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GREEN TECH MAGAZINE<br />
<strong>December</strong> <strong>2017</strong><br />
Visionary Grätzel cells provide power<br />
to the world’s 1 st <strong>en</strong>ergy glass tower<br />
Photo: Beat Schweizer<br />
Predictive maint<strong>en</strong>ance is booming<br />
in the field of gre<strong>en</strong> machine and plant <strong>en</strong>gineering<br />
New upcycling process for<br />
high-quality recycled plastic materials
2 CONTENT<br />
04<br />
DEAR READERS,<br />
The world’s 1st in gre<strong>en</strong> tech. The companies<br />
in the <strong>Gre<strong>en</strong></strong> <strong>Tech</strong> Valley and the<br />
<strong>Gre<strong>en</strong></strong> <strong>Tech</strong> Cluster have their sights<br />
firmly set on technology leadership in<br />
the field of <strong>en</strong>vironm<strong>en</strong>tal technology.<br />
With the Sci<strong>en</strong>ce Tower in Graz, this<br />
has once again be<strong>en</strong> prov<strong>en</strong> impressively:<br />
For the first time in the world, the<br />
Grätzel cell is being used as a transpar<strong>en</strong>t<br />
<strong>en</strong>ergy glass for power g<strong>en</strong>eration<br />
on a large scale. A milestone in the<br />
scaling of this technology by Global<br />
Energy Prize Winner <strong>2017</strong> Prof. Michael<br />
Grätzel, implem<strong>en</strong>ted by a pioneering<br />
Styrian company.<br />
The world‘s largest pumped storage<br />
power plant with its technological heart<br />
from Styria sets ‘world‘s 1st’ standards,<br />
as does the plastics recycling<br />
qualities that became possible thanks<br />
to a ‘gre<strong>en</strong> tal<strong>en</strong>t’.<br />
The path to technological innovation<br />
is changing. This <strong>Gre<strong>en</strong></strong> <strong>Tech</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong><br />
provides the tools you need to develop<br />
agile and user-c<strong>en</strong>tric products and<br />
services and reports on growth opportunities<br />
made possible by predictive<br />
maint<strong>en</strong>ance and more sustainable<br />
building use through building information<br />
modelling.<br />
We hope you will be able to draw<br />
much inspiration for your next ‘world‘s<br />
1st’ project.<br />
Bernhard Puttinger<br />
<strong>Gre<strong>en</strong></strong> <strong>Tech</strong> Cluster Styria<br />
Team<br />
09<br />
Two world premieres<br />
at the self-suffici<strong>en</strong>t<br />
Sci<strong>en</strong>ce Tower in Graz<br />
Page 04<br />
Building information modelling<br />
for gre<strong>en</strong> optimisation<br />
and growth<br />
Page 06<br />
World news:<br />
Largest pumped-storage power<br />
plant & more<br />
Page 09<br />
Quality recycled material for<br />
new value creation processes<br />
Page 11<br />
AT/028/014<br />
Please collect used<br />
paper for recycling<br />
Legal Notice: Media owner and publisher: <strong>Gre<strong>en</strong></strong> <strong>Tech</strong> Cluster Styria GmbH, Waagner-Biro-Straße 100, 8020 Graz, Austria, Tel.:<br />
+43 316 40 77 44-0, welcome@gre<strong>en</strong>tech.at, www.gre<strong>en</strong>tech.at. Cont<strong>en</strong>t and project managem<strong>en</strong>t: Andreas<br />
Pomp<strong>en</strong>ig, Bernhard Puttinger | Production: Die Steirerin Verlags GmbH & Co KG, Schubertstraße 29/1, 8010 Graz,<br />
Tel.: +43 316 84 12 12-0, www.diesteirerin.at | Print: Medi<strong>en</strong>fabrik Graz GmbH, www.mfg.at<br />
06<br />
10<br />
Latest<br />
Highlights<br />
The Styrian waste managem<strong>en</strong>t<br />
industry’s ‘Rund geht’s’<br />
recycling campaign<br />
Page 10<br />
Predictive maint<strong>en</strong>ance<br />
for gre<strong>en</strong> machines &<br />
plants is booming<br />
Page 14<br />
11<br />
14<br />
The print is according to the<br />
rules „Druckerzeugnisse“<br />
of the Austrian Ecolabel,<br />
Medi<strong>en</strong>fabrik Graz, UW-Nr. 812<br />
Credits: Harry Schiffer, Alexander Koch, Dr. Michael Grobbauer, SFL technologies GmbH, dieindustrie.at/Mathias Kniepeiss, autodesk, provided
World News<br />
GREEN TECH MAGAZINE 3<br />
A record year for r<strong>en</strong>ewables<br />
In the curr<strong>en</strong>t World Energy Outlook published by the International<br />
Energy Ag<strong>en</strong>cy (IEA), solar power was the form of electricity<br />
g<strong>en</strong>eration with the strongest capacity growth worldwide in<br />
2016, especially in China and India. R<strong>en</strong>ewables have overtak<strong>en</strong><br />
gas as the second most important source of power in 2016. According<br />
to the IEA, global use of r<strong>en</strong>ewable <strong>en</strong>ergies will increase<br />
by a further 43 % by 2022. Furthermore, the growth of r<strong>en</strong>ewable<br />
<strong>en</strong>ergies will be twice as high as that of gas and coal combined.<br />
www.iea.org/r<strong>en</strong>ewables<br />
Graphic: 40 % of the <strong>en</strong>ergy produced across the globe is used for<br />
heating which also holds the most pot<strong>en</strong>tial for economical applications<br />
on the way to a heat <strong>en</strong>ergy transition.<br />
Global outlook:<br />
R<strong>en</strong>ewable Power<br />
R<strong>en</strong>ewable heat<br />
R<strong>en</strong>ewable mobility<br />
2016 2022<br />
24 % 30 %<br />
9 % 11 %<br />
4 % 4,5 %<br />
Energy revolution in China<br />
The rapid economic growth of the People‘s Republic of China over<br />
the past decades has contributed to serious <strong>en</strong>vironm<strong>en</strong>tal pollution.<br />
In order to counteract the high level of air pollution, it was not<br />
until October <strong>2017</strong> that more than 176,000 factories and 44,000<br />
coal-fired power plants, which did not meet the specified emission<br />
targets, had to cease operations. Furthermore, the curr<strong>en</strong>t fiveyear<br />
plan is int<strong>en</strong>ded to yield a u-turn. The aim is, among other<br />
things, to reduce CO 2<br />
emissions/GDP by 18 %, to reduce <strong>en</strong>ergy<br />
consumption/GDP by 15 % and water consumption/GDP by 23 %.<br />
german.china.org.cn<br />
The world’s first floating wind farm<br />
The Hywind Scotland Pilot Park, 25 kilometres off the Scottish<br />
coastal town of Peterhead, is the world‘s first floating wind farm.<br />
According to Norwegian <strong>en</strong>ergy group Statoil, the plant serves as<br />
a model for a new type of offshore wind farm, which offers a major<br />
advantage over conv<strong>en</strong>tional plants. Wind turbines with a fixed<br />
foundation can no longer be used from a water depth of 50 metres.<br />
Worldwide, 95 % of all coastal areas are therefore unsuitable for<br />
stationary wind farms. www.statoil.com<br />
Credits: statoil.com, Shutterstock<br />
World-wide emission trade under discussion<br />
The world must do something to get the rising CO 2<br />
