of the Hydrogen Ecosystem North Adriatic Conference took place in Nova Gorica (Slovenia). 

The rich agenda included the participation of industrial parties, associations, public authorities and Univeristies.
Luigi Crema - as President of Hydrogen Europe Research and Vice President at the Italian Association for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells, spoke about the importance of the transnational cooperation and cross-regional dimension of the NAHV.

The purpose of the event is to bring together the parties creating an unprecedented phenomenon of cross-regional cooperation in the transition towards a clean energy future based on clean hydrogen. The goal of the 3rd conference is to accelerate activities related the development of North Adriatic Hydrogen Valley (NAHV) project, the first Transnational Hydrogen Valley project in the EU in 2023 and to boost other already ongoing projects developed by industry towards a regional hydrogen ecosystem to accelerate regional and European energy transition, to scale innovations. Industrial partners, universities, and society leaders from participating countries are working together to explore further development opportunities and accelerate already envisaged projects.

For more information on the event check this link.

Last Saturday, 20 May 2023, Luigi Crema participated in the panel "Idrogeno, un ponte verso un futuro sostenibile [Hydrogen, a bridge to a sustainable future]" of the Galileo Festival dell'Innovazione. 

The President of Hydrogen Europe Research and Director of the Sustainable Energy Centre underlined the importance of hydrogen in the decarbonisation process to realise a resilient and strong energy system, that will be able to support the deep electrification of the final uses. 

The event was an important moment of discussion and exchange of opinion between the speakers:  Vito Di Noto - Professor of Electrochemistry for Energy at the University of Padua, Emanuela Lucchini - President of Ici Caldaie,  Roberto Gasparetto - Managing Director of AcegasApsAmga.

This year, the Festival celebrated its 11th edition and took place in Padua, from Friday 19th to Sunday 21st May 2023, with more than 60 events. The event is promoted by the Municipality of Padua and ItalyPost, and is focused on 4 topic areas: space economy, robocs and AI, energu, life sciences and biotech.

For more information on the event check this link.

The Mantua hydrogen valley - a project promoted by the Province of Mantua together with private partners which are leaders in the sector - was officially presented during a public event on 9 May 2023. 

The hydrogen valley project obtained around 30 million euros from the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, unlocking over 30 million of private capital, for an overall project worth more than 60 million euros. The decarbonisation of the territory is the primary objective of these funds, but will also allow the creation of an industrial hub that will be able to produce more than 1,500 tons of hydrogen per year from renewable sources, avoiding the emission of over 14,000 tons of CO2 per year.

As part of the development of the Mantua hydrogen valley, other actions are foreseen. Among others the construction of a photovoltaic park is planned as well as the installation of a 10 MW electrolyser in abandoned industrial area, the installation of a Hydrogen Refueling Station (HRS) and the supply of hydrogen to local 'hard to abate' industries.

Luigi Crema - Director of the Centre for Sustainable Energy, was invited to the event and stated that "FBK, through the Center for Sustainable Energy, is one of the scientific references for the development of the Mantova Hydrogen Valley. We provide expertise, development models, infrastructure and laboratories to accelerate the implementation of the project initiatives. We do it with passion and dedication".

For more information on the event check the links on HydroNews and Gruppo SAPIO - News.

On Monday 8 May, the Director of the Centre for Sustainable Energy of FBK - Luigi Crema, was the the Victoria Theatre in Trento to participate in an interdisciplinary debate on the sustainable energy future and the actions to mitigate, adapt and produce energy in line with the current environmental dynamics. 

The event aimed at raising the public awareness and fostering the exchange of information in order to prepare the citizens to the future changes and how to deal with them. 

On the stage with Luigi Crema there were Massimiliano Fazzini - geologist and climatologist at Unicam, Maurizio Fauri - Professor of electric systems for energy at the University of Trento, and Antonio Galgaro - expert in geothermal energy. 

Fazzini focused on the need to create modern solutions to adapt to the new climate, Fauri illustrated the fundamental steps of the energy transition towards a decarbonised society, Crema explained the potential of hydrogen to achieve the objectives set by the EU Commission, and Galgaro presented the perspectives of the geothermal energy in the buildings. 

