Thermochemistry

Many promising energy conversion and storage processes are operated at high temperatures ranging from several 100 °C to over 1000 °C. The production and recycling of energy materials also often require corresponding temperatures. Under these conditions, thermochemistry and thermophysics of the materials and the involved media, as well as their interactions, have a significant influence on the determination of the process parameters. In this context, the research focus is set on the inorganic components, e.g. ashes of biogenic fuels, ceramic and metallic functional and construction materials, or salts for thermal energy storage.

The research activities usually combine fundamentals and application. On the one hand, thermochemical and thermophysical properties of gaseous and condensed phases (e.g. phase equilibria, thermodynamic data, vapour pressure, viscosity, surface tension) of application-relevant systems are experimentally determined, modelled and made available in databases for further use. On the other hand, the behaviour of materials and media (e.g. thermochemical stability, evaporation, slagging) and their interactions (e.g. corrosion, sorption) are experimentally investigated under defined, process-relevant conditions and modelled, for which, among others, in-house models and databases developed for this purpose are used. The results enable a knowledge-based selection of suitable materials, media and parameters for the various applications.

The experimental equipment, which is unique especially in its combination, allows both the reliable determination of material data and investigations under practical conditions.