emissions under<br />
control. This was also one of the major topics at the World Climate<br />
Confer<strong>en</strong>ce in Bonn. A possible important step in this direction<br />
would be to merge the emissions trading markets of the European<br />
Union and the US state of California. Initial talks on this matter took<br />
place in Brussels betwe<strong>en</strong> EU Climate Commissioner Miguel Arias<br />
Cañete and California’s Governor Jerry Brown. The aim would be<br />
to establish a kind of institution that could also be joined by other<br />
states and provinces. www.eu-umweltbuero.at
4<br />
A beacon for<br />
gre<strong>en</strong> technology<br />
The future is being<br />
redesigned at Smart City<br />
Graz. The Sci<strong>en</strong>ce Tower, for<br />
whose construction Grätzel<br />
<strong>en</strong>ergy glass was used on<br />
a large scale for the first<br />
time in the world, forms the<br />
technological heart.<br />
The building shows how<br />
intellig<strong>en</strong>tly and sustainably<br />
gre<strong>en</strong> tech can alter our<br />
urban <strong>en</strong>vironm<strong>en</strong>t.<br />
Graz in Austria is growing constantly, and it needs<br />
smart planning to be able to master the future’s<br />
chall<strong>en</strong>ges. In Smart City Graz, a district is being<br />
created close to the main station which promises<br />
just that. Urban structures are being re-imagined,<br />
existing buildings are being consolidated and the<br />
new living space is being connected to a good<br />
public transport network. Intellig<strong>en</strong>t building and<br />
façade technology doing their work quietly in the<br />
background turn the buildings into power plants<br />
whose electricity is used up within the district itself.<br />
This district’s beacon project and literal beacon is<br />
the Sci<strong>en</strong>ce Tower which has be<strong>en</strong> op<strong>en</strong>ed rec<strong>en</strong>tly.<br />
Costing 16 million Euros and standing 60 metres<br />
tall, the tower serves as the world’s first power load<br />
tower that – in its function of a ‘living lab’ – links<br />
research, developm<strong>en</strong>t and industry. It furthermore
GREEN TECH MAGAZINE 5<br />
INNOVATIVE. The<br />
Sci<strong>en</strong>ce Tower has<br />
be<strong>en</strong> designed as a<br />
‘Living Lab’. It links<br />
research, developm<strong>en</strong>t<br />
and industry.<br />
Credits: Harry Schiffer<br />
houses the <strong>Gre<strong>en</strong></strong> <strong>Tech</strong> Cluster and other<br />
companies dealing in topics pertaining to a<br />
gre<strong>en</strong> future.<br />
100 % r<strong>en</strong>ewable <strong>en</strong>ergy<br />
From a technological view the Sci<strong>en</strong>ce Tower<br />
is a project used to demonstrate urban technology<br />
aimed at ‘zero emissions’, says Smart<br />
City Graz Project Manager Kai-Uwe Hoffer.<br />
The project’s objective is to supply the city of<br />
Graz with power from the region produced<br />
from r<strong>en</strong>ewable sources by 2050. The Sci<strong>en</strong>ce<br />
Tower is part of a local power and <strong>en</strong>ergy<br />
network which also includes the large<br />
solar power system running at the premises<br />
of SFL technologies in Stallhof<strong>en</strong> (SFL <strong>en</strong>ergrid).<br />
Using the heat storage system b<strong>en</strong>eath<br />
the building and heat pumps, the tower’s <strong>en</strong>tire<br />
<strong>en</strong>ergy demand can be covered with solar<br />
power, says Mario Müller from SFL technologies.<br />
First large-scale use of Grätzel cells<br />
Power is mostly g<strong>en</strong>erated through the <strong>en</strong>ergy<br />
glass which converts (sun) light into electrical<br />
<strong>en</strong>ergy. Contrary to traditional photovoltaic<br />
cells, the <strong>en</strong>ergy glass of this Grätzel cell<br />
is dye-s<strong>en</strong>sitised. Its creator, Swiss researcher<br />
Michael Grätzel, inv<strong>en</strong>ted the principle in the<br />
early 1990s. Similar to photosynthesis, his cells<br />
convert sunlight into <strong>en</strong>ergy using a dye. The<br />
glass consists of two coated adjac<strong>en</strong>t panes<br />
of glass with the gap in betwe<strong>en</strong> filled with a<br />
coloured electrolyte. Thus, it can receive light<br />
“Without a doubt, the Sci<strong>en</strong>ce Tower<br />
will become a magnet –<br />
and not just for Europe but<br />
for the <strong>en</strong>tire world.“<br />
Prof. Michael Grätzel,<br />
Swiss researcher and winner of the<br />
Global Energy Prize <strong>2017</strong><br />
from both sides. Never before have Grätzel<br />
cells be<strong>en</strong> used at such a large scale as on the<br />
Sci<strong>en</strong>ce Tower. The raw material is produced<br />
in Switzerland, refined in St. Marein in Styria,<br />
while the compon<strong>en</strong>ts are prepared for installation<br />
at Stallhof<strong>en</strong>. Researchers are already<br />
working on the next g<strong>en</strong>eration of Grätzel<br />
cells. These are expected to achieve a degree<br />
of effici<strong>en</strong>cy of more than 20 %.<br />
The new sun-powered clock tower<br />
In the summer, the heat produced by the façade<br />
technology is routed into the ground<br />
via the geothermal system using twelve geothermal<br />
probes with a depth of 200 metres<br />
and a l<strong>en</strong>gth of 2.4 kilometres each. Come<br />
winter, the heat is retrieved from the ground<br />
and increased to heating temperature by the<br />
heat pumps. Another special feature of the<br />
Sci<strong>en</strong>ce Tower is the use of special thin glass<br />
in a large format suitable for buildings and its<br />
moving sun protection system in the façade<br />
which orbits the tower once every 24 hours.<br />
It supplies optimal power yield, provides<br />
shade for the office space and – just like a<br />
sun dial – shows the time, too. “That probably<br />
makes the Sci<strong>en</strong>ce Tower the clock tower<br />
of the right hand bank of the Mur River and<br />
of the digital age,” Mario Müller states with<br />
a smirk.<br />
Building managem<strong>en</strong>t 4.0<br />
Talking about digital: Thanks to building information<br />
modelling (BIM) – a sort of 4.0 in<br />
building managem<strong>en</strong>t – the tower’s building<br />
technology is controlled digitally. Using this<br />
technology, a twin of the Sci<strong>en</strong>ce Tower is<br />
created that can be used to simulate many<br />
things: Incid<strong>en</strong>ce of light, assembly processes,<br />
facility managem<strong>en</strong>t and of course costs.<br />
BIM is an <strong>en</strong>ormous help, because changes<br />
in such a large building usually have other effects<br />
and the error redundancy is great. It<br />
is therefore important to work digitally on<br />