The event was the first of the series "Rotary Incontri" and was organised by the Rotary Club Trentino Nord.

Source: https://www.ildolomiti.it/cultura/2023/cambiamenti-climatici-cosa-possiamo-fare-per-il-nostro-domani-torna-il-rotary-incontri-dopo-anni-di-stop-per-una-serata-libera-da-approcci-ideologici 

On Saturday 6 May, the Head of Hydrogen Technology Area Matteo Testi participated in the talk "L'intelligenza energetica" at the Wired Next Festival. 

The panel saw the participation of Matteo Testi (FBK), Fabio Fava (Professor at the University of Bologna) and Francesca Failoni (Chief Financial Officer and co-founder of Alps Blockchain). The speakers discussed about how to reduce waste, differentiate production, enable new consumption, as well as about the role of digital technologies in energy management.

Wired Next Festival celebrated its 10 years and started its journey in Rovereto, on Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 May. 

The leitmotif of this edition was Italy, the place of innovation. A celebration of our country as a territory that knows how to combine creativity, art and technology, a window on the future and on the challenges to be faced, on the skills to be developed, but also on the legacy of a past that can be a guide in this transformation process.

Through music, debates, interviews, creative workshops and experiences the event aims at raise the awareness on how to safeguard the precious uniqueness of the country and how to enhance it in the face of increasingly complex international scenarios, with an eye to social issues and the integration of all people. Because Italy is a place of innovation for everyone.

Source: https://eventi.wired.it/wnf23-rovereto

It is time to affirm hydrogen as a key vector for the energy transition and security of our country.

Last week, the Members' Assembly confirmed the top management of the Association for the three-year period 2023-2025, which will continue the work done in recent years which allowed H2IT to become a key interlocutor for national and local institutions and bodies.

On 28 April, the shareholders' meeting of H2IT – Associazione Italiana Idrogeno elected the new Board of Directors, which will lead the Association in the three-year period 2023-2025. The outgoing President Alberto Dossi (President of the Sapio Group) was confirmed for the third consecutive time at the top of the Board, demonstrating the will of the Association to continue along the path undertaken.

Together with the President, the Vice-Presidents Valter Alessandria (Alstom Ferroviaria), Dina Lanzi (Snam) and Luigi Crema (Fondazione Bruno Kessler) were reconfirmed. The Presidential Council will be supported in guiding the Association by nine Councilors representing companies and institutions in the hydrogen sector; Andrea Bombardi (RINA), Stefano Capponi (Tenaris), Luigi D'Onofrio (Edison Next), Davide Damosso (Environment Park), Federico Ferrini (Techfem), Luigi Ksawery Lucà (Toyota Motor Italia), Giulia Monteleone (ENEA), Angelo Moreno (Stress) and Lorenzo Privitera (A2A).

“The trust shown by the Assembly by reconfirming my Presidency gives me new energy and motivation to continue the role of president with commitment and dedication together with the new board of directors – declared Alberto Dossi, President of H2IT. "Today a new chapter opens for the Association and with the commitment of all of us new impulses will be given to the mission of H2IT with the objective of creating the hydrogen market in Italy by continuing to collaborate with the institutions. The new Governing Council reflects the will of an Assembly which wanted on the one hand to show the trust to those who have worked in recent years for the successes we have achieved in the concept of continuity, and on the other a signal of renewal to bring new ideas and new energies to promote hydrogen nationwide. With these assumptions, I am convinced that this Board of Directors will do its utmost with enthusiasm, determination and competence to support the important projects that are about to be implemented. A new chapter of challenges and goals to be achieved opens. We are ready to start our work. Thank you all."

During the last three years under the guidance of Alberto Dossi, H2IT has had an exponential evolution. The number of members has gone from just over 40 to 130, a growth that has contributed to fueling the dialogue between the stakeholders in a highly innovative and technological supply chain with enormous growth margins. Opportunities for discussions with national and local institutions have also multiplied, with the aim of affirming hydrogen as a fundamental vector for energy transition and security within the country's political agenda. The Association has become the interlocutor of the bodies responsible for developing regulations and legislation such as ARERA, the Fire Brigade, the GSE and, despite the various changes in the Government, it has established itself as a point of reference for the various Ministries competent in the field of hydrogen.

