Dr. Paul Gantenbein

There is a lack of knowledge on the lifetime assessment of modern solar selective absorbers. In the project ColourAge, the performance and durability of different aluminium based coatings are studied. The combined effect of high humidity, condensation and temperature on the degradation of optical and chemical properties is assessed. Advanced techniques for materials characterization were used to identify the main degradation mechanisms: surface/interface (XPS, TEM) and chemical (EDX) analysis, as well as optical measurements (UV-Vis-NIR and FTIR spectroscopy).

Sorption heat pumps can provide cooling based on renewable district heat or waste heat, thus expanding the scope of district heating networks (DHN) and making better use of existing renewable heat sources. On the other hand, sorption heat pumps in district heat transfer stations can also provide heat while significantly reducing the return flow of the district heating network compared to a station with ordinary heat exchanger. This increases the efficiency of district heating supply. However, commercially available sorption machines are not designed for DHN. Therefore, new sorption materials, ideally suited to the temperatures and applications in district heating networks, are being developed and incorporated in a heat & mass exchanger designed for reversible adsorption heat pumps.