LaNDER3

It’s now official: Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences will receive approximately €6 million in funding from the Federal Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF) to implement the LaNDER³ project.

What’s it all about?

Discovering new worlds? Before we seek out new habitats, we should continually work to make our home planet livable again. Livable—that means solving today’s problems. The standard of living in the so-called PlasticAge is still based on fossil raw materials, produced with excessive energy consumption and recycled in closed-loop systems, albeit with only low efficiency. Polymer waste produces gigantic garbage patches in the oceans, growing at an annual rate of 12 million metric tons and rising, instead of being used efficiently and sustainably.

Natural fibers derived from regionally available biomass, economically processed through waste utilization, shaped energy-efficiently into lightweight, durable materials in high-tech composites, coated for specific functions, and recycled after use—with all steps powered and optimally controlled within the process —that is the goal.

With its proven expertise in energy technology and materials science, as well as its strong network of regional companies, HSZG offers excellent conditions for establishing and coordinating the research consortium. LaNDER³ brings together universities and non-university research institutions with companies operating regionally and internationally to develop concepts that extend far beyond the region. These technological developments sharpen the existing research profile and bring together the research priorities (FSP) “Energy and Environment” and “Materials, Structures, and Surfaces” in a unique combination.