In 2016, H2IT supported the Ministries in the elaboration of the "National Plan for Hydrogen Mobility" (later updated in 2019) and, in 2018, entered into a collaboration with the Ministry of the Interior for the drafting of the "Fire prevention technical rule for the design, construction and operation of hydrogen distribution systems for motor vehicles". In recent years, it has made available support for hydrogen investments envisaged by the PNRR.

All the efforts of the Association have been aimed at supporting the conditions of the development of the Hydrogen market through precise and programmed actions such as: suggesting the adoption of clear regulations to the institutions, indicating financing schemes and incentive tools, requesting the active commitment on the part of politics, possibly creating discussion tables with the Ministries to acquire national infrastructures enabling the development of the hydrogen market.

In these three years, the perception of the importance of hydrogen has also changed, in Italy and in Europe, and the sector is evolving rapidly, with new players and many projects in the pipeline. In parallel, the Association has grown while maintaining the principles on which it was founded and which it has consolidated, defended and developed over the years. Such as respect for competition in a market yet to be built, the importance of collaboration between different stakeholders, the sharing of skills between companies, teaming up with institutions and territories and, finally, the relevance of research centers and universities in accelerating the process to bring the best and most innovative technological solutions to the market.

Source: https://www.h2it.it/h2it-associazione-italiana-idrogeno-eletto-il-nuovo-consiglio-direttivo/

In these days, the World Hydrogen & Renewables Conference is taking place in Milan. The event is organised by World Hydrogen Leaders and, with its 80 speakers and more than 200 participants, it is considered an unmissable opportunity for renewable energy and hydrogen professionals to come together and understand the key industry trends, technology, and strategies to effectively integrate and advance the clean energy and hydrogen sectors in Italy and Europe as a whole, while enjoying exclusive networking activities. 

Yesterday, on 3rd May 2023, the Director of the Centre for Sustainable Energy of FBK Luigi Crema and the Head of Battery Technologies Area Edoardo G.Macchi participated as speakers in two panels. 

Edoardo Macchi focused on how innovation in battery storage can secure flexibility in the grid, giving an overview of long-duration ESS and promising non-electrochemical energy storage technologies, including the strategies to increase the relevant skills. The panel "The Role of Battery Storage as a Crucial Piece of the Puzzle" saw also the participation of Esmeralda Colombo (CMCC), Marco Bertazzi (Encavis) and Filippo Meucci (Statkraft).

In the afternoon, Luigi Crema with Massimo Valsania (EthosEnergy) and Viviana Cigolotti (ENEA) participated in the panel "The Potential for Hydrogen in Italy" moderated by Tim Podesta (World Hydrogen Leader). The discussion developed around three main topic related to the investment landscape for hydrogen in Italy and the development of hydrogen value chain development, the enabler for Italy's geographical and climatic conditions for achieving its ecological and energy transition goals, and the international co-operation needed to accelerate the uptake of hydrogen in the EU, and Italy’s role in this transition.

Check out the website: https://www.worldhydrogenrenewablesitaly.com/ 

In January 2023, the European project COMMUNITAS officially started. It aims to support citizens to become active participants in the energy sector and to provide a set of tools to support the creation, growth and development of energy communities. Together with seven other European pilot sites, Trentino is one of the  main characted of this project, which points to the creation and support of a new energy community within the Primiero Valley. Among the 18 European partners of COMMUNITAS there are also ACSM S.p.A. and the Bruno Kessler Foundation (FBK) through the Sustainable Energy Center. A total of 8 European countries are involved: Portugal, Greece, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Denmark, Poland and Croatia.

A workshop has been scheduled for 12 May 2023 (5.00 PM) in Primiero San Martino di Castrozza (Sala Negrelli of the Community of Primiero, via Roma 19), to inform and involve the citizens and local authorities on the energy communities. 

During this public evening the mayors of the three municipalities belonging to the Primiero Valley will intervene, as well as the President of the Comunità di Valle and of the Natural Park Paneveggio Pale di San Martino. Particularly interesting will be the interventions of representatives of leading bodies, at local and national level, who have already been working on the issue of energy communities for some time. Among these, the head of the CER project within RSE, and the Director of the Energy Resources Studies and Planning Office, in APRIE-PAT. Space will then be given to the President of CEDIS, who will describe in detail the experience of the first energy community born in Trentino in Riccomassimo in 2021.