the correction of error chains. For ultimately,<br />
several buildings at Smart City are to act as<br />
g<strong>en</strong>erators in the future, mini power plants<br />
that will form a large power plant wh<strong>en</strong> combined.<br />
www.smartcitygraz.at<br />
info.sci<strong>en</strong>ce-tower.at
6<br />
BIM – Construction<br />
industry 4.0 as a<br />
growth pot<strong>en</strong>tial<br />
From planning to dismantling: Building Information Modeling (BIM)<br />
makes buildings transpar<strong>en</strong>t.<br />
architects who define façade elem<strong>en</strong>ts or<br />
other compon<strong>en</strong>ts within the framework<br />
of possible parameters. The data is automated<br />
and machine-readable and provides<br />
an ideal basis for mass customised<br />
compon<strong>en</strong>ts.<br />
According to Michael Monsberger from<br />
the Graz University of <strong>Tech</strong>nology, BIM is<br />
already being used in official construction<br />
procedures in Singapore. Instead of a 2D<br />
plan, one can also submit BIM data. Based<br />
on the parametric design model, one can<br />
also carry out automatic tests, for example,<br />
to <strong>en</strong>sure compliance with standards<br />
or other rules.<br />
Building Information Modeling (BIM)<br />
is the continuous use of a digital building<br />
model throughout its <strong>en</strong>tire life cycle, from<br />
planning to dismantling. BIM will bring fundam<strong>en</strong>tal<br />
changes but also opportunities<br />
that should be exploited for all players in<br />
the construction industry. At the mom<strong>en</strong>t<br />
there is no obligation to carry out projects<br />
according to the BIM method, but the<br />
perc<strong>en</strong>tage of BIM projects is on the rise<br />
nonetheless. In addition to geometric information<br />
(3D) many other data (‘BIM dim<strong>en</strong>sions’)<br />
are incorporated into a BIM<br />
model and are ideally available in a clear<br />
and consist<strong>en</strong>t manner. If this digital data<br />
is used consist<strong>en</strong>tly throughout all phases<br />
of the building‘s life cycle, a significant increase<br />
in productivity and quality as well<br />
as error prev<strong>en</strong>tion can be achieved. The<br />
dim<strong>en</strong>sions of BIM range from the integration<br />
of aspects such as time (4D), costs<br />
(5D), sustainability (6D) to facility managem<strong>en</strong>t<br />
(7D).<br />
BIM conquers global markets<br />
BIM models are refined over the course of<br />
the differ<strong>en</strong>t project phases. A BIM model<br />
always consists of geometric and nongeometric<br />
information. The level of detail<br />
(LoD) describes the geometric requirem<strong>en</strong>ts<br />
for compon<strong>en</strong>ts, while the level of<br />
information (LOI) describes the degree<br />
and scope of alphanumeric information.<br />
For compon<strong>en</strong>t manufacturers such as<br />
producers of v<strong>en</strong>tilation systems or heat<br />
g<strong>en</strong>erators, the chall<strong>en</strong>ge will be to create<br />
their digital compon<strong>en</strong>ts (BIM objects)<br />
with respect to LoD and LOI in such a way<br />
that they can be easily integrated into their<br />
planning process.<br />
BIM also offers the possibility to parameterise<br />
objects and make them smart. This<br />
creates rules on how modifying parameters<br />
within the model affects and influ<strong>en</strong>ces<br />
other processes. Due to the parameterisation,<br />
BIM is also exciting for mass<br />
customised compon<strong>en</strong>ts, for instance for<br />
<strong>Gre<strong>en</strong></strong> optimisation through BIM<br />
BIM 6D, integrates sustainability aspects<br />
into the 3D model. For example, one can<br />
determine the grey <strong>en</strong>ergy of buildings.<br />
All materials that have be<strong>en</strong> used for the<br />
building are saved in this model, for instance<br />
(urban mining). Monsberger: “BIM<br />
is a tool that creates many possibilities<br />
for modelling. However, it must always be<br />
se<strong>en</strong> holistically. For this purpose, it is necessary<br />
to continually develop the model.”<br />
Furthermore, it requires new work structures,<br />
know-how and experi<strong>en</strong>ce as well as<br />
int<strong>en</strong>se teamwork and the exchange of information<br />
in order to map all data relevant<br />
to the modelling process.<br />
Not least, BIM will play a major role in facility<br />
and life cycle managem<strong>en</strong>t. Monsberger<br />
emphasises, however, that this will only<br />
work if all relevant information such as installed<br />
products are depicted in the model<br />
at an appropriate depth of data in order to<br />
g<strong>en</strong>erate sustainable b<strong>en</strong>efits and to be able<br />
to service the building in a targeted manner.<br />
www.bbw.tugraz.at<br />
Credit: autodesk
GREEN TECH MAGAZINE 7<br />
Explore<br />
Create<br />
Prototype<br />
Launch<br />
• Market and tr<strong>en</strong>d<br />
analyses using<br />
artificial intellig<strong>en</strong>ce<br />
• Id<strong>en</strong>tifying innovation<br />
pot<strong>en</strong>tial through<br />
virtual reality<br />
• <strong>Tech</strong>nology scouting<br />
using an intellig<strong>en</strong>t<br />
algorithm<br />
• Hologram construction<br />
• Product developm<strong>en</strong>t<br />
using tele-co-creation<br />
• Business<br />
model canvas<br />
• Op<strong>en</strong> innovation tools<br />
• Design thinking<br />
methods<br />
• Rapid prototyping<br />
using 3D printing<br />
• Printed<br />
electronics<br />
• Bionic construction<br />
• SCRUM – agile<br />
processes<br />
• Nano prototypes<br />
• Customer co-creation<br />
• Lead user beta testers<br />
• Market <strong>en</strong>try<br />
via platform<br />
• Lean start-up<br />
methods<br />
• Market <strong>en</strong>try to<br />
print yourself<br />
Existing and future tools for innovation processes<br />
Agile innovation<br />
Innovation is increasingly becoming part<br />
of every company‘s DNA. The <strong>Gre<strong>en</strong></strong> <strong>Tech</strong><br />
Cluster‘s Innovation Box offers plug & play<br />
tools for agile innovation.<br />
Innovation<br />
box<br />
Credits: provided<br />
Every company needs innovation to remain<br />
competitive and secure its long-term<br />
success. Tr<strong>en</strong>ds show that innovation cycles<br />
are becoming shorter due to new<br />
technologies, and yet R&D budgets are not<br />
being increased. In order not to lose market<br />
share to radical and disruptive innovations,<br />
which are mostly driv<strong>en</strong> by increasing<br />
digitalisation, companies have to be<br />
fast. Speed is gained through agile innovation<br />
methods.<br />
Iterative feedback<br />
Agile methods put the customer at the c<strong>en</strong>tre<br />
