Aalto University launches Hydrogen Innovation Centre

Aalto University has received €2 million in funding from the Ministry of Education and Culture to establish a hydrogen innovation centre. The Innovation Centre will be based on Aalto University's multidisciplinary, cross-university hydrogen research, which will form an even more robust centre of excellence.

The vision of the Hydrogen Innovation Centre is to foster a hydrogen society that meets the UN's Sustainable Development Goals and a carbon-free future. We will seek solutions to ensure not only effective climate action but also the preservation of biodiversity and the sustainability of land use in the ongoing energy transition. As an essential part of this, a multidisciplinary doctoral programme will be established at the Centre to find solutions to the challenges of the hydrogen economy. The first PhD students will start at the HIC in the autumn of 2024.

Aalto University's Hydrogen Innovation Centre will collaborate with The long-term and evolving cooperation with industry external research organisations and corporate partners. It is the long-term and evolving cooperation with industry that will increase the impact of the HIC and make Finland an attractive destination for international talent and investment.

Focus on multidisciplinary research cooperation

Creating a sustainable hydrogen society requires, above all, multidisciplinary research cooperation. Aalto University's various universities are conducting top-quality research on topics such as green hydrogen, the hydrogen economy and various hydrogen technologies - the Innovation Centre will bring together and strengthen this expertise.

Professor Mika Järvinen from Aalto University's School of Engineering will lead the Hydrogen Innovation Centre. Professor Tanja Kallio will join him from the School of Chemical Engineering and Professor Marko Hinkkanen from the School of Electrical Engineering.

Järvinen sees this broad multidisciplinarity as the competitive advantage of the Hydrogen Innovation Centre over international talent. He says that Aalto has long conducted research supporting many key aspects of the hydrogen economy - the most important thing now is to get more funding and new talent and innovation through it.

"Aalto University wants to build a sustainable future. Research and education across the entire value chain of hydrogen technology and the hydrogen economy will play a key role in this task," Järvinen continues.

In addition to research, Aalto University is also investing in the education of hydrogen experts in several of its Master's programmes. In particular, the multidisciplinary Advanced Energy Solutions Master's programme and the Hydrogen and Electrical Systems Master's programme, starting in autumn 2024, will meet the needs of developing a sustainable hydrogen economy.

Aalto University is also involved with other key research and education actors in the Finnish Hydrogen Research Forum. Aalto University's Hydrogen Innovation Centre will continue to cooperate not only with it but also with the Finnish Hydrogen Cluster, a cluster of companies. The search for new partners and additional funding will also be actively pursued.

For more information, visit the Aalto University Hydrogen Innovation Centre website:

https://aalto.fi/h2

Upcoming events:

https://www.aalto.fi/en/events/energy-futures-wind-power-green-hydrogen