Among the speakers there are the representatives of the COMMUNITAS Project Simone Canteri, General Manager of ACSM S.p.A., the company that will have the role of facilitator of the nascent CER Valle di Primiero, and Gionata Luca, FBK researcher. They will describe the objectives, the partners involved and the methodology of the European project. 

Finally, the evening will be concluded by an interaction session with citizens and local authorities, to collect expectations and useful ideas for the continuation of the work over the next few months.

Read the press release in Italian at this link. 

Check out the agenda of the event, at this link.

The exhibition event of this European Project took place in Paris, on April 21st, 2023, with the presentation of the project activities and the demonstration of the prototype.

Last April 21st, 2023, Matteo Testi - Head of Hydrogen Technologies Area, together with Ilaria Alberti - Knowledge Manager of the Centre SE, and the researchers Davide Ragaglia and Giacomo Gottardi, participated in the final event of HyCARE Project took place in Paris with an exhibition entitled “The HyCARE system. Opportunities and challenges of the energy storage sector”. 

The show hosted by ENGIE Lab Crigen in cooperation with CNRS aimed to show the main results of activities carried out during the HyCARE Project, supported by the Clean Hydrogen Partnership, and coordinated by the University of Turin.

The day started with the presentation of the project activities, outlining the process for testing and tailoring the hydrogen carrier as well as those related to the production and processing. Heat management was also a fundamental topic, together with the description of the design and building of the tank, the system integration, its commissioning, and validation. Finally, the techno-economic analysis was explained together with a short overview of exploitation and dissemination activities implemented.  

Following the Partners’ presentations, HyCARE hosted other three EU projects COSMHYC, SHERLOHCK and HyPSTER on hydrogen storage topic that presented their activities and shared their own experience.

 Finally a Stakeholder Roundtable was moderated by HyCARE Coordinator, Marcello Baricco, with Patricia De Rango – Member of Task 40 of Hydrogen Technology Collaboration Programme (Hydrogen TCP) within the International Energy Agency, Olivier Joubert – Director of the French Federation of Hydrogen Energy FRH2, Abdelilah Slaoui – Director of the CNRS Task Force on Energy and co-director of the PEPRH2, Pierre Roy, Director of European Strategic Collaborative Program, Enterprise relationships Directorate at CNRS. The discussion focused on the big challenges of hydrogen storage in the future.

The event wrapped up with the visit to the demonstrator guided by Jose M. Bellosta von Colbe – expert on metal hydrides from Hereon, who explained the functioning and components in the container, followed by the visit to the laboratories of ENGIE Lab CRIGEN guided by Reda Bellahcene and Olivier Lefranc, from ENGIE.

“It has been a great challenge” – says prof. Marcello Baricco, of the University of Turin and project coordinator – “but we are now happy to demonstrate the use of hydrogen as an energy carrier. The theoretical studies on metal hydrides, performed in last years in European laboratories, find now a real application at a large scale. The combination of Metal Hydrides with Phase Change Materials for the thermal management of a hydrogen storage system was claimed since a while, but now it is a realty. We really thank the Clean Hydrogen Partnership for the financial support to the project. All partners have worked together with professionalism and enthusiasm, allowing to reach the final goal of the HyCARE project.”

Read the entire press release in English, here: https://www.fbk.eu/en/press-releases/progetto-hycare-un-approccio-innovativo-per-lo-stoccaggio-di-energia-rinnovabile-ora-diventato-realta/ 

Read the entire press release in Italian, here: https://www.fbk.eu/it/press-releases/progetto-hycare-un-approccio-innovativo-per-lo-stoccaggio-di-energia-rinnovabile-ora-diventato-realta/ 

Check out the website: https://hycare-project.eu/category/news/ 

Climate change and massive use of fossil fuels are having visible and tangible effects on the sensitive Alpine region and the beauty of its landscapes. It is sufficient to think of the rise of temperatures of the last two years and the lack of water. AMETHyST overall objective is to support the deployment of local Alpine green hydrogen ecosystems where several green H2 applications are combined on a geographical area with high potential for H2.

