The Resources Innovation Center Leoben at Montanuniversität Leoben is home to the university’s international partnerships in the areas of sustainable science, education and industrialization. Our vision is to make a climate friendly, sustainable future in the raw materials sector.
After much fine-tuning, the first edition of MiReBooks in printed form has been printed and is now available. These books will take mining education to a higher level by incorporating VR and AR elements into teaching!
The new research center for hydrogen and carbon in Leoben ceremoniously opened its doors on October 17, 2024.
Rector Peter Moser and Vice-Rector Helmut Antrekowitsch emphasized the key role of the new research center for the future development of energy technologies and the importance of cooperation between science and industry. Advanced process technologies are being developed here that will make it possible to provide large quantities of hydrogen for industry. At the same time, the entire value-added cycle of hydrogen and carbon – from production, transportation and storage through to application – is being researched.
Another focus is on researching the sustainable use of carbon in the areas of agriculture, construction and high-tech applications, such as hydrogen storage.
Educated at the University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences (study of environment and bioresource management, in the faculty of climate), the research topic of sustainable production and consumption brought Alex to Leoben. Due to his expertise in environmental footprints and holistic life cycle assessment, he leads SDG 12 (sustainable production and consumption) in the Austria-wide sustainability flagship project UniNEtZ, where he also acts as elected committee chair. His core area of interest is to capture, describe and evaluate sustainability in a holistic way.
In his spare time Alex is currently writing his PhD thesis: “Sustainability of products, the great unknown.”
A holistic assessment of steel should provide transparency about the impact of the product and help decision makers to make sustainable decisions.
Mineral extraction is crucial to Europe’s twin digital and green transition. It is essential that these minerals are not extracted at the expense of the environment and people. In order to have a truly green transition, we also need sustainable management in the extractive sector: Minimising the environmental footprint of an extraction project while at the same time contributing to a local and societal license to operate. This transition to sustainable management is challenging, both for policy and industry.
The SUMEX Massive Open Online Course will address five key challenges that industry and policy face in this transition. The course makes use of scientific concepts and holistic sustainability concepts at the operational level and will outline potential solutions based on practical examples applicable across Europe.
What is in it for you?
What will you achieve?
By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to…
Who is the course for?
This course is designed for leaders, managers and stakeholders in the mineral extractive industry who want to learn about the challenges, solutions and new developments in sustainability.
It will be especially useful for public administrators and industry practitioners wishing to understand and implement sustainability management at any stage of the mining life cycle, from exploration to post-closure.
This course also benefits those interested in the importance of raw materials for a sustainable future and the challenges connected to them!
Hydrogen is inevitably linked to carbon as a valuable material in to the research activities in the field of methane pyrolysis. About 120 scientists from 23 different organizational units of the Montanuniversität Leoben are currently working on topics within the Strategic Core Research Area (SCoRe A+ Hydrogen and Carbon). Networking of individual scientists from different disciplines creates fruitful collaborations. The recent H2C – Symposium gathered a wide audience to learn from 20 PhD candidates working on sustainable energy projects.
More info here.