More than 90 researchers from 17 institutes of the Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH) as well as the University of Hamburg, HAW Hamburg, Leuphana University Lüneburg, the University of Freiburg and the research institutes Hereon Geesthacht and DESY met at TUHH to officially launch the new DFG Collaborative Research Centre CRC 1615. This was a unique opportunity for the young scientists to get acquainted with the interdisciplinary environment and to prepare for the first funding period.

The CRC 1615 "SMART Reactors" aims to address the societal challenges associated with the transition of economies and production chains from fossil resources to sustainable and renewable materials. The name "SMART Reactors" says it all: it stands for how resources can be Sustainably converted into different products (Multipurpose) by Autonomously optimising the reaction conditions. This leads to more Robust processes, which are then more Transferable. This will be achieved by considering different scientific fields and by close cooperation between process engineering, materials science and electrical engineering with physicists, chemists and mathematicians.

During the presentation, the spokesperson of the SFB, Prof. Dr.-Ing. Michael Schlüter, and the vice spokesperson, Prof. Dr.-Ing. Irina Smirnova, shared their insights on individual projects and how close cooperation can be successfully established. They emphasized that collaboration is key to achieving the goals of the SFB and that it is essential to work together to achieve success. Furthermore, the President of the TUHH, Prof. Dr.-Ing. Andreas Timm-Giel, highlighted the role of CRC 1615 within the university and how it is contributing to the field of process engineering. He also discussed upcoming teaching opportunities for the School of Process Engineering, which will provide students with hands-on experience in this exciting field.