Dear Friends,

It is my pleasure to speak with you again after the summer period, with a lot of upcoming news and events that will involve Hydrogen Europe Research.

It will be an exciting autumn and end of 2023, with the Hydrogen Week; this year, we aim to bring the research highly visible in several events, including the Scientific Workshop, organized by the JU with our support. This event will bring with it the HER Award. At present, we are closing the candidatures for young researchers, and we will start soon the evaluation process.

Speaking about youth, we are also busy supporting the EU PhD Hydrogen Conference – EPHyC, where we aim to bring in Ghent several PhD students next March 2024. It will be the first event of this kind organized by HER and a priority, considering the attention we are dedicating to the Education and Training topic in the European Year of Skills.

One argument that is directly in my priorities is related to the creation of a market framework in Europe, continuing at the same time the support to the research and innovation sectors. I brought up this specific point at the last EFC Piero Lungi Conference in Capri, on September 13^th, together with the contribution of the Executive Director of the Clean Hydrogen Partnership, Mirela Atanasiu. It is a time when dedicated support to R&D is enlarging in several programmes in the US, Japan and China and we, in Europe, should continue to pay attention to the need for supporting research: not only support industrial innovation, which is key, but also support low TRL research and next-generation technologies.

This lays behind the creation of two new Working Groups in Hydrogen Europe Research related to LOW TRL RESEARCH and to RESEARCH and TECHNOLOGY INFRASTRUCTURES. I hope that these two new Working Groups will be highly participated by our members, meeting periodically to identify and discuss the priorities we have on the basis of progress happening inside our laboratories, and coming from novel ideas on advanced materials, architectures and components. I would like to prepare a first list of these priorities to be the basis of future discussions with EU institutions, based on concrete terms and opportunities that may support the growth of the European hydrogen ecosystem and keep the level of competitiveness of our industrial players.

A series of new initiatives are at the starting blocks, such as the European Hydrogen Bank. This is the European option for creating a market framework in Europe. It is of primary priority to start some of the about 200 initiatives we have in Europe today only on paper, and that could possibly soon become real projects. The initiative will be taken under the Innovation Fund programme, and support contracts for a difference for a max of 4,5 €/kg of hydrogen gap between the cost of hydrogen and the willingness to pay from the end users. I invite you to take a look at the news related to the announcement of the pilot auction.

I invite all of our members to meet all of us soon in person, in Brussels, at our upcoming General Assembly, which will take place during the Hydrogen Week. We will send soon a SAVE the DATE for the specific occasion.

Finally, I remind you of the upcoming Programme Review Days, which are organized by the Clean Hydrogen JU to share our results of the last year. These will take place the week before the Hydrogen Week, and they will be hosted fully online. 

Please, enjoy the newsletter and the several info, events and updates on the hydrogen ecosystem we are proposing this month to you all!

HYDROGEN EUROPE RESEARCH NEWS AND ACTIVITIES

Young Scientist Award 2023 – Do not wait until the last minute to apply!

The Young Scientist Award is an annual competition organised by Hydrogen Europe Research, aiming at rewarding young researchers (under 35 years old of age) belonging to our member organisations, who have personally contributed to one or more hydrogen(-related) projects. Same as last year, the 2023 competition will revolve around four pillars, reflecting the structure of the Clean Hydrogen Partnership.

The research undertaken may cover fundamentals, applications, and analysis within these different categories:
➡️Hydrogen production;
➡️Hydrogen storage and distribution;
➡️Hydrogen usages;
➡️Cross-cutting activities (such as safety, regulations codes and standards or education).

One young scientist will be awarded in each pillar, and one will be elected “Best Researcher of the Year”, for a total of 5 awards. The 5 winners will receive €1000 Eur each, a trophy and a recognition certificate, and will be invited to the award ceremony which will take place in Brussels during the Hydrogen Week (20-24 November).

The deadline to apply is 29 September 2023! Click here to discover more!

Participate in the first EU PhD Hydrogen Conference or EPHyC! Deadline extended: October 11

Good news for those who are struggling to submit their abstract on time, or for PhDs just finding out about the EPHyC Conference: we are extending our deadline for another 3 weeks!

The new deadline for your abstract submission is 11 October 2023!

Did you already send in your abstract on time for the first deadline? Well done! We will already be reviewing your submission from next week onwards; you’ll be among the first to know if your abstract is accepted, and will be able to make your travel arrangements early on!

Please help spread the word about the extended deadline, and submit your abstract here!

Hydrogen Europe Research’s participation in the Hydrogen Week

The European Hydrogen Week will take place from 20 to 24 November 2023! The week is one of the biggest annual events dedicated to hydrogen, and Hydrogen Europe Research actively supported the drafting of the program. During the 5 days, thought-provoking discussions with some of the most prominent stakeholders in the hydrogen sector will take place, covering the most pressing topics facing this new industry: the need for both urgency and pragmatism in creating the regulatory framework, the unique challenges different sectors face to decarbonize and how hydrogen can help, and how to remain a leader in an industry that has caught the attention of the rest of the world.

