YOUR PhD IN FREIBERG!

Dr. Katja Heise develops bio-based membranes and sensors

Portrait of guest reseracher Dr. Katja Heise

The Technische Universität Bergakademie Freiberg is a modern university of resources and research. With its unique profile it ranks among the most recognised higher educational institutions in Germany. Strong academic disciplines work together on the urgent future topics of today: the sustainable, secure and efficient supply of resources, materials and energy.

The TUBAF is the oldest university for mining, metallurgy and materials science in the world. Today, its science- and technology-oriented research fields encompass the entire value chain – from the exploration of new deposits to the development of alternative energy engineering and materials to recycling.

In order that innovative ideas can quickly utilize economically, our university also supports the spin-off of new enterprises. Through close collaboration with institutions of regional and supra-regional business development as well as the start-up network SAXEED, the TUBAF has been certified as role model by German Association of Sponsors of Arts and Science.

The TUBAF considers the support of young academics as one of its most important responsibilities. The Graduate and Research Academy keeps available for all doctoral candidates of the university special offers for the development of their scientific career. Its multifaceted consulting service is used especially by the doctoral candidates from abroad. State-of-the-art labs and pilot plants allow top level research at the highest international stage. As a campus university, the university provides short distances, spatial proximity and the shared use of special facilities. This supports the collaboration between faculties and fosters interdisciplinary research projects.

The TUBAF is certified as family-friendly university and has signed the “Charter Family in University” and thus joined the “Best Practice Club” of family-oriented German universities.

If you are aiming for a doctorate at the TUBAF, you can start your research here: https://tu-freiberg.de/en/grafa

With a postdoctoral fellowship from the Academy of Finland, Dr. Katja Heise as a visiting scientist at the Institute for Electronics and Sensor Materials (IESM) of TU Bergakademie Freiberg develops innovative materials made of nanocellulose and nanochitin.

“I am a networker. I enjoy working with colleagues across countries and disciplines on new scientific approaches. Networking is essential for researchers in the early stage of their careers”, says the young scientist, who normally researches at Aalto University in Finland. Until March 2022, she would like to transfer her knowledge on biopolymers from renewable raw materials to Freiberg and, together with the team around Prof. Yvonne Joseph, develop new membranes and sensors made from cellulose and chitin.

Bio-based materials for a wide range of applications

“The contact came through my doctoral supervisor Prof. Steffen Fischer at TU Dresden”, says the food chemist. Since her time as a graduate student, she has been interested in the question of how wood and plant components can be used as starting materials for industrial applications. To do this, she specifically changes the chemical structures and properties of the bio-nanomaterials creating innovative materials with tailored properties. The water-binding cellulose becomes, for example, a sensor that can display moisture even at low concentrations. “The surface conductivity of modified nanocellulose can be used specifically in sensor technology. The mechanisms behind are currently a very popular topic internationally!” says Dr. Katja Heise. In the future, bio-based materials could reduce the proportion of mineral raw materials in sensor applications or replace them completely. Due to their flexibility, biopolymers are also used in portable sensors or energy generators, so-called “electronic skins” or “wearables”.

“Unleash your full potential”

Dr. Katja Heise has brought the building blocks for the design of the new bio-based materials from Finland to Germany. “At Aalto University, my colleagues and I produce nanomaterials from wood or plant components in the laboratory. Here at the IESM, the materials meet the expertise in sensor and membrane technology as well as great measurement techniques and can, thus, develop their full potential,” says the visiting scientist. “Together with the team, we integrate the bionanomaterials into material applications – with interdisciplinary and innovative concepts.”

Together with her host in Freiberg, Dr. Katja Heise is planning further joint projects and hopes for an extension of the guest stay at TU Bergakademie Freiberg. She particularly appreciates the integrative collaboration with researchers from all over the world at her home university in Finland.

How does material fail?

Visiting researcher Tseng Shao-Chen analyses the deformation of composites

With a scholarship from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) for doctoral students from Taiwan, Tseng Shao-Chen, PhD candidate in mechanical engineering, is investigating how cracks form in advanced steel composites and what happens when the material can no longer withstand loads. At the National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, the doctoral student is creating simulations and theoretical methods for failure analyses for composite materials. “To further sharpen my profile, I was looking for an opportunity as a guest scientist at a research institution in Europe,” Tseng Shao-Chen says. He found what he was looking for at the Institute of Metal Forming of the Technische Universität Bergakademie Freiberg: “The laboratory of the Steel & Heavy Metals Group offers the unique opportunity to subject steels to various loading conditions. With the help of the experiments, I can validate the findings obtained via computer simulation and use them to create a model for making predictions about the material’s strength” explains the doctoral student, who is about to complete his PhD soon. “I am particularly interested in the circumstances under which the formation of a crack begins.”

Research in an international environment

“The team around Prof. Ulrich Prahl is more international and subject-specific than I am acquainted with from my home university in Taipei,” says Tseng Shao-Chen. In his opinion, this allows research questions to be solved more quickly. He also appreciates the inviting atmosphere at the institute, the university and the small town of Freiberg: “I am happy to be able to exchange ideas with colleagues from various nationalities. Also, I really enjoy being able to ride my bike to work“, he stated.

The start-up “Additive Drives”, founded in 2020 in Dresden, has developed a process for manufacturing high-performance electric motors using 3D printing methods. Among the four company founders are a graduate and a doctoral student of the TUBAF.

With their products, the engineers achieve an optimal adaptation of the electric motors to their respective requirements at the place of use and an increase in performance of up to 45 percent compared to motors from conventional production.

The founding team owes its know-how, among other things, to the education at the TUBAF in the degree course “Automotive Construction: Materials and Components” as well as the student project “Racetech Racing Team”, in which electric racing cars are designed and manufactured for the international competition “Formula Student”. Actually, TUBAF’s Racetech Racing Team holds the 4th place in the Formula Student World Ranking.