In June 2024, Villum Foundation donated DKK 25 million to support the ongoing research collaboration between DTU, Danish universities, and GreenLab. The application process for the fourth call has now been completed, and four projects have been selected to shape GreenLab's research profile in the coming years.
All four projects focus on industrial symbiosis and aspects of the so-called Power-Carbon-Water Nexus, the interconnection between electricity, carbon, and water in the green transition.
Each challenge is focused on increasing sustainability in industry. GreenLab is a green industrial cluster powered directly by renewable energy, and their focus is specifically on industrial electrification and reducing energy waste.
DTU's Senior Vice President Carsten Orth Gaarn-Larsen adds: "We are proud of our collaboration with GreenLab and the research platform we have built together over the past three years. This partnership provides a unique opportunity to create a world-class research environment close to the everyday reality of industry. Here, researchers—and eventually also students—will have access to demonstrate new ways of building a more sustainable industry. Congratulations to all the research teams. We look forward to seeing the results in the coming year."
The four missions and winning projects
The four challenges that formed the framework for the research projects are listed below, along with descriptions of each winning project. Three of the projects originate from DTU, while the fourth comes from Aarhus University.
Challenge A: Power-Carbon-Water-to-X Trade-Off Assessment
Winning project: Designing sustainable eco-industrial clusters considering optimal Power-Carbon-Water flows, environmental impacts and fair internal pricing (SUS-Optimal).
Description: This project assesses the trade-off between power, carbon, and water in eco-industrial clusters like GreenLab Skive, incorporating sector coupling and renewable fuel certification. The project also evaluates environmental impacts, such as emissions and resource use, to identify processes with the most favorable environmental and economic outcomes.