Register for the event here!

• Central European Research Infrastructure Consortium (CERIC-ERIC)
• Cetim, the French Technical Center For Mechanical Industries
• Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives (CEA)
• European Research Institute for Gas and Energy Innovation (ERIG)
• Fondazione Bruno Kessler – FBK
• German Aerospace Center - Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e. V. (DLR)
• HyCenta
• Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST)
• University of Oulu
• Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM)

New Working Groups within Hydrogen Europe Research!

During the last General Assembly in June, we announced the establishment of two working groups within Hydrogen Europe Research, which will complement the already existing Policy Working Group and Skills Working Group.

The Low TRL Research Working Group will provide a discussion platform dedicated to supporting the excellence of European research on hydrogen technologies. The main objective of this Working Group will be to advise on priorities and opportunities coming from low TRL research contributing to the update of our research and innovation roadmaps, the identification of annual priorities for annual Calls for proposals and future HER position papers.

The Research (RI) and Technology (TI) Infrastructures Working Group will provide a forum for discussion with the aim of identifying means to promote the development of RIs and TIs for the hydrogen sector. The new Working Group will also be tasked to keep the mapping of the research and technology infrastructures present within the Hydrogen Europe Research membership, and possibly beyond, up to date.

A kick-off webinar will be held on 27 September from 14:00 to 15:30 (CET), for Hydrogen Europe Research members interested in knowing more about these topics. If you have questions, do not hesitate to contact our Innovation Manager at l.mazurkiewicz@hydrogeneuroperesearch.eu!

Hydrogen Skills Strategy unveiled!

We are happy to announce the Hydrogen Skills Strategy has been published! 

The comprehensive study, conducted between November 2022 and March 2023, involved 146 stakeholders from 23 countries.

With the hydrogen sector projected to create a staggering 249,000 jobs by 2030, there is an urgent call to train and empower individuals to excel in this booming industry. This Hydrogen Skills Strategy stands as a beacon guiding us towards meeting this crucial demand!  

Follow the Green Skills for Hydrogen LinkedIn page to stay up to date on the recent skills development!

CLEAN HYDROGEN PARTNERSHIP UPDATES

The finalisation of Annual Work Plan 2024 is entering its final stage, with fine-tuning of current topics and selection of the final list. The Governing Board of the Partnership should approve it by the end of 2023, followed by the publication of the 2024 Call for Proposals early next year.

The Programme Office recently published an analysis of the achievements of the Clean Hydrogen Partnership since its inception, as well as the foreseen future activities – more information can be found here.

Finally, the Programme Office is organising a webinar on the relaunch of the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Observatory. This event will take place online on Friday, 29 September from 10:00 to 12:00 (CET). More information can be found here.

NEWS FROM EUROPE

EU knowledge valorisation newsletter

The Commission will soon publish the first edition of the EU knowledge valorisation newsletter. This newsletter, published by the Directorate-General Research & Innovation, will regularly summarise up-to-date inormation on policy developments, new initiatives and opportunities for stakeholders in Europe to engage in promoting the uptake of research results for a sustainable future.

If you are interested, you can register here!

Horizon Europe Info Day Cluster 5 – Tuesday 17 October 2023

The Commission’s Info Day will present the research and innovation topics proposed for 2024 under the Work Programme 2023-2024 of Horizon Europe Cluster 5, addressing Climate, Energy and Mobility. The event will give the opportunity to prospective applicants to learn more about the funding opportunities of the programme for 2024 (with a budget of slightly more than €1 billion available) which focuses on twin green and digital transitions to achieve climate neutrality in Europe by 2050. More detailed information, and the possibility to register for the event, is available here.

RISE Worldwide - Research Internships in Science and Engineering

RISE stands for Research Internships in Science and Engineering. RISE Worldwide, a DAAD-Initiative that complements and creates synergies with the ERA Fellowships – Green Hydrogen, offers summer research internships across the world to undergraduate students from Germany with academic training in biology, chemistry, computer science, physics, earth sciences, engineering or a closely related field. RISE Worldwide is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research.

The call will be open until 30 September 2023. Please check the website for detailed information, or contact rise-ww@daad.de if you have questions on the programme!

MEMBERS’ NEWS

Fuel Cell Modeling: Understanding Charge, Mass, and Heat Transfer in Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells - CAMELOT Project Workshop

As part of this work, a free and open source Fuel Cell Performance Model has been developed and extended to describe the transport and kinetic processes in ultra-thin, low-loaded membrane electrode assemblies.

The workshop will provide attendees with an understanding of the general theory behind the model and highlight the improvements made within the project, as well as a hands-on implementation of the model through tutorial sessions supported by the FAST Simulations team.

Click here to learn more about the event.

