Archive 2018

Doctorate of Martin Sahn

Congratulations to Mr. Martin Sahn on his passed doctorate. On 12 December, 2018, he successfully defended his dissertation on "PEtOx based telechelic building blocks - Synthesis and application".

Our best wishes, Dr. Sahn!

Professor Ulrich S. Schubert is "University Teacher of the Year"!Kempen: "Founder of the International Young Orchestra Academy combines promotion of young talent and international understanding with outstanding commitment to children suffering from cancer"

The German University Association (DHV) honors Professor Dr. Ulrich S. Schubert as "University Teacher of the Year".

"Ulrich S. Schubert is a leading international chemist and materials scientist with research interests in polymers for nanomedicine, self-healing polymers and metal-free battery systems. As a fivefold father, he is also highly committed to supporting young people outside of his field of expertise," explained the president of the DHV , Professor Bernhard Kempen, the decision. As a passionate clarinettist, Schubert founded the International Young Orchestra Academy (IJOA) back in 1994, which he has since supported in many ways with a lot of passion and energy. "The orchestra academy not only promotes young musical talents, but with more than 3,000 young artists from 90 nations, stands for a true international understanding," emphasized Kempen. The "temporary orchestra" will be occupied by an international competition and study with experienced teachers and conductors during a two-week stay in Germany large symphonic orchestral works, which will be recorded together with the Bavarian Radio on CD and then performed on a concert tour, funded by sponsors and patrons who are recruited anew every year by the Jena scientist. The resulting net proceeds and dedicated donations, which so far amount to more than one million euros, will benefit regional projects to help children with cancer and seriously ill children. "Ulrich S. Schubert Schubert combines promotion of young talent, cultural enjoyment and international understanding in an exemplary manner with the idea of charity," continued the president of DHV. Thus, Schubert has increased the reputation of science in Germany and has rendered outstanding services to the profession of university teachers.

The award includes prize money of 10,000 euros and will be awarded to Professor Schubert on 8 April, 2019, as part of the "Gala of German Science" in Berlin.

Click here for the press release of the Friedrich Schiller University Jena (German link) de

The Mitteldeutsche Rundfunk has also reported: here you can access the report in the news program MDR aktuell de and here you will find the article on MDR Radio (German links) de

This is the homepage of the Internationale Junge OrchesterakademieExternal link

This is the homepage of the German Association of University Professors and Lecturers (Deutscher Hochschulverband, in short DHV)External link

The "second wave of progress" in the field of organic redox flow batteries at a glance

The current issue of "Science" provides an overview about the current state of research and possible application perspectives of organic redox flow batteries (RFBs). In addition to CEEC Jena, a steadily growing number of other research groups around the world are looking for alternatives to expensive and rare vanadium, which is currently used as a raw material for RFBs. Also the director of CEEC Jena Prof. Dr. Ulrich S. Schubert provided information on this method of energy storage, which could be used for the storage of renewable energies: The researchers are currently in the middle of a "second wave of progress" in organic RFBs, that is mainly concerned with improved stability, Schubert says. "Science" concludes: That means there's still plenty of room for innovation.

Please download the complete article hereExternal link.

Presentation of the CEEC Jena at the InnoCon Thüringen and the ESF annual conference

We were very pleased about the opportunity to present the CEEC Jena at two fairs this fall! At the InnoCon Thüringen 2018 on 27 November, 2018, in addition to various lectures, about 40 Thuringian innovation projects of the Thuringian innovation strategy "RIS3 Thuringia" were presented - one of them was the CEEC Jena. On 4 December, 2018, the annual conference of the European Social Fund (ESF) Thuringia took place under the motto "The Future of the ESF and the Future of Europe". Here, too, there were many interesting discussions with the representatives of other ESF-funded projects, as well as with representatives of the competent authorities like Egbert Holthuis from the European Commission. Many thanks to the organizers for the great opportunity to present our work!

Learn more about the InnoCon Thüringen 2018 (German link)External link

Learn more about the ESF annual conference 2018 (German link)External link

Congratulations to our graduates!

We congratulate the following graduates on the successful defense of their bachelor and master theses in November:

Robin Kampes (Master)
Topic: Synthesis and characterization of halogen bond-based ligand systems and their application in anion sensores

Sandra Kröll (Master)
Topic: Formulation of Enzymes with Hydrogels based on Poly(2-ethyl-2-oxazoline)

New double special issue regarding metallopolymers in honor of Prof. Dr. George R. Newkome

New special issues regarding metallopolymers are recently published in "Macromolecular Chemistry and Physics" and "Macromolecular Rapid Communications". These issues are dedicated to Prof. Dr. George R. Newkome, who celebrated his 80^th birthday in November 2018 and visited us in Jena shortly before in September. Beside a range of different scientific articles, an essay regarding the contributions of Professor Newkome is part of the special issue in "Macromolecular Chemistry and Physics".

