P2X
Education and transferring Kopernikus knowledge
P2X is committed to capacity building. This means knowledge from today’s research will reach young aspiring scientists from tomorrow. Specifically, findings from P2X and its sister projects are to be made accessible to learners so that the most important insights can be widely recognized as a foundation in people's minds.
How long will it take until today‘s research becomes study material? Too long for the energy transition. The Kopernikus projects don't want to wait. Their declared aim is ultimately to push ahead with the energy transition. However, this is a highly complex task involving many different disciplines and stakeholders. Getting it right is a bit like asking strangers to completely rebuild a train whilst travelling at full speed and lay new tracks for it but without stopping. After all, the reliability of supply must be always guaranteed.
How does it affect the teaching materials? The train in question - the energy system - is in motion, but must change without coming to a standstill or derailing. This is why science and industry collaborate very closely at Kopernikus in order to keep the path from theory to practice short and at the same time to test how well the theory works in practice. Yet, the knowledge generated by research is initially only available to those who are involved. Rightly so, since the obtained results are new, volatile and need to be reviewed thoroughly. However, this is not enough for the Kopernikus projects, which is why capacity building plays a major role in the final project phase in the context of transfer. To ensure that in the near future, when the energy system gradually changes tracks, future specialists already know what they are dealing with, the Kopernikus project P2X is in charge of designing educational materials and programmes. Of course, knowledge from the sister projects is also incorporated in many places.
The P2X lecture series is a central programme that is being launched now and is open to all interested persons free of charge. P2X partner Provadis College is organising the programme. For the time being, there are ten sessions focussing on various topics relating to Power-to-X technologies, which also have significant intersections with other energy transition topics. The lecture series is to be continued with further sessions in the future. These will take place digitally, participation is open to everyone and matriculation at a university is not a prerequisite. However, the knowledge imparted clearly goes beyond the basics, so prior knowledge is helpful.
Reaching potential specialists worldwide - in English!
The P2X lecture series aims to build up knowledge and expertise on Power-to-X technologies on a wide scale. The target group is primarily learners in schools, (technical) colleges and universities. Anyone with the desire to learn something new is welcome. The sessions also offer a deep insight into the research of the Kopernikus projects and help to categorize facts and backgrounds and make future-oriented decisions independently and politically uninfluenced on the basis of factual information. The Kopernikus projects also hope to increase acceptance for the energy transition and the associated changes, while at the same time building up the necessary capacities among specialists - also internationally.
The language of instruction is therefore English. It is planned to record the lectures and make them available with subtitles in another widely spoken language, such as Spanish. Individual sessions are aimed at STEM students from the fifth semester onwards as the main target group (labelled M in the following).
This is the lecture series in the winter semester 2024/2025
- Wednesday, 6 November 2024: Introduction to Power-to-X and Synthetic Fuels: the path to climate-neutral energy systems (Prof. Dr. Kirstin Hebenbrock, Prof. Dr. Peter Manshausen/both Provadis)
- Wednesday, 13 November 2024: Fire and Ice: Hydrogen and carbon dioxide as key components at the intersection of energy and chemistry (Prof. Dr. Walter Leitner/MPI)
- Wednesday, 20 November 2024: Power-to-X and electrolysis - Turning Steam into Rocket Fuel (Stephanie Wolf/Forschungszentrum Jülich/RWTH Aachen) (M)
- Wednesday, 27 November 2024: E-Fuels and Life Cycle Assessment (Prof. Dr. Ralf Ehret/Provadis)
- Wednesday, 4 December 2024: Flexible Load Operation of industrial plants for the integration of renewable energies (Dr. Eike Cramer/RWTH Aachen) (M)
- Thursday, 12 December 2024: Infrastructure, networks and availability of resources (Hydrogen Flagship Project TransHyDE: Frank Graf/DVGW-Ebi, Dorothea Müschenborn/Max Planck Institute for Chemical Energy Conversion)
- Thursday, 16 January 2025: Hydrogen and Power-to-X in the future German energy system (Dr. Franz Bauer/OTH Regensburg) (M)
- Wednesday, 22 January 2025: Towards a sustainable Power-to-X economy – the role of international trade and reliable frameworks (Ulrike Hinz/WWF, Heino von Meyer/PtX Hub, Veronica Vukasovic/GIZ PtX Hub Chile, Urugay)
- Wednesday, 29 January 2025: Microreactors and organic electrosynthesis (Dr. Peter Holtappels/KIT) (M)
- Wednesday, 5 February 2025: Power-to-X: Impact on society/acceptance (Irina Rau, Jan Hildebrand/both IZES)
Each of these events starts at 5.30 p.m. Participation is free of charge and open to all, but prior registration is required. Registration information will follow.
Educational content already available
Kopernikus partner WWF Germany has developed a virtual reality experience that playfully explains Power-to-X technologies and their use in a fictitious future. Interested players can explore the interactive game using VR goggles, but can also view the content online. Find out more (in German) here.
Kopernikus partner WWF has developed self-learning content for the P2X project on the topic of "Hydrogen for the energy transition and climate protection - Power-to-X". It is available free of charge in the WWF Academy. Click here to go directly to the e-learning programme (in German).