Institution

The Fachgebiet Technische Thermodynamik is part of the Department of Production Engineering and was founded in 1982 when Prof. Klaus Genthner was appointed. From 2002-2012 the institute was headed by Prof. Stefan Will. Since 2014 Prof. Johannes Kiefer has been Head of the institute.

Thermodynamics is a sub-discipline of physics and it is often referred to as the science of energy and heat. Thermodynamics describes the conversion between different forms of energy, as well as their transport and the associated changes of the state of a system. Moreover, it describes the behavior of matter.

Technische Thermodynamik, which is often translated as Engineering Thermodynamics, represents a sub-discipline in the engineering sciences. It is concerned with the modeling and optimization of technical processes. Consequently, it is a basic subject in any engineering degree program.

In the Fachgebiet Technische Thermodynamik there are three research groups doing fundamental and applied research. Key areas of research are the development and application of optical/spectroscopic methods for studying processes and for the determination of thermophysical properties of fluids, as well as the development of innovative approaches for seawater desalination. For this purpose, we run a number of modern experimental test facilities as well as employ state-of-the-art software for process simulation.