Guest editors of the double special issue are Prof. Dr. Ulrich S. Schubert, Dr. Stephanie Schubert, Prof. Dr. Ian Manners und Dr. Stefan Zechel.

You'll find the speciel issue of "Macromolecular Chemistry and Physics" hereExternal link.

You'll find the speciel issue of "Macromolecular Rapid Communications" hereExternal link.

Doctorate of Martin Reifarth

Congratulations to Mr. Martin Reifarth on his passed doctorate. On 21 November, 2018, he successfully defended his dissertation on "Uptake and intercellular fate of polymeric nanoparticles studied by light and electron microscopy - from labeling strategies for polymers towards a correlative microscopy approach".
Our best wishes, Dr. Reifarth!

Article in the "Journal of Power Sources"

The groups of Professor Andrea Balducci and Professor Ulrich S. Schubert published a common work about the influence of the electrolyte composition on the performance of materials for organic radical batteries. In this study named "The influence of the electrolyte composition on the electrochemical behaviour of cathodic materials for organic radical batteries" the two groups showed that utilizing ionic liquids, which are molten salt liquids at room temperature, is possible to realize safe organic batteries with outstanding performance.

Please download the complete article hereExternal link.

Visit from the European Parliament

On 9 November we had a visit from the European Parliament - Jakob von Weizsäcker and Kerstin Westphal, both MEPs, informed themselves about the current situation and the planned further development of CEEC Jena. They also visited our research laboratories and learned about our polymer-based batteries, from small printable systems to polymer redox flow batteries.

Learn more about Jakob von WeizsäckerExternal link

Learn more about Kerstin WestphalExternal link

Congratulations to our graduates!

We congratulate the following graduates on the successful defense of their bachelor and master theses in October:

Nadine Schmittat (Master)
Topic: Mechanical activation of metal complexes in polymers

Charlotte Mankel (Bachelor)
Topic: Synthese von konjugierten Farbstoffpolymeren mit Kettenendfunktionalisierung

Albert T. H. Bartholomäus (Bachelor)
Topic: Synthese von funktionalisierten elektropolymerisierbaren Monomeren für optoelektronische Anwendungen

Our guests in October

There were two lectures in the third week of October: On Tuesday, 16 October, Prof. Dr. Alejandro J. Müller from the University of the Basque Country San Sebastian (Spain) spoke in front of a full lecture hall on "Isodimorphic Behavior of Biodegradable Copolyesters: Structure and Crystallization Behavoir". On Friday, 19 October, Prof. Dr. Marcelo Calderon from the Freie Universität Berlin gave a lecture on "Breaking the barrier - Efficient topical delivery using thermoresponsive nanogels."
Many thanks to both speakers for the interesting impulses and the sound scientific exchange!

Learn more about the lecture of Prof. Dr. Alejandro J. Müllerpdf, 244 kb · de

Learn more about the lecture of Prof. Dr. Marcelo Calderonpdf, 295 kb · de

Annual event of the 
European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)

At the annual event of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) on 18 October, 2018 under the motto "Cohesion Policy of the Future - ERDF in Transition", CEEC Jena was presented as an example of successful support to "strengthen research, technological development and innovation" ( Priority 1 of the Thuringia Operational Program (OP) ERDF 2014 to 2020).
In her presentation on the "Interim Results OP ERDF 2014 - 2020", the department head for economic development at the Thuringian Ministry of Science, Economy and Digital Society (TMWWDG), Dr. Sabine Awe mentioned our work at CEEC Jena. With approximately 435 million euros and thus almost 30% of the entire program, state-funded research institutions and the innovative capacity of the economy are supported across the whole of Thuringia. About 6.5 million euros of this amount were made available to CEEC Jena last year for the research of innovative energy storage concepts.

Learn more about the EFRE annual event (German link)External link

Learn more about the support of CEEC Jena by the European Regional Development FundExternal link

Presentation of the RegioStars Awards in Brussels

On 9 October, 2018 the presentation of the RegioStars Awards 2018 in Brussels took place as part of the European Week of Regions and CitiesExternal link, and CEEC Jena was also a finalist in the category "Achieving Sustainability through Low Carbon Emissions". We were delighted about the visit of Dr. Babette Winter, State Secretary for Culture and Europe in the Thuringian State Chancellery, Ms. Annelie Zapfe, Consultant for Research, Technology, Innovation Policy and Culture at the Representation of the Free State of Thuringia and Mr. Karl-Heinz Lambertz, President of the Committee of the Regions of the EU, at our booth. The finalist project has been represented by Dr. Alexandra Lex-Balducci from our team of scientific co-ordinators  and Volker Kurz, Head of Unit in the administrative and certifying authority ERDF of the Thüringer Ministerium für Wirtschaft, Wissenschaft und Digitale Gesellschaft (TMWWDG).