This project will pave the way to the implementation of Alpine Hydrogen Valleys and an Alpine post-carbon lifestyle, through the raising of capacities and understanding of public authorities and implementation of pilot projects, with the support of sectoral agencies and innovation clusters.

The Center for Sustainable Energy of the Fondazione Bruno Kessler coordinates the first of three work packages, which aims at raising awareness in the territories involved on the potential of green and low carbon hydrogen in the Alpine area, with a specific attention to the tourist sector. In particular, the researcher Eleonora Cordioli will lead numerous activities including the mapping of initiatives, technologies and economic models involving the production or use of hydrogen in the Alpine areas, and the creation of a platform for the collection and sharing of knowledge acquired as a tool for identifying best practices and development models. Several roundtables and a conference in Trentino will also be organized. These events will involve project partners, but, above all, local stakeholders, and will not only focus on sharing the results of the activities and explore the issues, but also pave the way for local initiatives, opportunities and Hydrogen Valleys and take a step forward towards the decarbonization of the Alpine areas, especially in the tourism sector.

On March 7th and 8th, Luigi Crema, Director of the Center for Sustainable Energy of FBK, and the researchers Eleonora Cordioli, Sara Stemberger and Jacopo de Maigret took part in the kick-off event for AMETHyST in Moûtiers in the French Alps. 

“The launch of the AMETHYST project in Moûtiers was successful!” commented Eleonora Cordioli, researcher at the Centre for Sustainable Energy and WP Leader of AMETHyST “The kick-off meeting was a great opportunity for officially starting the activities and exchanging views with partners. We are confident that the project will help drive the transition towards sustainable Alpine territories, reinforcing the hydrogen value chain and supporting public authorities in developing local energy plans and regional strategies for the deployment of green hydrogen solutions. A step forward to the creation of Alpine H2 ecosystems.”

Luigi Crema, Director of the Centre for Sustainable Energy, reported that “It was a pleasure to support the event in Moûtiers. It has brought together a lot of stakeholders of the hydrogen value chain and several passionate stakeholders to boost hydrogen in several Alpine projects. The workshop/event has highlighted several important and relevant points to accelerate the hydrogen uptake, based on Alpine specific values. First of all, the need to work on innovative business cases, and in parallel to this, the need of incentives to support the realization of an attracting market framework for hydrogen.”

Read the entire press release in English, here: https://magazine.fbk.eu/en/news/amethyst-project-to-develop-local-hydrogen-ecosystems-in-the-alpine-region-kicks-off/

Read the entire press release in Italian, here: https://magazine.fbk.eu/it/news/al-via-il-progetto-amethyst-per-lo-sviluppo-di-ecosistemi-locali-di-idrogeno-nel-territorio-alpino/ 

The war in Ukraine has pointed the attention to the need to think again about energy. Invest in Trentino has decided to start a comprehensive and in-depth study on the subject of energy in the Province of Trento, which foresees different steps: from the analysis of the the strategic guidelines within the Provincial Environmental Energy Plan (PEAP), to the visit of local companies, passing through interviews to research centres to understand the technologies of the future. 

As written in this article, the PEAP is an "important policy document has guided Trentino's energy choices since 1979 and in forty years has grown with the times, adapting to changing needs. The primary goal of the 2021 - 2030 PEAP is to reach the end of the decade with a 55% reduction in the level of climate-changing gas emissions compared to 1990, in order to achieve the total decarbonisation required by the EU in 2050. An ambitious undertaking, which requires the  contribution of everyone, from politicians to entrepreneurs, from industry to civil society."

The Province constructed the Plan with the help of Fondazione Bruno Kessler, the University of Trento and the Fondazione Edmund Mach. 

Within this framework, Invest in Trentino interviewed Luigi Crema - the Director of the Centre for Sustainable Energy, and Diego Viesi - the Head of Sustainable Territories Area.

Luigi Crema explained that the Centre SE "outlined the scenarios through which the Trentino energy system will be able to achieve the decarbonisation targets set by the European Union. Within these scenarios, the technologies in which investments will have to be made were identified as well as how they should be used. All taking into account the necessary costs and the level of decarbonisation brought about by the individual scenario". 

