New laboratory for raw material change

The new joint laboratory of the Cluster of Excellence “Unifying Concepts in Catalysis” (UniCat) and the chemical company BASF SE will open on July 9th, 2014 at the Technische Universität Berlin. There, 17 scientists are to study the basis of heterogeneous catalysis for raw material change and advance the search for alternatives to petroleum. The laboratory building specifically constructed for this purpose on the Charlottenburg campus encompasses approximately 1,000 square meters and will be funded with around 13 million euros in the first five years. BASF SE will invest up to 6.4 million euros. Approximately the same amount will come from the Technical University of Berlin and the Cluster of Excellence, UniCat. 

You are cordially invited to the press event with guided tour of the laboratory:

Time: Wednesday, July 9^th, 2014, 10 a.m. 

Location:   BasCat Lab, Hardenbergstraße 36, 10623 Berlin, Seminar Room

The following discussion partners will be available on site for questions:   

• Prof. Dr. Christian Thomsen, President of TU Berlin,
• Dr. Peter Schuhmacher, President Process Research and Chemical Engineering BASF, 
• Prof. Dr. Robert Schlögl, Director of Inorganic Chemistry at the Fritz-Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society, Berlin,
• Dr. Frank Rosowski, Scientific Director of BasCat, and
• Prof. Dr. Matthias Driess, chair of UniCat

Please register by July 7th, 2014 by sending your name, media outlet, and contact information to: pressestelle@tu-berlin.de 

The laboratory offers through its three areas of research; synthesis, spectroscopy, and catalytic reactions, the necessary conditions to develop new methods and to carry out extensive studies on innovative catalyst materials and reaction conditions. The long-term goal is the supply security of raw materials for the manufacture of chemical products. The current research program deals with the oxidative activation of less reactive molecules of natural gas.