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Ruhr University Bochum and TU Dortmund University Celebrate Success in the Excellence Strategy

© Mareen Meyer, Ruhr Innovation Lab
The BCI is delighted that, on October 2, 2026, in Bonn, the German Science Council recognized the close collaboration between Ruhr University Bochum and TU Dortmund University, and that, starting in 2027, the federal and state governments will provide funding for them as a network of excellence.

Under the name Ruhr Innovation Lab (RIL), the two universities have presented a concept based on the pillars of 
—creating creative spaces for research, fostering talent, promoting networking, and facilitating knowledge transfer to industry and society.

A prerequisite for the application was that the consortium demonstrate participation in three clusters of excellence.

TU Dortmund University can demonstrate participation in two clusters of excellence, including the RESOLV (Ruhr Explores SOLVation) cluster, in which several chairs at the BCI are involved: the Chair of Thermodynamics, headed by Prof. Gabriele Sadowski, who is also one of the three spokespersons for RESOLV; the Chair of Computational Bioengineering, held by Prof. Elsa Sánchez-García; and the Chair of Reaction Engineering and Catalysis, held by Prof. Hannsjörg Freund.

The RESOLV cluster focuses on analyzing the role of solvents in chemical processes as well as on developing stable and safe products. It has established “solvation science” as a new field of research aimed at understanding solvation processes at the molecular level. In doing so, RESOLV uniquely combines state-of-the-art analytical techniques, advanced computer-aided and AI-supported methods, and novel synthetic strategies.

The department is now preparing the next steps to actively support RIL’s design approaches and would like to thank everyone who successfully prepared and submitted the grant application.