Diego Viesi explained that the Centre SE analysed 15.000 scenarios for 2030 and "150 were deemed optimal to enable the province to achieve precise decarbonisation targets at the lowest possible cost". The Head of Sustainable Territories Area also focused on the tools used, which consisted in the EnergyPLAN software, and the an evolutionary multi-objective algorithm coupled with EnergyPLAN.

Listen to the interviews and read more about the involvement of research centres on the webpage.

Another conference for the Centre for Sustainable Energy of FBK, to conclude a March rich of events!

Luigi Crema, Director of the Centre SE and President of Hydrogen Europe Research, gave the presentation entitles "Priorities for hydrogen R&I in Europe: The perspective of Hydrogen Europe Research" during the session Overview of hydrogen policies, strategies and research activites at the Hydrogen Days 2023.

In the afternoon, Luigi chaired the session Overview of hydrogen research strategies and hydrogen activities which saw the participation of representatives from the University of Birmingham (UK),  New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization NEDO (Japan), Business Sweden (Sweden) and CNRS (France).

The 13th International Conference on Hydrogen Technologies took place in Prague between 29 and 31 March 2023, and is organised by HYTEP - Czech Hydrogen Technology Platform.

Check the programme, at this link.

During the lat week of March, K.EY - the Energy Transition Expo took place in Rimini with its 6 thematic areas: solar, wind, hydrogen expo, efficiency, e-mobility and city. 

Luigi Crema, Director of the Centre for Sustainable Energy, presented the European Context of they Hydrogen Valleys, on March 23.
The presentation was included in the session entitled "Idrogeno verde: dalle tecnologie per la sua produzione all'utilizzo nelle hydrogen valleys [Green Hydrogen: from the the production technologies to its use in the hydrogen valleys]".  The event, chaired by ENEA and H2IT - Associazione Italiana Idrogeno, and gave an overview on the legislation and regulations currently present as well as on the challenges that this energy sector might face.

On the same day, Edoardo Gino Macchi - Head of the Battery Technologies Area of the Centre for Sustainable Energy - participated in the roundtable on the Downstream segment of the Batteries Supply Chain.
The roundtable was part of the session "La filiera nazionale delle batterie: a che punto siamo? [The national supply chain of batteries: where are we?]". The event, chaired by ENEA and MANZ Italia, aimed at presenting the state-of-art of the two Important Project of Common European Interest (IPCEI projects) on batteries, which gathers numerous companies and research centres and cover the whole supply chain.
The discussion involved different stakeholders and was divided in two session: the first on the Upstream segment (raw materials and production) and on recycling, the second on the Downstream segment (Manufacturing and Application).

The K.EY Fair provides a comprehensive showcase for technologies, integrated solutions and services that can guide the energy transition towards a carbon-neutral economy, giving the opportunity to stakeholders, players and leaders in the renewable energy sector to meet and communicate with each other.

Check the programme, at this link.

A seminar on the new challenges set by smart mobility and energy transition tool place yesterday, Thursday 23 March, in Rovereto at Progetto Manifattura.

The event “Euregio Smart Mobility & Energy” was organised by Trentino Sviluppo and the Standortagentur Tirol, in collaboration with the Enterprise Europe Network, to strengthen the entrepreneurial culture and the exchange of best practices among different EU countries.  

The seminar saw the participation of seven South Tyrolean companies and fifteen from Trentino-Alto Adige, which dealt with numerous topics such as electric cars, smart railways, hydrogen, and batteries, and developed the basis for future projects of open innovation.

The Centre for Sustainable Energy of FBK was also present with the researchers Edoardo Gino Macchi, Head of Area Battery Technologies, and Matteo Testi, Head of the Area Hydrogen Technologies. The research activities realised in Trentino in the field of “New technologies for the decarbonisation of mobility and energy systems: focus on batteries and hydrogen" have been presented.

In relation to the initiative, the Assessor for Economic Development, research and work Achille Spinelli commented: "Over the last year, the Province has invested significant amounts of money to modernize public transport and replace the vehicle fleet with innovative models with low environmental impact and has gladly taken up the European challenge to create a Hydrogen Valley in abandoned industrial areas. Furthermore, new hydrogen research spaces are in preparation in Rovereto for the SE Center of the Kessler Foundation. But for the success of these initiatives, it is necessary to build supply chains, in which small and medium-sized enterprises are also direct protagonists alongside the big players. My hope, therefore, is that this is only the first of many other collaboration opportunities among companies from the different Euregio territories".

