E.ON
E.ON Energy Research Center
Professor Rik W. De Doncker is head of the E.ON Energy Research Center and simultaneously directs the institute “Power Generation and Storage Systems (PGS)”. Professor De Doncker and the institutes are assisted by the Central Offices Team, consisting of the Administration, the ICT and the electrical and mechanical workshop. Positioned at the same hierarchical level, the five research institutes in the sector of energy technology are each in charge of their own scientific and non-scientific personnel. The institute “Applied Geophysics and Geothermal Energy (GGE)” is directed by Professor Christoph Clauser, whereas the expert area “Future Energy Consumer Needs and Behavior (FCN)” is led by Professor Reinhard Madlener. In addition, Professor Dirk Müller is responsible for investigating the question involving “Energy Efficient Buildings and Indoor Climate (EBC)”. The field “Automation of Complex Power Systems (ACS)” is headed by Professor Antonello Monti.
Multidisciplinary Research at E.ON ERC - Main Topics
According to its mission statement, E.ON ERC focusses on international, national, regional and internal cooperative projects. These projects are executed by E.ON ERC projects together with external partners, to bundle know-how across various disciplines. The fact that E.ON ERC offers expertise across several research areas under one roof is a major advantage. E.ON ERC can apply for funding to initiate and manage large international projects that are within the scope of its mission statement.
The variety and complementary experiences of researchers in the five institutes enable the development and implementation of sophisticated research projects. Thus, the E.ON Energy Research Center represents a unique interface to the university. Its concept of multi-disciplinary research has brought many research projects to Aachen. E.ON ERC can explicitly address the complex requests of industry and attain research results by means of the equipment and the interdisciplinary work culture of the experts from various disciplines. Moreover, E.ON ERC welcomes constructive cooperation with other institutes of RWTH Aachen University, as well as with other universities. In addition, E.ON ERC belongs to the Jülich Aachen Research Alliance (JARA), in particular to JARA Energy, and cooperates with numerous other regional, national and international partners.
Without the founding of E.ON ERC, the promotion of new concepts would not have been possible. As stated in the mission, the center focuses on research related to energy savings, energy efficiency and sustainable energy supplies. More specifically, the institutes strongly cooperate in projects related to grids and storage systems, buildings and city quarters, as well as heat and power plants. At the energy markets plane, questions related to consumer behavior, policies, social aspects, technology choices and diffusion are being addressed.