of att<strong>en</strong>tion. Hypotheses are checked<br />
via iterative feedback loops and finally<br />
converted into a solution. Rigidly planned<br />
processes are thus replaced by flexible<br />
ones. The focus is on quickly id<strong>en</strong>tifying<br />
customer needs and reacting to changes<br />
in a flexible manner.<br />
Artificial Intellig<strong>en</strong>ce<br />
<strong>Tech</strong>nologically, agile innovation is supported<br />
by artificial intellig<strong>en</strong>ce algorithms.<br />
Above all, the demand for AI<br />
software in technology scouting is increasing<br />
significantly. Virtual reality applications,<br />
such as tele-co-creation and<br />
hologram construction, make it easier<br />
to id<strong>en</strong>tify innovation pot<strong>en</strong>tial through<br />
interactive collaboration with customers.<br />
Swiftly printed prototypes simplify<br />
construction work.<br />
The <strong>Gre<strong>en</strong></strong> <strong>Tech</strong> Cluster offers you an<br />
innovation box for agile innovation managem<strong>en</strong>t.<br />
It includes agile methods as<br />
well as detailed instructions and materials<br />
with which you can secure your competitive<br />
advantage (German language):<br />
gre<strong>en</strong>tech.at/innovationsbox
8<br />
Fresh<br />
<strong>Gre<strong>en</strong></strong> million-Euro investm<strong>en</strong>t<br />
Styrian plant <strong>en</strong>gineering firm BDI is investing around 16 million Euros<br />
in the construction of an industrial plant for the production of<br />
algae biomass in Hartberg, Austria. After int<strong>en</strong>sive research, it has<br />
succeeded in developing a new indoor breeding system that allows<br />
the algae to grow as quickly as possible. The prerequisite for this is<br />
a completely closed system that eliminates any negative external<br />
influ<strong>en</strong>ces. The algae-based additives are in high demand especially<br />
in the food supplem<strong>en</strong>ts and cosmetics industry. The groundbreaking<br />
ceremony for the automated plant will take place this year.<br />
www.bdi-biolifesci<strong>en</strong>ce.com<br />
New circuit board recycling process<br />
Styrian start-up UrbanGold and its partners have be<strong>en</strong> awarded a<br />
major order from Russia for a compact UrbanGold system, which is<br />
unique in the world. For the first time, UrbanGold’s process will be<br />
used to extract high-purity copper, nickel, gold, silver and platinum<br />
from old circuit boards. The plant sets a new standard in the processing<br />
of e-waste and serves as a refer<strong>en</strong>ce for the international roll-out<br />
of UrbanGold technologies. Starting at the <strong>en</strong>d of 2018, some 6,000<br />
tonnes of circuit boards will be processed in the Moscow area.<br />
www.urbangold.at<br />
Chinese market leader relies<br />
on technology from Styria<br />
The Chinese Fortune 500 company Midea is building a research and<br />
innovation c<strong>en</strong>tre on the outskirts of Graz. The new site is equipped<br />
with modern electrical <strong>en</strong>gineering, chemistry and application laboratories.<br />
The research focus is on innovation, industry 4.0 and smart<br />
manufacturing. The c<strong>en</strong>tre’s aim is to develop state-of-the-art and<br />
effici<strong>en</strong>t compressors. Styria was chos<strong>en</strong> as the location because<br />
it is a well-known research and developm<strong>en</strong>t c<strong>en</strong>tre in Europe.<br />
www.midea.com<br />
Containers for safe battery recycling<br />
From e-bikes to smart phones – lithium-ion batteries and other<br />
rechargeable batteries are used in many everyday and household<br />
appliances. Pres<strong>en</strong>ting a fire hazard due to their high probability of<br />
spontaneous combustion, however, they require particularly careful<br />
handling. For this purpose, Saubermacher has now launched a designated<br />
special barrel for the safe storage and professional transport<br />
of these lithium-ion batteries. Developm<strong>en</strong>t took 6 months and was<br />
carried out as part of a project initiated by the <strong>Gre<strong>en</strong></strong> <strong>Tech</strong> Cluster.<br />
www.saubermacher.at<br />
Credits: BDI, lShutterstock.com, Saubermacher/Scheriau, Schrott24
GREEN TECH MAGAZINE 9<br />
<strong>Gre<strong>en</strong></strong> <strong>Tech</strong><br />
Turbines for the world’s largest<br />
pumped storage power plant<br />
The international technology group ANDRITZ has be<strong>en</strong> awarded<br />
an order to supply two speed-controlled pump turbines for the<br />
world’s largest pumped storage power plant. The cavern power<br />
plant in F<strong>en</strong>gning, China, with a peak output of 12 x 300 MW<br />
(3600 MW) , will put all power plants built previously to shame.<br />
In comparison, the largest pumped storage power plant in operation<br />
in Austria (main “Malta” stage in Carinthia) has a peak output<br />
of 730 MW. The project is scheduled for completion in 2021.<br />
www.andritz.at<br />
Grazer Start-up exploits<br />
governm<strong>en</strong>t aircraft<br />
Discontinued pass<strong>en</strong>ger aircraft are a veritable gold mine for recycling<br />
companies and scrap metal recyclers. Graz-based start-up Schrott24 has<br />
now secured two of these aircrafts. Together with a Slovakian partner,<br />
the two Airbus 310s, which were formerly in the service of the Belgian<br />
governm<strong>en</strong>t, will be professionally dismantled. Schrott24 will take care<br />
of marketing the approximately 100 tonnes of aluminium, titanium, copper<br />
and steel. The contract also shows that digital platforms such as<br />
these are increasingly p<strong>en</strong>etrating traditional business-to-business sectors<br />
such as the scrap metal industry. www.schrott24.at<br />
High-tech waste<br />
treatm<strong>en</strong>t for China<br />
Credits: dieindustrie.at/Mathias Kniepeiss, Midea, REDWAVE<br />
Innovative film for<br />
solar power industry<br />
ISOVOLTAIC launches a new backing film made of co-extruded<br />
polypropyl<strong>en</strong>e (PP) for the solar power industry. The PP materials<br />
used form the core layer and the outer layers of the backing<br />
film. These ext<strong>en</strong>d the service life of PV modules and <strong>en</strong>sure high<br />
operational reliability. Since there is no need for adhesive layers on<br />
the backing film, there is also no risk of delamination betwe<strong>en</strong> the<br />
individual layers. The innovative product has be<strong>en</strong> developed in cooperation<br />
with the plastics specialist Borealis and is produced close<br />
to Graz, Austria. www.isovoltaic.com<br />
The recycling specialist REDWAVE will upgrade a waste incineration<br />
plant north of Shanghai with an upstream plant for domestic<br />
