Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems IKTS
The "Electrochemistry" working group makes targeted use of its comprehensive range of electrochemical methods - whether for the production, processing and characterization of materials or for the development of electrochemical cells and processes. The close connection to the Chair of Inorganic Non-Metallic Materials at TU Dresden creates the knowledge base for numerous research and development activities at Fraunhofer IKTS.
The working group deals with the following topics:
Functional coatings
Electrochemical processes are ideally suited to the effective and easily controllable production and characterization of coatings for a wide range of functional properties in various fields of application: electronics (dielectrics, solder layers), corrosion and wear protection (anodization layers, plasma electrochemical oxide layers), energy storage (capacitors), sensor technology (layers for ion-selective electrodes).
Electrochemical processing and corrosion
In electrochemical machining, the advantages of non-contact material removal (no mechanical or thermal damage, no tool wear) are used to shape workpieces. As the material removal does not depend on the hardness of the material to be machined, the process is of particular interest for WC-Co hard metals and SiC-based ceramics. Here, the anodic dissolution of materials is exploited, while the prevention of this is the subject of our corrosion research and corrosion protection.
Waste water treatment and recycling
Electrochemical processes are used in the treatment of wastewater for purification and disinfection as well as in the recovery of valuable materials from recycled products, for example metals from mining water or used batteries.
The understanding of the underlying electrochemical processes and their interactions with various materials that has been built up over many years in the "Electrochemistry" working group forms the basis for the development of new materials and production processes.
Fraunhofer IKTS has a wide range of electrochemical (EIS, cyclic voltammetry, transient methods) and spectroscopic methods (FTIR, Raman spectroscopy, UV-Vis spectroscopy, ICP-OES) for investigating such processes, across scales from µm2 to m2. In addition, electrochemical investigations are directly coupled with complementary methods (microscopy, spectroscopy, diffractometry, thermography, gravimetry) in the form of in-situ or operando applications.
Equipment
- Gloveboxes
- Climatic chambers (-40 to 120 °C)
- Small electroplating system
- Potentiostats/galvanostats in the current range from 100 fA to 80 A and potentials up to 200 V as well as current/voltage sources up to 3.5 kW
- Electrochemical impedance measuring stations
- Measuring cells (2- and 3-electrode arrangement) for electrochemical and spectro-electrochemical investigations
- Electrochemical quartz microbalance
- FT IR/Raman spectrometer
- ICP-OES system
Services offered
- Electrochemical characterization of materials, substances and processes
- Understanding of reaction mechanisms and determination of thermodynamic and kinetic parameters of electrode reactions (diffusion, activation/reaction energies, efficiencies)
- Electrode development for electrochemical processes and sensor technology
- Development of electrochemical processes and support for industrial transfer
- Electrochemical reactors on a laboratory scale with scalable design