immo!nvest – Die Plattform für Standorte und Immobilien

Tag: PSI

  • ESA strengthens new innovation centre at the Paul Scherrer Institute

    ESA strengthens new innovation centre at the Paul Scherrer Institute

    With the opening of the ESDI, the ESA has taken a decisive step towards strengthening Swiss space research and development. Located in the immediate vicinity of the PSI in Park Innovaare, the ESDI will serve as a hub for new, ground-breaking technologies that are important for both space research and industrial applications in Switzerland and Europe.

    Focus on quantum and materials research in the Phi-Lab
    A central element of the ESDI is the Phi-Lab, which is headed by Jennifer Wadsworth and specialises in promoting innovative research projects. From 2025, targeted programmes in quantum and materials research will be financially supported here. Wadsworth emphasises the possibility that Phi-Lab brings together diverse teams from industry, start-ups and research to solve complex technological challenges that are almost impossible to implement with conventional funding measures.

    Location advantages through Park Innovaare and PSI
    The ESDI’s location in Park Innovaare, a new hub for high-tech innovation, provides access to advanced manufacturing facilities. In addition, the neighbouring PSI brings expertise in areas such as vacuum technology and radiation protection, which are already adapted to space conditions through the use of PSI particle accelerators. This synergy provides the ESDI and its partners with an infrastructure for prototype development and testing under realistic space conditions.

    Strengthening the Swiss innovation landscape
    With the ESDI, the ESA will further intensify its collaboration with Swiss innovation players. The support of the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI) and the ETH Domain guarantees the sustainable development of this project. The planned opening ceremony in spring 2025 marks the official starting point for an era of closer ties between ESA, Swiss research and industry that could extend far beyond the space sector.

    Long-standing partnership between ESA and PSI
    The connection between ESA and PSI has a long tradition. PSI has been carrying out material tests as part of space research for many years. One example of this is the JUICE mission, in which the RADEM detector developed by PSI is used to analyse radiation conditions in the Jupiter system. Thierry Strässle, Chief of Staff at PSI, sees the ESDI as playing a crucial role for Switzerland: “The ESDI will be a central hub for space research and Switzerland’s high-tech ecosystem.”

  • 4000 scenarios for the climate change

    4000 scenarios for the climate change

    Mankind currently emits 42 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide per year. According to calculations by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), only around 300 to 600 billion tonnes may be added since 2020, otherwise the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius will hardly be achievable. Evangelos Panos from the PSI’s Laboratory for Energy System Analysis agrees with this conclusion: “It could be close, because in 70 per cent of our scenarios the world will exceed the 1.5 degree Celsius mark in the next five years.”

    Which climate measures have the greatest success?
    Against the backdrop of climate change, numerous political, economic and social decisions have to be made. However, these are subject to numerous uncertainties. It is understandable that those responsible are looking for reliable bases for one of the central questions, for example: Which measures have the greatest effect and are also economically advantageous in order to achieve the net zero emissions target, as Switzerland has set itself, for example? Answers are now provided by a large computer simulation that was developed on this topic. It couples climate models with economic models and 1200 technologies for the provision and use of energy and for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. As part of the study, a supercomputer calculated 4000 scenarios for 15 regions of the Earth, taking into account possible developments in ten-year steps up to the year 2100 in each case. “This requires sophisticated data analysis and visualisation techniques,” adds co-author James Glynn, head of the analysis platform for modelling energy systems at Columbia University in the USA. The final file is 700 gigabytes. The research article on it has now been published in the trade medium Energy Policy.

    What makes the work of Evangelos Panos and the co-authors so special: For the first time, their integrated assessment models take into account many of the uncertainties inherent in the models. Previous scenarios usually assume that all parameters for the future are known, such as when which technologies will be available and what they will cost, or how large the expansion potential for renewable energies is. Moreover, IPCC calculations focus solely on technology options, i.e. on the question of what effects the choice of certain technologies will have on the climate. The uncertainties in climate models and how the climate reacts to economic growth are left out of the equation, as are many other uncertainties, for example regarding population development or political measures. “The most important contribution of our research is that it enables policy makers to make concrete decisions about climate action with full knowledge of the existing uncertainties,” emphasises co-author Brian Ó Gallachóir from University College Cork.

    18 uncertainty factors and 72 000 variables
    When researchers want to calculate scenarios that contain many variables and uncertainties, they often resort to the so-called Monte Carlo method. The Monte Carlo method does not predict the future. “Rather, it lays out a kind of data map with what-if decision paths,” says Evangelos Panos. This was also the case in the current study: the team varied 72 000 variables for each scenario. “We considered 18 uncertainty factors, including population and economic growth, climate sensitivity, resource potential, the impact of changes in agriculture and forestry, the cost of energy technologies and the decoupling of energy demand and economic development,” explains James Glynn of Columbia University.

    Sound basis for national paths to energy transition
    In order to break down individual scenarios focusing on political and economic issues to the different national paths to energy transition, additional, national-specific parameters must be taken into account. “An energy system that enables the transition to a carbon-free economy is capital intensive and requires the mobilisation of resources from all actors,” Panos sums up. This requires tailor-made analyses at the national level: “Our study provides a sound basis for this.”

  • Another location for start-ups is being created in the greater Zurich area

    Another location for start-ups is being created in the greater Zurich area

    As a first step, Elektron AG is making around 1,100 square meters available to the Wädenswil start-up organization grow . Two fast-growing life science start-ups will move in there: Araris Biotech AG , a spin-off from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich ( ETH ) and the Paul Scherrer Institute ( PSI ), and Nemis Technologies AG . This is already a fourth location for ambitious young companies in the local area of Wädenswil.

    The technology company Elektron will finance the conversion to laboratory and office space. “The cooperation with grow fits perfectly with our philosophy of combining modern technologies and sustainability,” Elektron CEO Enrico Baumann is quoted as saying in a statement from grow. “For us, the settlement of the two start-ups is an investment in the future and a commitment to the Wädenswil workplace.”

    Araris Biotech is researching novel anti-cancer antibody compounds. Nemis develops diagnostic solutions to detect pathogenic bacteria in food. Both have completed successful financing rounds. Araris was able to earn over 15 million francs in October 2020, Nemis only recently 7.75 million francs.

    “In the past five years, growth has accelerated significantly,” says Wädenswil Mayor Philipp Kutter. He is also a member of the board of trustees of grow. Despite the corona pandemic, there are signs of further growth, “which is extremely positive for research and business in and around Wädenswil”.