See the agenda of the event at this link.

Read the entire press release at this link (in Italian): https://trentinosviluppo.it/it/ELE0017232/mobilita-intelligente-ed-energie-pulite-nelleuregio-oggi-lincontro-a-rovereto

and here: https://www.ufficiostampa.provincia.tn.it/Comunicati/Mobilita-intelligente-ed-energie-pulite-nell-Euregio-oggi-l-incontro-a-Rovereto 

[The above press release is a translation of the Italian versions released by Trentino Sviluppo and the Autonomous Province of Trento (see link above). Photos taken from the archive of Trentino Sviluppo]

“We, undersigned stakeholders, hereby join efforts to support and accelerate the research, development, demonstration and deployment of Hydrogen Valleys and the related infrastructure […] to achieve the targets set in the European Hydrogen Strategy and REPowerEU and pave the way towards a climate-neutral, circular, competitive, and energy-secure economy in Europe.”

This sentence concludes the Joint Declaration on Hydrogen Valleys signed on 1 March 2023 by the Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, Mariya Gabriel (on behalf of the European Commission), the CEO of Hydrogen Europe Jorgo Chatzimarkakis, the President of Hydrogen Europe Research Luigi Crema and the co-leader of S3 European Hydrogen Valleys Partnership Tjisse Stelpstra.

The document entitled “Moving the hydrogen economy from niche to scale” strengthens the EU strategy on hydrogen adopted by the EU Commission in 2020, and indicates the commitment of the European hydrogen industry, the scientific community, and European regions, together with the European Commission, to collaborate in:

1. Reinforcing the research and innovation agenda for clean hydrogen by providing a strategic framework aimed at accelerating the development and deployment of Hydrogen Valleys,

2. Encouraging continued investments in research and innovation for clean hydrogen technologies including via the Clean Hydrogen Joint Undertaking under Horizon Europe,

3. Maximising funding impact by working together to strengthen synergies,

4. Promoting knowledge sharing and partner matchmaking to build on the existing experience and accelerate successful development of new projects,

5. Stimulating the development of education and training for skills, building on the existing initiatives across the EU, and

6. Spearheading the development of Hydrogen Valleys as steppingstones to incubate and grow a European – and by extension global – hydrogen economy.

The ceremony took place in Brussels, at the Autoworld Museum, during “Repowering EU with Hydrogen Valleys: showcasing innovative solutions”, an high-level event that gathered more than 300 stakeholders from the hydrogen community to show support for the EU research and innovation for a clean energy transition and end dependence on Russian fossil fuels.

As reported in the EU article “Hydrogen Valleys strategic for the autonomy of the EU” the Commissioner Mariya Gabriel stated that “Renewable hydrogen plays a strategic role for our autonomy and we have to accelerate our path to foster a new growth. It is the momentum to move our renewable hydrogen economy from niche to scale”.

On Hydrogen Valleys, Luigi Crema - the President of Hydrogen Europe Research, said: “The European research community directly supports Hydrogen Valleys by helping their replication and their technological improvement (notably through digitalisation and hybridisation with energy communities). We also ensure that lessons learned are transferred, we support the training of the future hydrogen workforce, and we engage with European citizens”.

Read the article on the EU Commission website: https://research-and-innovation.ec.europa.eu/news/all-research-and-innovation-news/hydrogen-valleys-strategic-autonomy-eu-2023-03-01_en

Read the Joint Declaration on Hydrogen Europe Research: https://hydrogeneuroperesearch.eu/joint-declaration-on-hydrogen-valleys-march-1-2023/

Read the news on Hydrogen Europe: https://hydrogeneurope.eu/joint-declaration-signed-on-hydrogen-valleys/

On 27 February 2023, the Hydrogen Italian Association - H2IT met the the Deputy Minister Valentino Valentini. 

The meeting pointed the attention on the hydrogen supply chain in Italy, which is increasingly capable of providing innovative technologies and systems along the entire value chain, and make Italy independent in the energy sector and a leader in the green economy. 