waste treatm<strong>en</strong>t. The particular chall<strong>en</strong>ge is that the Chinese household<br />
waste has a high water cont<strong>en</strong>t, which goes hand in hand with<br />
a low calorific value. Using the new mechanical biological waste<br />
treatm<strong>en</strong>t (MBA) system, it is possible to increase the calorific value<br />
and reduce residual moisture in the waste. After various treatm<strong>en</strong>t<br />
steps, this results in a homog<strong>en</strong>eous, high-quality substitute fuel.<br />
www.redwave.com
10<br />
Waste managem<strong>en</strong>t<br />
is where it’s at<br />
Committed companies and consci<strong>en</strong>tious pre-sorting by customers are required<br />
to turn waste into many valuable raw materials. The campaign ‘Rund geht‘s’<br />
initiated by the Austrian waste managem<strong>en</strong>t industry with the support of the<br />
Province of Styria shows how awar<strong>en</strong>ess for recycling is created professionally.<br />
From cable clutter to the new computer<br />
and from copper scrap to coins. The ‘Rund<br />
geht’s’ initiative uses creative case studies<br />
to show how new products are created<br />
from supposed waste. The campaign was<br />
initiated by the Austrian waste managem<strong>en</strong>t<br />
industry – supported among others<br />
by the Province of Styria – and is an ideal<br />
platform for companies to pres<strong>en</strong>t their<br />
best practice examples.<br />
From residual waste to bicycles<br />
Waste is a valuable raw material. The Styrian<br />
‘Rund geht’s’ partners’ examples and<br />
exciting ReUse projects prove this. Wornout<br />
tyres collected by Tyrec Wertstoffservice<br />
are – among other purposes – used as<br />
compon<strong>en</strong>ts for fall protection mats on childr<strong>en</strong>’s<br />
playgrounds.<br />
Mayer Recycling filters metal composites<br />
from municipal waste. They are professionally<br />
separated, prepared and processed into<br />
compon<strong>en</strong>ts for the manufacture of bicycles.<br />
Th<strong>en</strong>, there is Müllex-Umwelt-Säuberung<br />
that receives about 20,000 tonnes of waste<br />
wood per year and produces versatile chipboards<br />
for the construction and furniture<br />
industry.<br />
Top collectors<br />
Separation and recycling is g<strong>en</strong>erally of particular<br />
importance in Austria. The Austrians<br />
collect around 482 kilograms of waste per<br />
person. This is divided into 40 % residual<br />
and bulky waste and 60 % separate collection.<br />
This pres<strong>en</strong>ts <strong>en</strong>ormous pot<strong>en</strong>tial<br />
to extract the raw materials for tomorrow<br />
from yesterday’s waste. In a European comparison<br />
of 32 countries, Austria occupies an<br />
absolute top position with a material recycling<br />
rate of 66 %.<br />
Good for the <strong>en</strong>vironm<strong>en</strong>t, but not just! Municipal<br />
waste managem<strong>en</strong>t secures roughly<br />
14,800 jobs per year to which private sector<br />
adds another 25,000 jobs.<br />
www.rundgehts.at<br />
www.steiermark.at<br />
Credits: Shutterstock
ecHQ in granulate form which<br />
is used to make Trodat stamps.<br />
GREEN TECH MAGAZINE 11<br />
Plastic waste as a<br />
reusable raw material<br />
Employing the help of a new value-added process, new goods can be replaced<br />
by quality recyclates in a technically and economically s<strong>en</strong>sible way.<br />
Credits: Alex Koch, Katharina Wassler, Trodat<br />
What can material recycling<br />
of plastics achieve?<br />
Secondary raw materials in the plastics sector<br />
have so far barely be<strong>en</strong> used in high-quality<br />
products due to the quality requirem<strong>en</strong>ts. Our<br />
goal is to keep valuable plastics in the product<br />
cycle as long as possible and to manufacture<br />
functional compon<strong>en</strong>ts <strong>en</strong>tirely from recycled<br />
material. This <strong>en</strong>ables us to achieve a significant<br />
reduction in CO 2<br />
emissions and high resource<br />
effici<strong>en</strong>cy, because the plastic does not have<br />
to be manufactured again at great exp<strong>en</strong>se.<br />
An important requirem<strong>en</strong>t in this process is<br />
cost saving, only th<strong>en</strong> can one actually speak<br />
of sustainability on a social, ecological and<br />
economic level.<br />
What does the upcycling process<br />
look like?<br />
In the course of the Rec2TecPart research project<br />
we were able to prove that virgin material<br />
can be replaced by recycled material <strong>en</strong>tirely<br />
s<strong>en</strong>sibly from a technical and economical<br />
perspective. We have demonstrated this using<br />
the plastic streams of three products: an<br />
automotive interior part, a stamp and a multi-layer<br />
film. The process looks like this: We<br />
start with the market’s requirem<strong>en</strong>ts, define<br />
what a product needs and only th<strong>en</strong> tap into<br />
the adequate secondary ‘post-industrial’ and<br />
GREEN TALENTS –<br />
Introducing young<br />
researchers<br />
Matthias Katschnig, Plastics<br />
Engineer:<br />
Matthias Katschnig studied<br />
plastics technology and<br />
industrial managem<strong>en</strong>t at<br />
Montanuniversität Leob<strong>en</strong>.<br />
He is curr<strong>en</strong>tly writing his<br />
dissertation at the chair of<br />
plastics processing. One of<br />
his research foci is plastics<br />
upcycling.<br />
‘post-consumer’ material sources for the customised,<br />
high-quality material RecHQ. This is<br />
the only way to know that we can work economically.<br />
What results has research led to?<br />
We have made it all the way to industrial implem<strong>en</strong>tation<br />
with the upcycling of the plastic<br />
POM. Together with the plastics processor<br />
Thermoplastkreislauf and product manufacturer<br />
Trodat, we have brought a stamp <strong>en</strong>tirely<br />
made from quality recycled material to<br />
series production maturity. One million units<br />
are now produced in a CO 2<br />
-neutral way every<br />
year. That’s a great achievem<strong>en</strong>t. Every kilo<br />
of plastic that does not have to be produced<br />
saves around two to four kilos of CO 2<br />
.<br />
What other possibilities do<br />
these insights op<strong>en</strong> up?<br />
We are already going one step further. In the<br />
framework of our latest research project called<br />
Tex2Mat we are trying to dissolve plastic fibres<br />
from textiles, granulate them and make<br />
them suitable for spinning again to allow these<br />
fibres to be incorporated into textiles again.<br />
Clothes shall thus become clothes again. The<br />
use of PET from bottles for textiles is already<br />
being practised, after all. But our approach is<br />
completely new.
