"52 million to Luleå University of Technology's materials lab for green transition
WISE, where Luleå University of Technology is included together with six other universities in what is the largest investment in materials science ever in Sweden. Almost three billion SEK will be invested in the universities concerned over the next ten years with great importance for basic research and the Swedish manufacturing industry. Decisions have now been made to build strong research infrastructures for 500 million in total, including at Luleå University of Technology where two high-tech labs in materials science are strengthened.
- We appreciate this investment of SEK 52 million from the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation, for two of our materials science labs. This strengthens our ability to be at the forefront in a very important area and conduct advanced materials research in close collaboration with industry in the green transition, says Birgitta Bergvall-Kåreborn, Vice-Chancellor at Luleå University of Technology.
A sustainable future
The initiative WISE, Materials Science for Sustainability, has the vision of a sustainable future by strengthening Swedish research on the technical properties of different materials. It is a collaboration between the leading universities in Sweden in materials science: Luleå University of Technology, Chalmers University of Technology, Royal Institute of Technology, Linköping University, Uppsala University, Stockholm University and Lund University. Together with industry and society, the initiative will promote and accelerate a transition to a sustainable society. It will also advance the scientific frontier in materials science that strongly establishes Sweden as a leading nation in the field.
At Luleå University of Technology, materials research takes place in areas such as sustainable mining and metal production, circular use of raw materials, biocomposites and fossil-free energy production. In the materials science labs, the researchers collaborate with LKAB, SSAB, Boliden,
Talga, Vattenfall, H2 Green Steel and Northvolt.
- "It is fantastic for us to be able to make this investment in our labs. The new instruments take our already outstanding materials research to a new level. We can now develop existing materials and identify new ones, with high performance that at the same time provide less climate impact throughout the production and use process, says Marta-Lena Antti, Professor of Materials Science and Technology and scientific leader of WISE at Luleå University of Technology.
The SEK 52 million at Luleå University of Technology goes specifically to equipment for high-resolution electron microscopy (FIB-SEM, focused ion-beam scanning electron microscopy) and a new instrument for 3D X-ray computed tomography (XCT) within Luleå University of Technology's research infrastructure LUMIA (Luleå Material Imaging and Analysis) as well as three new instruments for analyzing material friction and abrasion in extreme environments and for synchrotron measurements at MAX IV in Lund.
Researchers in the relevant labs at Luleå University of Technology are very pleased with the investment:
- We now get unique equipment that enables new discoveries of revolutionary materials that can be used for, among other things, storage of carbon dioxide and hydrogen, fossil-free steel and the manufacture of batteries. We can also research critical raw materials for renewable energy, such as rare earth metals," says Glenn Bark, researcher in ore geology and director of LUMIA, who together with Fredrik Forsberg, researcher in experimental mechanics, is responsible for two of the new instruments.
- With the new highly advanced microscope, we will be able to improve materials and manufacturing processes, such as determining why wear damage to press tools and machine components has occurred. With the new equipment, we will also be able to understand and prevent damage caused by so-called leakage currents on electric motor bearings, which is a prerequisite for the transition to electric cars," says Roland Larsson, Professor of Machine Elements at Luleå University of Technology, who together with Jens Hardell, Professor of Machine Elements, is responsible for the WiseEST platform in collaboration with Uppsala University.
WISE, Wallenberg Initiative Materials Science for Sustainability, which is funded by the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation, has a total budget for the WISE program of almost SEK 3 billion during 2022-2033.
In the picture: Leading persons within WISE at Luleå University of Technology, front row from left: Fredrik Forsberg, researcher in experimental mechanics and Jens Hardell, professor of machine elements. Back row from left: Roland Larsson, Professor of Machine Elements, Marta-Lena Antti, Professor of Materials Science and Engineering and Scientific Director of WISE at Luleå University of Technology, Ekaterina Osipova, Research Coordinator and Glenn Bark, Researcher in Ore Geology."
WISE, where Luleå University of Technology is included together with six other universities in what is the largest investment in materials science ever in Sweden. Almost three billion SEK will be invested in the universities concerned over the next ten years with great importance for basic resear...
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