As reported in H2IT press release, a key topic is therefore the development of the hydrogen market in Italy and the need for a national strategy.  The Association proposed to the Deputy Minister the creation of a interministerial table focused on hydrogen, and Valentini confirmed his interest in the topic!

Hydrogen has been identified by the EU Commission as one of the crucial sector  reach the zero-emission target. During the meeting, H2IT underlined how Italy can become a strategic hub with a key role in the European context. This can give a new push to the competitiveness of companies which, however, should be supported by a parallel development in the laws and regulations. A clear and commonly agreed framework is needed to promote investments on the Italian territory. 

The Association reports that the Deputy Minister underlined the importance of synergies between the European policies on energy and the strengths of the Italian system, in order to maximise the investments done. 

Luigi Crema, Vice President of Hydrogen Italian Association, states that "H2IT reaffirms its support of the institutions in outlining the strategic initiative to support the development of the Italian supply chain. We will continue to offer our experience and knowledge of the sector to the Government and to all the institutions that, like us, believe in this fundamental energy carrier"

Read the press release on H2IT website (in Italian): https://www.h2it.it/h2it-ha-incontrato-il-viceministro-delle-imprese-e-made-in-italy-valentino-valentini/ 

Read the article of Quotidiano Energia (in Italian): https://www.quotidianoenergia.it/module/news/page/entry/id/488979/h2it-creare-un-tavolo-interministeriale-sullidrogeno

Read the article of HydroNews (in Italian): https://hydronews.it/h2it-incontra-il-viceministro-valentini-imprese-e-made-in-italy-e-propone-un-tavolo-interministeriale-sullidrogeno/

By 2035, gasoline and diesel vehicles should disappear from the automotive market. This is the target set by the EU Commission for the decarbonisation of the transport sector. 

In the interview given to "L'Adige", Edoardo Macchi states that it is "an ambitious date, but the plan is feasible".

The researcher and Head of the Battery Technologies Area at the Centre for Sustainable Energy of FBK deals with the development of innovative batteries for mobility and stationary applications. Edoardo Gino Macchi underlines the importance of incentives to support companies and citizens in the transition, while a change of skills will be needed in the manufacturing sector where batteries are the cornerstone of this revolution. 

An important element outlined by the researcher is the lack of materials in Europe, which does not allow us to be independent from Asian countries, such as China. This is the reason for the creation of the two Important Projects of Common European Interest (IPCEI) on Batteries which aim at supporting the development of a competitive, innovative and sustainable battery value chain in the EU. 

The Head of the Battery Technologies Area stated that with the gradual increase of renewable energy, it will be a must to have batteries capable of long-duration storage such as flow batteries and other technologies (lithium-ion batteries are not the best solution for durations greater than 6 hours). 

Another important topic regards the use of lithium-ion batteries batteries in the mobility sector. It is fundamental to give them a second life at the end of their use in vehicles. The batteries can be re-used for the stationary storage allowing a complete usage of the batteries and reducing their environmental impact. The Centre for Sustainable Energy is working on projects related to the second-life and recycling, which is a fundamental topic for Europe that is lacking precious metals used in Li-ion batteries and would therefore be less dependent on other countries. 

Here, it is possible to read the entire article (in Italian).

(v.l.) Luigi Crema, HER’s first Italian president, commented on the appointment that officially took place this morning:
“It is with great enthusiasm that I welcome my appointment as president of Hydrogen Europe Research. It is an honor to provide support to the European program of the Clean Hydrogen Partnership by representing our members who have placed their trust in me. This appointment comes at a very important time for the hydrogen sector, which is emerging as a real prospect for a new market between now and the next few years. I will make every effort to bring attention, at the European level, to the need to think about the future and the next technologies, but also to the need to continue to team up with and systematize the various stakeholders in the field of industry, politics and business, to accelerate the grounding of what has been done so far in a timely manner. This is also an important achievement for the national context, as well as for the visibility that FBK will have at the European and global level.”

This morning's appointment concerns the most important European research organization in the field of hydrogen. Comprising more than 130 international universities and research centers, Hydrogen Europe Research manages under the Clean Hydrogen Partnership – along with Hydrogen Europe (for the industrial sector) and the European Commission – a €1.2 billion program.