12<br />
Crystalline<br />
solar power<br />
cell dyed using<br />
PLASMONICS.<br />
Novel colour<br />
coating b<strong>en</strong>efits<br />
solar power<br />
In Austria, installation areas for solar power systems can be found where exposed<br />
areas are primarily used for agricultural purposes, predominantly on buildings.<br />
JOANNEUM RESEARCH has developed visually appealing new solutions.<br />
Anyone who builds new buildings today<br />
oft<strong>en</strong> does so using r<strong>en</strong>ewable <strong>en</strong>ergy –<br />
and this is where the cost-effective solar<br />
power technology based on crystalline silicon<br />
solar cells, which is characterised by<br />
its shiny blue-black surface, truly shines.<br />
Within the framework of the interdisciplinary<br />
PV@Fassade project in whose context<br />
JOANNEUM RESEARCH played a major<br />
role, nine Austrian partners from the industry<br />
and research community led by the<br />
Austrian Research Institute for Chemistry<br />
and <strong>Tech</strong>nology worked on the developm<strong>en</strong>t<br />
of solutions for building-integrated<br />
solar power.<br />
Optical coordination<br />
Not just roof surfaces, but also façades,<br />
balconies and canopies could be used increasingly<br />
to install solar power systems in<br />
the future. The chall<strong>en</strong>ge was to visually<br />
match the solar power cells to the building<br />
and to reduce such attempts’ adverse<br />
effects on the performance of the modules<br />
to a minimum. This is particularly important<br />
in urban areas, for example in old<br />
towns in terms of gaining the acceptance<br />
of population, developers and planners.<br />
Among other things, JOANNEUM<br />
RESEARCH developed coatings that <strong>en</strong>hance<br />
the modules regarding their appearance<br />
and functionality. Differ<strong>en</strong>t<br />
colour variations can be created by<br />
printing or coating the covering<br />
glass surfaces or the solar cells in the<br />
module. Numerous coating processes<br />
of crystalline silicon solar cells were tested<br />
and differ<strong>en</strong>t colour samples were produced.<br />
“A coating technology based on<br />
the use of plasmonic effects is particularly<br />
interesting and innovative,” says Gerhard<br />
Peharz, Project Manager at MATERIALS,<br />
JOANNEUM RESEARCH’s Institute of Surface<br />
<strong>Tech</strong>nologies and Photonics.<br />
Plasmonic dyes<br />
The term plasmonic describes the interaction<br />
of light on metallic nano-particles.<br />
The influ<strong>en</strong>ce of these on the properties<br />
and performance of the solar power elem<strong>en</strong>ts<br />
was determined both in the laboratory<br />
and by means of long-term measurem<strong>en</strong>ts<br />
on a test façade. The results obtained<br />
are very promising and it has be<strong>en</strong><br />
shown that plasmonic dyes are extremely<br />
reliable and yield low power losses.<br />
Gerhard Peharz<br />
Tel.: 0316/876-32 05<br />
gerhard.peharz@joanneum.at<br />
www.joanneum.at<br />
Information &<br />
contact<br />
MATERIALS – Institute for Surface <strong>Tech</strong>nologies<br />
and Photonics at JOANNEUM<br />
RESEARCH offers interdisciplinary solutions<br />
for the <strong>en</strong>tire value chain. These<br />
include large-scale micro and nano<br />
structures, bio- and chemos<strong>en</strong>sors,<br />
light technologies, functional surfaces<br />
and laser processes.<br />
Credits: Dr. Michael Grobbauer, SFL technologies GmbH, beigestellt
GREEN TECH MAGAZINE 13<br />
<strong>Gre<strong>en</strong></strong><br />
Lifestyle<br />
Stylish water saver<br />
With her fitting called ‘Eve’<br />
industrial designer Rebecca<br />
Daum from Graz combines<br />
modern design with sustainability.<br />
An integrated consumption<br />
indicator raises<br />
awar<strong>en</strong>ess of daily water<br />
consumption and thus <strong>en</strong>courages<br />
the sustainable use<br />
of water as a raw material.<br />
In addition, an app can be<br />
used to set the water volume,<br />
retrieve statistics and compare<br />
the results with fri<strong>en</strong>ds.<br />
www.rebeccadaum.com<br />
NASA technology on your wrist<br />
The Matrix PowerWatch draws the <strong>en</strong>ergy for the battery<br />
from the wearer’s body heat. The watch uses thermoelectric<br />
technology to convert heat into electricity. This technology has<br />
already be<strong>en</strong> used by NASA to propel its Voyager space craft and<br />
the mars rover Curiosity. Did you know? At rest, the human body<br />
emits 100 watts of <strong>en</strong>ergy. Wh<strong>en</strong> exercising, this figure increases<br />
to one kilowatt. www.powerwatch.com<br />
Credits: powerwatch.com, petitpli.com, Rebecca Daum, www.vpz.at<br />
Clothing that grows with you<br />
Childr<strong>en</strong> go through sev<strong>en</strong> sizes of clothing in their first two years<br />
of life. Clothing that grows with the child would definitely come in<br />
handy. No problem, for such clothing is no longer sci<strong>en</strong>ce fiction.<br />
London-based inv<strong>en</strong>tor Ryan Yasin has designed childr<strong>en</strong>’s<br />
clothing for his Petit Pli (‘little wrinkle’) label which, using a special<br />
fabric folding solution, can be ext<strong>en</strong>ded to four times its original<br />
area, thus fitting childr<strong>en</strong> from their fourth to their 36th month.<br />
The accordion-like structure is additionally heated in advance in<br />
order to withstand stress such as washing cycles and spin cycles.<br />
www.petitpli.com<br />
<strong>Gre<strong>en</strong></strong> all the way:<br />
Packaging and labels<br />
