New director at the Institute for Sustainable Hydrogen Economy
Dr.-Ing. Andreas Peschel will become director of the Process and Plant Engineering for Chemical Hydrogen Storage (INW-4) department. Foto: Forschungszentrum/Peschel
A key position at the new Institute for Sustainable Hydrogen Economy (INW) at Forschungszentrum Jülich will soon be filled. On 1 March, process engineer Dr.-Ing. Andreas Peschel will become director of the Process and Plant Engineering for Chemical Hydrogen Storage (INW-4) department. Peschel currently heads the research and development department for chemical engineering at Linde Engineering. INW is the core of the Helmholtz Hydrogen Cluster (HC-H2). The goal of the structural change project is to develop the Rhenish mining area into a hydrogen model region with global appeal. In doing so new jobs are to be created in the climate-neutral energy industry of the future. Andreas Peschel plays a vital role in this.
"I am a process engineer. Clean plants and sustainable technologies were my motivation back then for my studies at RWTH Aachen University. That's why I feel deeply connected to the topics of energy transition and hydrogen," says Andreas Peschel about his motives for moving to Jülich from one of the leading industrial gas and plant engineering companies in Germany. "The task of helping to build up a new institute is very appealing. The INW is extremely well positioned, and the strengths of the research centre in the field of hydrogen are incorporated here. The proximity to RWTH Aachen University is another important advantage of the location."
With his future appointment, Peschel will simultaneously assume a W3 professorship at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at RWTH Aachen University for the Department of Process and Plant Engineering for Chemical Hydrogen Storage and will become a member of the Aachen Process Engineering Chair Network. "We work both on basic research and on the commercialisation of the various chemical storage methods for hydrogen. It really excites me to build such an interface in such an important process as the structural change in the Rhenish mining area."
The transfer of hydrogen storage technologies from research to the market is currently also Peschel's responsibility at Linde. "We are delighted that we have succeeded in recruiting Andreas Peschel, a top figure from the German hydrogen industry, for our new institute. His know-how will add a great deal of momentum to the development towards a climate-friendly hydrogen economy of the future," says INW founding director Prof. Peter Wasserscheid. "He has shown in his previous role at Linde that he can advance the research and application of hydrogen storage technology.
Andreas Peschel is 40 years old, married and the father of two children. The INW is extremely well positioned, and the strengths of the research centre in the field of hydrogen are incorporated here. The proximity to RWTH Aachen University is another important advantage of the location."
With his future appointment, Peschel will simultaneously assume a W3 professorship at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at RWTH Aachen University for the Department of Process and Plant Engineering for Chemical Hydrogen Storage and will become a member of the Aachen Process Engineering Chair Network. "We work both on basic research and on the commercialisation of the various chemical storage methods for hydrogen. It really excites me to build such an interface in such an important process as the structural change in the Rhenish Revier."
The transfer of hydrogen storage technologies from research to the market is currently also Peschel's responsibility at Linde. "We are delighted that we have succeeded in recruiting Andreas Peschel, a top figure from the German hydrogen industry, for our new institute. His know-how will add a great deal of momentum to the development towards a climate-friendly hydrogen economy of the future," says INW founding director Prof. Peter Wasserscheid. "He has shown in his previous role at Linde that he can advance the research and application of hydrogen technologies at the highest level."
One of the first tasks facing the process engineer will be to build up the team for his institute area INW-4. Peschel wants to start strengthening the network of hydrogen stakeholders in the Rhenish Revier as soon as possible. It will be important to respond to the needs of the partners from research, administration, business and industry. "It's not just about showing that a technology works from a scientific point of view. Companies must be able th make money. Otherwise it won't catch on. And that is exactly our goal: for climate-neutral energy technologies to assert themselves on the market."
About Andreas Peschel
Andreas Peschel is 40 years old, married and the father of two children. He studied process engineering at RWTH Aachen University, then moved to the Max Planck Institute for the Dynamics of Complex Technical Systems in Magdeburg and completed his doctorate at Otto von Guericke University there. In 2012, after completing his doctorate, he moved to Linde, where he has headed the Chemical Technology R&D department since the beginning of 2020.