Young researchers from a variety of disciplines are taking advantage of the infrastructure and opportunities offered by the Schülerforschungszentrum Nordhessen (SFN) student research center to develop ideas for new processes and products. Now, Pfeiffer Vacuum is supporting the Student Research Center by donating a backing pump.
As part of a project, students are developing a filter for detached houses to convert CO2 into O2. In this process, exhaust gases from gas or oil heating systems are passed through a flat algae tank which can be fitted to the wall of any house. With the aid of photosynthesis, the CO2 in the exhaust gases is converted back into oxygen. The team is currently working to develop a stable process. They are assisted in their efforts by a scanning electron microscope which was donated by ZEISS.
An electron microscope is an instrument that makes the smallest structures visible. To operate an instrument of this type, it is necessary to use vacuum pumps, which play a role in the energy balance of the electron microscope. Since it is currently not possible to quantify the energy balance of an electron microscope, the Student Research Center in Kassel has also taken on this task: young people are using a scientific approach to investigate the carbon footprint of an electron microscope.
Courtesy of Pfeiffer Vacuum.