In shopping, more and more emphasis is placed on quality and<br />
origin. It goes without saying that att<strong>en</strong>tion is also attached<br />
to sustainable packaging. In 3 years of developm<strong>en</strong>t, the VPZ<br />
Packaging C<strong>en</strong>ter in Graz, together with IM Polymer, L<strong>en</strong>zing Plastics<br />
and the Marchfeldgemüse producer organisation, developed a new<br />
bio-compound material made of cellulose paper and bio-film for<br />
packaging labels. All raw materials used for this purpose are of<br />
biog<strong>en</strong>ic or mineral origin and compostable and have be<strong>en</strong> awarded<br />
the <strong>Gre<strong>en</strong></strong> Packaging Star Award <strong>2017</strong>. www.vpz.at
14<br />
Digital<br />
service<br />
excell<strong>en</strong>ce<br />
The term predictive maint<strong>en</strong>ance describes the anticipatory digital<br />
maint<strong>en</strong>ance of <strong>en</strong>vironm<strong>en</strong>tal technology machines and plants.<br />
It prolongs life cycles and reduces the <strong>en</strong>vironm<strong>en</strong>tal impact.<br />
Annually the market grows by 20 to 40 %.<br />
“The drive compon<strong>en</strong>ts of all our machines<br />
require oil to function properly. We have defined<br />
criteria for assessing the condition of<br />
power train compon<strong>en</strong>ts by means of compon<strong>en</strong>ts<br />
in the oil and their conc<strong>en</strong>tration. In<br />
the case of gearboxes, we know what is likely<br />
to cause bearing damage,” says Komptech’s<br />
Managing Director Christian Oberwinkler.<br />
Customers can s<strong>en</strong>d oil samples to a c<strong>en</strong>tral<br />
laboratory every 250 to 500 operating hours.<br />
Should one of the compon<strong>en</strong>ts show a critical<br />
conc<strong>en</strong>tration, the customer receives suggestions<br />
for the necessary measures.<br />
“Machine availability is a decisive competitive<br />
advantage for us because it is vital to our<br />
customers’ business success,” says Oberwinkler<br />
and adds that “the next chall<strong>en</strong>ge will<br />
be to integrate manual models for predictive<br />
maint<strong>en</strong>ance into the available digital<br />
tools. In this respect, we are dep<strong>en</strong>d<strong>en</strong>t on<br />
the developm<strong>en</strong>t of s<strong>en</strong>sor technology and<br />
its costs.” Predictive maint<strong>en</strong>ance minimises<br />
maint<strong>en</strong>ance effort and costs. 70 % of the<br />
total operating costs of machines and systems<br />
are incurred during the service phases.<br />
Predictive Maint<strong>en</strong>ance is booming<br />
“PM has established itself as an important industry<br />
tr<strong>en</strong>d in the European mechanical <strong>en</strong>gineering<br />
sector. Experts worldwide expect<br />
the market to grow by 20 to 40 % annually<br />
across all industries and fields of application,”<br />
Sebastian Feldmann and Vladimir Preved<strong>en</strong><br />
of Roland Berger Strategy Consultants state.<br />
Nevertheless, many companies find it difficult<br />
to arrive at a clear strategy and developm<strong>en</strong>t<br />
budgets.<br />
“The aviation industry is a pioneer, the automotive<br />
industry is following suit, and railways<br />
are just beginning to do so,” says Helmut<br />
Ritter, Head of Engineering for Bogies<br />
at Siem<strong>en</strong>s Mobility in Graz. Siem<strong>en</strong>s is responsible<br />
for the construction, maint<strong>en</strong>ance<br />
and availability of train fleets. From mid-2018<br />
onwards, data on the condition of certain<br />
compon<strong>en</strong>ts will be provided in order to predict<br />
and correct errors before they occur, to<br />
provide maint<strong>en</strong>ance recomm<strong>en</strong>dations or<br />
to inform about the remaining service life.<br />
For the most part, the system uses vibration<br />
s<strong>en</strong>sors.<br />
In order to be able to perform PM, s<strong>en</strong>sors,<br />
data transfer and data processing must be<br />
integrated into a service package. “IT and<br />
s<strong>en</strong>sor technology offer many possibilities;<br />
the topic has gained new mom<strong>en</strong>tum with<br />
today’s technical possibilities, because it is<br />
now possible to process and evaluate a lot of<br />
data,” says Ritter. The results of the analysis<br />
can also be used to optimise the logistics for<br />
the necessary replacem<strong>en</strong>t of compon<strong>en</strong>ts.<br />
However: It is particularly important – also<br />
with regards to costs – to carry out relevant<br />
measurem<strong>en</strong>ts for a high data quality and<br />
to interpret the results. This is usually done<br />
by adjusting the error patterns using stochastic<br />
algorithms. “The know-how lies in<br />
the subsequ<strong>en</strong>t processing of raw data. It’s<br />
all about knowing what a triggered s<strong>en</strong>sor<br />
means: Does it – in the case of trains – show<br />
problems with a compon<strong>en</strong>t or an irregularity<br />
on the track, for instance?” Experi<strong>en</strong>ce<br />
values are just as relevant as knowledge of<br />
the ageing process of materials.<br />
Wolfgang Jilek’s Cartoon – Just in time maint<strong>en</strong>ance<br />
New service models<br />
Franz Langmayr, Managing Director of Uptime<br />
Engineering, points out that “PM can<br />
only be used economically under certain conditions:<br />
in case of high investm<strong>en</strong>t value, high<br />
follow-up costs or high availability requirem<strong>en</strong>ts.”<br />
The more diverse compon<strong>en</strong>t stress<br />
is, the more profitable an investm<strong>en</strong>t will be.