Learn moreExternal link

New publication in "Progress in Polymer Science"

Recently, our new review article was published that covers the whole field of pharmaceutical polymers. In this review, we summarize all these classes of synthetic polymers, which are on the market as well as the latest developments in clinical trials, and describe their application in polymer-drug conjugates, as excipients, in nano-/microscopic and macroscopic drug carriers, as polymeric coatings, or as polymeric drugs. Our intention is to create a link between the underlying chemical structures, the properties of the polymers, and their area of application, where they are often just known by their trade names or abbreviations. In addition selected types of synthetic polymers are highlighted that feature interesting properties and have the potential to make it to the market in future.

Link to the articleExternal link

Federal Cross of Merit for Professor Schubert

"Culture connects!" - Under this motto, Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier honored 29 citizens with the Federal Cross of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany on the occasion of the Day of German Unity. The 13 women and 16 men have made outstanding contributions to the Federal Republic through their extraordinary artistic achievements, their outstanding voluntary work or their cultural and political commitment.

Among the distinguished citizens is Prof. Dr. Ulrich S. Schubert, Jena (Chairman of the Kultur- und Sozialstiftung Internationale Junge Orchesterakademie and Professor at the Friedrich Schiller University Jena).

Culture creates community. Ulrich S. Schubert is one of the world's leading chemists - and he is also a passionate clarinetist. Being able to train young people is a great stroke of luck both as a scientist and in music. In 1994 Ulrich S. Schubert founded the International Young Orchestra Academy. The renowned Youth Symphony Orchestra not only promotes professionally young talents, but also practices international understanding, for example, by bringing together young people from North and South Korea to perform together. With the proceeds from the concerts and now more than 20 CDs social assistance actions are supported. The five-time father has already raised more than one million euros for children with cancer.

The award ceremony took place on 2 October, 2018 at 11 am in Bellevue Palace.

Homepage of the Internationale Junge OrchesterakademieExternal link

Press Release of the Office of the Federal President (German link)External link

Press Resease of the Friedrich Schiller University Jena (German link)External link

Interview with Prof. Dr. Ulrich S. Schubert with the newspaper "Thüringer Allgemeine" (German link)External link

More than 130 polymer experts - 1 white paper

A new white paper Polymer Research in Germany is published by the division of macromolecular chemistry of the German Society of Chemistry (GDCh), which is supported by more than 130 professors as well as industry representatives and a range of scientific divisions. The coordination was performed by Prof. Dr. Ulrich S. Schubert (Friedrich Schiller University Jena) and Prof. Dr. Martin Möller (RWTH Aachen and Leibniz-Institute DWI). The pdf-Version (in German and English) can be found at the website of the division of macromolecular chemistry www.macrochem.org/positionspapierExternal link.

The task of this white paper on polymer research is to contribute towards shaping and promoting of the research field and to draw attention to the expansion and integration of other sub-fields to one large scientific field of Molecular Materials and Polymer Science, which has already been initiated. The authors are convinced that this is one of the most exciting and most influential scientific fields of the 21st century. However, due to its interdisciplinary interconnection its advancement represents a challenge for universities and research institutes but also for the future development of competitive support structures.

The verbalized future perspectives are first and foremost addressed to scientists, with the goal of promoting interdisciplinary cooperation and convergence but also to associations, the media as well as funding agencies and supporters to illustrate the general importance of the progress perspectives on a larger scale.

One MoMINT please!

From 11 to 13 September 2018, the MINT Festival took place for the first time at FSU Jena, where everything revolved around the MINT disciplines of mathematics, informatics, natural sciences and technology. It was a colorful program consisting of exciting lectures, hands-on experiments, workshops, offers for career guidance and a student competition. We were also represented with an information booth. In addition, Prof. Dr. Ulrich S. Schubert held a lecture on "batteries of the future".

Many thanks to the organizers for this great forum!

Learn more (German Link) de

Visit by Prof. Dr. George R. Newkome

From 3 to 7 September, 2018 Professor George R. Newkome from the Center for Molecular Biology and Biotechnology (Florida Atlantic University, USA) visited the Center for Applied Research (ZAF). In addition to a lab tour, conversations with various members of the Schubert Group and visits to other institutes in Jena, Dresden and Berlin, he gave a lecture on "Approaches to Precise One-step Macromolecular Assemblies".

Please download the invitation to the lecture with abstract and curriculum vitae HEREpdf, 153 kb · de.