EVENTS ATTENDEND BY HYDROGEN EUROPE RESEARCH

Annual event of the European Federation of Corrosion (EUROCORR 2023), 27-31 August 2023, Brussels, Belgium

Corrosion research is becoming key in the field of hydrogen, whether it is to ensure safe storage and transport or efficient and sustainable source of energy production. Therefore, this year at EUROCORR23, a week-long workshop on ‘Hydrogen and metallic materials’ was organized to bring together academia and industry to exchange knowledge and research findings, addressing issues associated with the interaction of hydrogen with metallic materials and also identifying potential solutions.

Christian Sattler, Vice president of Hydrogen Europe Research, opened the workshop with a keynote lecture.

European Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Piero Lunghi Conference 2023 (EFC), 13-15 September 2023

EFC23, arriving at its 10^th edition, aimed to bring together academia, the research world, industry, public sector to exchange and share their experiences and research results on all aspects of Hydrogen and Fuel Cells technologies and clean energy. EFC23 continued the strong tradition as one of the leading international conferences in the field of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies, providing an excellent opportunity to present recent technical progress, establish new contacts, and exchange technical, industrial, and business information.

Luigi Crema, HER President, was a speaker at the event. Read more here.

The Role of Education in Advancing the Transition, Technical University of Madrid (UPM) - ETSI of Civil Engineering, 21 September 2023, Madrid, Spain

Julia Cora, Project Manager at Hydrogen Europe Research, discussed the role of education in advancing the clean energy transition powered by solar and hydrogen technologies at the EIT Raw Materials Expert Forum Madrid.

During this event, she presented the European Hydrogen Skills Strategy, one of the main milestones in the journey of the Green Skills for Hydrogen project.

DON'T MISS THE NEXT EVENTS!

16th International Conference on Catalysis in Membrane Reactors (ICCMR16), 16 – 18 October 2023, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain

The Local Organizing Committee (LOC) and the International Organizing Committee (IOC) have the pleasure of inviting you to participate in the 16th International Conference on Catalysis in Membrane Reactors (ICCMR16) which will be held from October 16 – 18, 2023 in Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain.

The ICCMR16 will be organized by the TECNALIA, member of the Basque Research and Technology Alliance (Spain).

The conference series started in 1994, in Villeurbanne-Lyon (France) with the 1st International Workshop on Catalytic Membranes. Click here to learn more about the programme and to register!

7th International Conference on Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells & Electrolysis. Materials, Systems & Applications (CARISMA2023), 1-5 October 2023, Lefkada, Greece

The 7th International Conference on Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells & Electrolysis. Materials, Systems & Applications (CARISMA2023) will be held on October 1-5, 2023 in Lefkada, Greece.

This series of conferences was initiated in 2008 and is dedicated to all aspects related to Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Hydrogen Technologies. The CARISMA conference series is dedicated to the challenges in the development of materials, membrane-electrode-assemblies, components and systems for low and high-temperature polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cells and electrolysis.

The purpose of the conference is to present important issues and recent results, but also to discuss the solutions sought internationally regarding materials development, operation and process optimization, material and device degradation, review of important issues and market perspectives of technologies.

More information about the event and registrations are available here.

European Hydrogen Energy Conference (EHEC) 2024, 6-8 March 2024, Bilbao, Spain

As part of the relationship of collaboration and cooperation with the Spanish Hydrogen Association, we are pleased to inform you that the new edition of the European Hydrogen Energy Conference (EHEC 2024), organized by the AeH2, will be held in Bilbao on March 6,7 & 8 2024.

EHEC has established itself as a leading conference in the hydrogen sector, taking place every two years for almost two decades. The previous edition, held in Madrid in 2022, attracted over 1100 attendees from 40 countries. With more than 200 speakers, 36 parallel sessions, and over 50 exhibitors throughout three days, it provided a comprehensive platform for knowledge and business exchange.

We believe that EHEC 2024 will offer a unique opportunity to stay up-to-date on the rapid changes within the sector, both in terms of R&D and industrial and regulatory advances.

Please note that the call for abstracts is currently open, if you wish to participate as a speaker. Abstracts must be submitted electronically through the EHEC's registration system here. The deadline to register is July 31.

Follow the event on Linkedin!

Spring Summer School JESS 2024: Pre-Announcement 2024

In 2023, the Joint European Summer School JESS 2023 is being held near the beautiful city of Athens on the coast of the Aegean Sea. Once again, the summer school is providing condensed high-level courses on selected topics. The topical content is tailored to the needs of a diverse audience: newcomers to the field of hydrogen, experienced students, and young professionals working at the forefront of fuel cell, electrolyser, and battery applications.

As the Low-Temperature Fuel Cell and Electrolyser module has attracted incredible interest (as last year), and they had to reject a large number of registrations, they have decided to re-run this module in May 2024. The Spring Summer School JESS 2024 will take place from 5 to 11 May 2024 somewhere in Greece.

More details will follow via the website as it becomes available.

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