SEQUENCE AND DECISIONCONTROL<br />
Total asset decisions<br />
R ICE AND BUSINESSMODELS<br />
SERV<br />
Automatized working instructions and<br />
material for service teams<br />
“Closed-loop”<br />
quality managem<strong>en</strong>t<br />
Computerized maint<strong>en</strong>ance<br />
monitoring system<br />
Customised planning of<br />
maint<strong>en</strong>ance activities<br />
20 22<br />
20 22<br />
Multi-partner<br />
managem<strong>en</strong>t<br />
Full operations<br />
outsourcing<br />
Optimisation of asset<br />
lifecycle managem<strong>en</strong>t<br />
Risk protection<br />
Uptime guarantees<br />
Pay per X<br />
model<br />
Fully automatized<br />
service workflow<br />
Experi<strong>en</strong>ce models<br />
Working instructions / secondm<strong>en</strong>ts /<br />
mobile teams<br />
Internal product<br />
optimisation<br />
Working<br />
instructions and material<br />
for local servicing<br />
Training<br />
and education<br />
Individualised<br />
software / algorithm<br />
Enterprise total<br />
asset mgmt./TCO<br />
Machine learning /<br />
artificial intellig<strong>en</strong>ce<br />
Real time data/image prognosis<br />
Software robots<br />
Marketplace solution:<br />
Platform for differ<strong>en</strong>t<br />
applications<br />
Digital design and local<br />
3D spare part printing<br />
Service cost<br />
optimisation (cont.)<br />
Optimised warehouse &<br />
supply chain (produce<br />
to order)<br />
Automatization<br />
of service<br />
Spare part<br />
managem<strong>en</strong>t<br />
Continuous<br />
improvem<strong>en</strong>t process<br />
Focus training<br />
and education<br />
Tr<strong>en</strong>d<br />
analysis<br />
Correlation<br />
analysis<br />
Pattern recognition<br />
(single state)<br />
Pattern recognition<br />
(fleet)<br />
Edge prediction<br />
Automated domain<br />
know-how<br />
20 22<br />
20 17<br />
S<strong>en</strong>sors for “ultra high<br />
robustness”<br />
SENSORS<br />
Autonomous drones for<br />
(i.e. thermographic) inspections<br />
Novel s<strong>en</strong>sors (design, installation,<br />
capturing signals)<br />
Intellig<strong>en</strong>t s<strong>en</strong>sors for unstructured data<br />
Advanced nondestructive<br />
testing (z.B. Ultrasonic)<br />
Plug & Play solutions<br />
Intellig<strong>en</strong>t s<strong>en</strong>sors for<br />
structured data<br />
Brownfield<br />
dongles etc.<br />
Selective visualisation system data<br />
of deviations<br />
Blockchain Fully automated<br />
Data storage<br />
root-cause-analysis<br />
(clouds etc.) S<strong>en</strong>sor fusion<br />
Short range, low power<br />
transmissions (e.g. NFC)<br />
Customized UI/<br />
visualisation<br />
Diagnostic servers<br />
Data structuring / automated index /<br />
selection / machine learning / AI<br />
Realtime data analysis /<br />
big data<br />
Supply chain<br />
integration<br />
Customer decision-making<br />
integration<br />
Global remote<br />
data access<br />
Fully automated<br />
image analysis<br />
Integration external data<br />
sources (i.e. weather)<br />
Integration of production-,<br />
process- and ecological<br />
Edge computing/<br />
analytics<br />
Local s<strong>en</strong>sor analytics/<br />
in-memory computing<br />
Diagnostic fusion<br />
(diagnose matching)<br />
20 22<br />
GREEN TECH RADAR.<br />
The PM topics of prognosis,<br />
process control<br />
and service models<br />
require compreh<strong>en</strong>sive<br />
innovation.<br />
20 22<br />
DA<br />
A<br />
D T<br />
AT<br />
AND SIGNA<br />
TA<br />
N L PROCESSING<br />
NA<br />
FORECASTING ABILITY<br />
Pattern recognition<br />
and forecast<br />
( process- and ecological<br />
system data)<br />
20 22<br />
A NOSIS<br />
CONDITION MONITORINGANDDIAG<br />
AG<br />
Relevance of devolopm<strong>en</strong>t<br />
low<br />
average<br />
high<br />
Type of developm<strong>en</strong>t<br />
radical<br />
increm<strong>en</strong>tal<br />
<strong>Gre<strong>en</strong></strong> <strong>Tech</strong><br />
Radar<br />
Credits: Shutterstock, beigestellt, CARTOON: Wolfgang Jilek<br />
In addition, companies would have to deal<br />
with possible business cases more int<strong>en</strong>sively<br />
than before. Deep learning – self-learning<br />
algorithms for relevant results from heterog<strong>en</strong>eous<br />
data – works in market research,<br />
but “there are still no convincing solutions<br />
in the field of technology.” That’s why Langmayr<br />
and his team are pursuing an alternative,<br />
<strong>en</strong>gineering-based approach: “We create<br />
models that predict system behaviour<br />
as a function of stress history and framework<br />
conditions and use these models to<br />
detect deviations. In a second step, we feed<br />
an expert system with the know-how about<br />
failure possibilities in order to automate the<br />
diagnosis of causes. We use the diagnosis to<br />
select damage models we use to calculate<br />
the residual life.”<br />
The possibilities of data collection are imm<strong>en</strong>se<br />
while processing remains chall<strong>en</strong>ging, Feldmann<br />
and Preved<strong>en</strong> sum up. According to<br />
them, PM does not replace physical maint<strong>en</strong>ance<br />
and customer ori<strong>en</strong>tation, but offers forward-looking<br />
ways of differ<strong>en</strong>tiating service.<br />
www.gre<strong>en</strong>tech.at/print<br />
Exclusively<br />
from<br />
the <strong>Gre<strong>en</strong></strong><br />
<strong>Tech</strong> Radar:<br />
Predictive<br />
maint<strong>en</strong>ance<br />
op<strong>en</strong>s<br />
up growth<br />
opportunities<br />
for cluster<br />
partners.
16<br />
Did you know?<br />
Drone-supported forestry<br />
The reforestation of hard-to-reach areas is the focus of a new<br />
project being implem<strong>en</strong>ted by the British company BioCarbon<br />
Engineering. Researchers have developed a drone system<br />
that automatically plants trees. After a scanner drone has id<strong>en</strong>tified<br />
the optimal locations for seedlings, other drones are<br />
used for planting. Further advantages of the system: It is faster<br />
than manual planting and costs are reduced to one-fifth.<br />
www.biocarbon<strong>en</strong>gineering.com<br />
Let the light in!<br />
Transluc<strong>en</strong>t, multifunctional and produced by a 3D printer. Architects<br />
from the <strong>Tech</strong>nical University of Munich (TUM) have developed<br />
functionally integrated façade elem<strong>en</strong>ts that offer pl<strong>en</strong>ty of space<br />
for architectural design. A particularly practical aspect: Functions<br />
such as v<strong>en</strong>tilation, insulation or shading are already integrated into<br />
the new façade. Among other things, the ‘Fluid Morphology’ façade<br />
concept is aimed at reducing building technology, establishing<br />
a closed material cycle and simplifying the construction process by<br />
making s<strong>en</strong>sible use of digital tools. www.hk.ar.tum.de<br />
These plants are super<br />
And rather smart. Hyperaccumulators or ‘superplants’, of which<br />
there are around 500 differ<strong>en</strong>t species in the world, take up toxic<br />
metals such as nickel, cadmium or zinc into their leaves via the soil,<br />
thus protecting themselves against predators. This self-protection,<br />
also known as phytomining, has two major advantages for humans<br />
and the <strong>en</strong>vironm<strong>en</strong>t. On the one hand, toxic metals are filtered out<br />
of the soil and made fertile again for crops. On the other hand, the<br />
metals can be recovered by burning the plants. One hectare of the<br />
plant Berkheya Coddii, for example, stores 170 kilograms of nickel.<br />
www.sz-magazin.sueddeutsche.at<br />
The world’s first shoes made from algae<br />
Polyurethane, the main compon<strong>en</strong>t of shoe soles and produced<br />
using petroleum, is one of the largest pollutants pres<strong>en</strong>t in the oceans.<br />
To counteract this problem, researchers at the University of California<br />
pres<strong>en</strong>ted the world‘s first flip-flops produced from algae<br />
oil. This innovative footwear is ev<strong>en</strong> compostable. In the future, the<br />
researchers want to go one step further and recover algae oil from<br />
worn flip-flops. www.universityofcalifornia.edu<br />
Credits: Erik Jeps<strong>en</strong>/San Diego Publications, Andreas Heddergott/TUM, BioCarbon Engineering, Shutterstock