Researchers from the Technical University of Munich hope to transform building envelopes into animal and plant habitats using a software plug-in that incorporates habitat knowledge into the building design process.
As part of his doctoral research, Frédéric Lapierre works on creating and improving culture media for biocementing bacteria—which could yield sustainable applications for the construction industry and environmental engineering.
One hundred years after it was founded, the Margaretenau building cooperative is getting a facelift. Researchers on the MAGGIE project are working to ensure the renovations deliver energy savings and meet climate targets.
At the HM Hochschule München University of Applied Sciences, a model project on recycled concrete shows how demolished buildings can literally take on new forms.
30 years ago, for the only time, the rotational arch technology by engineer Günter Kupczik was integrated into the Dresden sewer system. Aiming to achieve better volume management during heavy rainfall and to solve the issue of sediment removal without requiring personnel, Kupczik began working on the innovative rotational arch solution as early as the 1980s. Comparative analyses conducted by TU Dresden revealed that, at the time, the rotational arch was the only technical solution in which mechanical components did not come into contact with wastewater, the full flow cross-section remained available at all times, and precise control was possible even under backed-up operational conditions.
Münchberg/Kassel – Researchers at Hof University of Applied Sciences are currently focusing on an especially fascinating and versatile plant: the willow shrub. At the Institute of Materials Science (ifm) in Münchberg, attention is being directed toward this plant, whose flexible wood can be used in textile production, construction, as well as in medicine and cosmetics. Willow provides a rapidly renewable resource that, when utilized in these fields, also contributes to significant CO₂ savings.
What a tree needs to grow and how it affects its surroundings varies from species to species. This makes it increasingly important for cities to adapt the urban tree cover to local conditions. A team at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) has developed the online tool CityTree. Cities, municipalities and interested individuals can use it to find out how 12 common tree species are growing in 34 German cities and how they will benefit the local climate in the future.
A remarkable archaeological breakthrough has been made with the excavation and restoration of rooms in the pyramid of Sahura. The discovered chambers are probably storage rooms intended to hold the royal burial objects.
People are able to perceive their surroundings in three dimensions and can quickly spot potential danger in everyday situations. Drones have to learn this. Prof. Stefan Leutenegger refers to the intelligence needed for this task as ‘spatial artificial intelligence’, or spatial AI. This new approach will be used by cartographers mapping forests, in ship inspections and when building walls.
Nature in city environs has a positive effect on people's well-being. At the same time biological diversity in urban areas continues to shrink, for example because of increasing building density. In the "Ecolopes" project, researchers led by the Technical University of Munich (TUM) are searching for specific solutions which will make it possible to create green infrastructure with a higher degree of biological diversity in urban areas.