Dr. Marion Börnhorst has been a group leader at the Chair of Response Engineering and Catalysis in the Department of Biochemical and Chemical Engineering considering that 2022, having previously studied chemical engineering at TU Dortmund University and earned her postgraduate degree at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (SET). To successively change fossil energy sources and advance eco-friendly production in the chemical market, scientists must develop crucial technologies that are effective and sustainable. That is why Dr. Börnhorst is carrying out research into catalytic multiphase reactors and establishing structured catalysts. Here, she is mostly studying those procedures in chemical reactors in which gases, liquids and solids respond with each other, in addition to analyzing how heat and substances are exchanged between the phases and how the responses occurring can be made more effective.
Her research concentrates on new kinds of driver support structures: If a reactor wall has a structured surface area, for instance, a larger quantity of carbon dioxide can be taken in into a solvent. The innovation could be used, on the one hand, to record CO2 straight from the ambient air and, on the other hand, assist in better emission control in energy-intensive commercial processes. In addition, Dr. Marion Börnhorst is checking out how, in the context of electrification, microwaves instead of fossil fuels can be used to heat reactors: The microwaves might warm just the solids inside the reactor while the surrounding reaction medium remains cool. This would suggest a substantial increase in efficiency. What’s more, this electrical variant would make it possible to switch the reactor on and off quickly and on the button, in this way improving procedure control.
Reward allows research stays abroad
Dr. Börnhorst will utilize the prize money to money a one-month research stay with Professor Dionisios Vlachos at the University of Delaware in the U.S.A. in March 2026. Teacher Vlachos is amongst the prominent professionals in multiphase response engineering and processes, multiscale modeling, and the electrification of chemical reactors. Dr. Börnhorst would like to explore the capacity of structured catalysts for the electrification of chemical (multiphase) reactors with him. To this end, they have actually currently planned to perform measurements together in the labs there.
Professor Manfred Bayer, President of TU Dortmund University, and Dr. Gert Fischer, member of the board of the Rudolf Chaudoire Foundation, offered the welcome addresses at the award ceremony of the meanwhile 30th Rudolf Chaudoire Prize. Professor Nele McElvany, Vice President Research at TU Dortmund University, introduced the prizewinner. Professor Norbert Kockmann, Dean of the Department of Biochemical and Chemical Engineering, discussed new methods to environmental protection and the circular economy, and placed Dr. Börnhorst’s research study in this overarching context. He also applauded the prizewinner’s dedication to supporting early profession researchers in the network “Nachwuchs Reaktionstechnik” (NaWuReT), among her other activities. The musical backdrop for the evening was provided by the HBahneros.