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Virtual Lectures

The Virtual Lecture Series (VLS) will be delivered in English.

The whole VLS is divided into four Thematic Blocks:
A. Basics of Sustainability
B. Methods and Tools
C. Sustainability Engineering
D. Sustainability in Industrial Production

To register and participate in the VLS please contact the local SUSEE office at your university!

Coming soon!!!

Session 7 – Tuesday, 21.01.2025, 05:00 PM CET
Eco-Logistics” (Block D)
Lecturer: Dr. Kateryna Lysenko – Ryba, UITM Rzeszow.
This lecture focuses on integrating environmental sustainability into logistics and supply chain management. It covers key topics such as green supply chains, where eco-friendly practices are embedded across all stages, and the closed-loop and reverse supply chains that focus on recycling, reusing, and refurbishing products. The course explores Green Supply Chain Management (GSCM), waste reduction, and carbon footprint measurement, emphasizing strategies for reducing environmental impact while improving efficiency. Students learn about the benefits and challenges of eco-logistics, including cost savings, regulatory compliance, and innovation. The lecture also includes case studies from companies like IKEA, DHL, and UPS, showcasing successful implementations of sustainable logistics practices in the real world.

Session 8 – Tuesday, 28.01.2025, 05:00 PM CET
Sustainable Manufacturing” (Block D)
Lecturer: Prof. Erwin Rauch, unibz Bolzano
In the last year manufacturing was introducing many new digital technologies. The next challenge for production engineers is to make production factories and lines even more sustainable. After an introduction to the fundamentals of sustainable manufacturing there will be discussed how we can assess the sustainability of manufacturing technologies. Further resource efficiency is addressed in sense of eco-design of products to be manufactured as well as circularity for machinery. In a next step we will discuss energy efficiency improvement concepts for complex manufacturing systems. The lecture will finish with a discussion of the latest advancements in sustainability reporting and its impact on manufacturing (system/process) design.

Virtual Lectures completed so far:

Session 1 – Tuesday, 29.10.2024, 05:00 PM CET
Introduction to Sustainable Development Goals” (Block A)
Lecturer: Dr. Karolina Palimąka, UITM Rzeszow.
This lecture will present all 17 Sustainable Development Goals as per the UN agenda and invites you to discuss how SDGs can be addressed in real-life applications.

Session 2 – Tuesday, 05.11.2024, 05:00 PM CET
Matter and Energy in Circular Systems” (Block A)
Lecturer: Prof. Robert Geitner, TUIL Ilmenau
This lecture addresses the fundamental importance of energy and matter in the analysis of material and energy cycles. To this end, some basic quantities such as enthalpy and entropy will be introduced using examples. Building on this, the production of plastics based on fossil resources will be explained and then possible alternatives based on renewable raw materials will be presented. In the second part, an overview of the activation of CO2 and the hurdles involved in the various technically relevant reactions will be provided.

Session 3 – Tuesday, 12.11.2024, 05:00 PM CET
Circular Transition of Enterprises” (Block D)
Lecturer: Dr. Margherita Molinaro, unibz Bolzano
In the transition towards sustainability, companies often need to rethink their business models, which describe how they create, deliver, and capture value. After an introduction to the circular economy concept, the lecture will provide an overview of the primary business models that can support the circular transition of enterprises, by focusing on responsible resource use and closed-loop supply chains. A discussion on how to identify and operationalize the most suitable business model(s) will also be offered, considering alignment with firms’ resources, capabilities and constraints..

Session 4 – Tuesday, 19.11.2024, 05:00 PM CET
Sustainable Energy Conversion applying principles of Engineering Thermodynamics” (Block C)
Lecturer: Prof. Christian Karcher, TUIL Ilmenau
The lecture discusses how the application of Engineering Thermodynamics (ETD) principles enables engineers to better understand, design, and operate the two basic engineering energy conversion processes, i.e. the conversion of heat into work using power cycles and the conversion of work into heat or cold using heat pump or refrigeration cycles, respectively. Moreover, in preparation for the upcoming Winter School at TU Ilmenau to be held in March 2025, an introduction to the Case Study “Engineering investigations on a heat pump system” will be given.

Session 5 – Tuesday, 03.12.2024, 05:00 – 06:30 PM CET
Solar Hydrogen Generation / Photovoltaics” (Block C)
Lecturer: Prof. Erich Runge & Prof. Thomas Hannapel, TUIL Ilmenau
We will explain some basics of semiconductors, the principles of photovoltaics, their amazing development, and utilization for photoelectrochemical applications, the so-called artificial photosynthesis. We will learn that solar cells are in principle solar heat engines. Solar cells can be used as efficient artificial leaves, if we configure suitable multi-junction absorbers based on III-V semiconductors. However, some group III or group VI elements are critical, i.e. rare or problematic from other aspects. Appropriate substitution, reduction, and recycling strategies are discussed.ocesses, i.e. the conversion of heat into work using power cycles and the conversion of work into heat or cold using heat pump or refrigeration cycles, respectively. Moreover, in preparation for the upcoming Winter School at TU Ilmenau to be held in March 2025, an introduction to the Case Study “Engineering investigations on a heat pump system” will be given.

Session 6 – Tuesday, 07.01.2025, 05:00 – 06:30 PM CET
Thermal Energy Storage (TES) for sustainable power supply with Carnot-Batteries” (Block C)
Lecturer: Prof. Christian Cierpka, TUIL Ilmenau
The lecture presents in detail the concept of the Carnot battery. A system that stores surplus renewable energy in the form of thermal energy. This seems to be contradictive from the perspective of thermodynamics, but it will be shown that the theoretical round trip efficiency can be 100%.

This programme will be updated on an ongoing basis.

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