Materials Center Leoben Forschung GmbH

07/09/2026

🔬 Was passiert, wenn ein Defekt in einer bestehenden Pipeline auf Hochdruck-Wasserstoff trifft?

Genau dieser Frage gehen wir am Materials Center Leoben (MCL) im Rahmen des Projekts nach. ⚙️ Denn für die sichere Nutzung bestehender Rohrleitungen mit reicht es nicht, nur den Werkstoff im Neuzustand zu kennen. Entscheidend ist auch: Wie verhalten sich vorhandene Defekte bzw. Ungänzen und die Schweißbereiche der Leitungen unter Wasserstoffbedingungen?

👉 Deshalb wurden von uns Werkstoffe aus bestehenden Pipelines - sowohl der Grundwerkstoff als auch die Schweißbereiche - mithilfe komplexer bruchmechanischer Prüfungen untersucht.

🔎 Im Fokus standen dabei unter anderem:
• das Ermüdungs- und Rissausbreitungsverhalten
• die Veränderung der Rissgeschwindigkeit unter Belastung
• die mechanische Bruchzähigkeit (KJiH-Werte)

Diese Versuche wurden direkt an unserer neuen Prüfanlage unter Hochdruck-Wasserstoff durchgeführt. Damit haben wir eine solide Datengrundlage für die weitere Beurteilung, wie sich die Werkstoffe und die bestehenden Ungänzen in den bestehenden Pipelines im späteren Betrieb verhalten könnten. 💡

Ein weiterer Fokus lag auf dem wichtigen Punkt der Eigenspannungen in bestehenden Rohrleitungen, welche aus Herstellung, Verlegung oder auch dem Biegen hervorgerufen werden konnten. Dazu wurden entsprechende umfangreiche Untersuchungen durchgeführt.

📊 Die gewonnenen Ergebnisse flossen anschließend in physikalisch fundierte bruchmechanische Bewertungen ein.

🎯 Die MCL-Arbeiten in diesem kooperativen Forschungsprojekt leisten damit einen wichtigen Beitrag zur sicheren Umwidmung zukünftiger Pipelines für den Wasserstofftransport.

HyGrid² wird aus Mitteln des Klima- und Energiefonds gefördert und im Rahmen des Programms „Vorzeigeregion Energie“ durchgeführt. Das Projekt wird mit folgenden Partnern umgesetzt: Energienetze Steiermark GmbH, Bilfinger, Montanuniversität Leoben, Materials Center Leoben Forschung GmbH, HyCentA Research GmbH, DBI-Gruppe, ÖVGW - Österreichische Vereinigung für das Gas- und Wasserfach, WIVA P&G.

03/09/2026

Roland Brunner served as a Symposium Organizer and Session Chair at the M&M Conference

M&M (Microscopy and Microanalysis) is one of the leading international conferences in microscopy, microanalysis, and advanced imaging. It is jointly organized by the Microscopy Society of America and the Microanalysis Society.

At the conference, Roland Brunner chaired sessions and organized a symposium on multidimensional imaging and data processing in materials science. He was also listed as a co-author of several M&M contributions.

🙏 Many thanks to the MSA and MAS, as well as to all speakers and participants, for the valuable contributions and inspiring discussions!

In addition, Roland Brunner’s group recently published three papers in major journals:
📄 “Accelerating ML-based super-resolution for gigapixel-scale acoustic imaging” in npj Acoustics.
👏 Congratulations to first author Raphael Wilhelmer, and thanks to PVA TePla AG for its valuable support!
🔗 Link to publication: https://www.nature.com/articles/s44384-026-00069-2

📄 “Field inhomogeneous distributions and local percolations in Ag–BaTiO₃ ceramic-metal composites: The role of microstructural variability” in Acta Materialia.
👏 Congratulations to all authors, including Fereshteh Falah chamasemani!
🔗 Link to publication: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S135964542600738X

📄 “Stress-Lensed Electrochemical Sintering Enables Fast and Stable Lithium-Silicon Alloy Chemistry in All-Solid-State Batteries” in Advanced Materials.
👏 Congratulations to all authors, including Michael Häusler!
🔗 Link to publication: https://advanced.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adma.74090

01/09/2026

Nano & Industry 2026: AI for Materials Development

Thomas Klünsner represented MCL at Nano & Industry 2026, hosted by Hightech Zentrum Aargau AG in Brugg, Switzerland. In his talk, he highlighted how artificial intelligence can accelerate materials development, manufacturing processes, and product applications. 🤖⚙️

The event showcased the growing potential of AI, machine learning, and automated lab systems for materials research and industrial innovation. The exchange with experts from industry, SMEs, and academia made one thing clear: the future of materials development is data-driven, connected, and full of opportunity. 🚀🔬💡

Photos: Hightech Zentrum Aargau
nano.swiss

27/08/2026

🔥 When your smartphone gets hot, most people think “overheating” — at MCL we see research potential.

We’ve all been there: your phone suddenly gets uncomfortably warm during heavy use. What’s annoying in everyday life raises a highly relevant question from a materials science perspective: How does heat develop in microelectronic components, and how can it be controlled?

This is exactly the question Lisa Mitterhuber-Gressl is tackling at Materials Center Leoben (MCL). 🔬 In her research, she investigates how heat is generated and spreads at the smallest scales.

🎯 The overarching goal: to design materials and components that make electronic devices more efficient, reliable, and sustainable in the future.

Lisa’s work is a prime example of how we at MCL take everyday phenomena as a starting point to develop tomorrow’s technological solutions. After all, great research often begins where real-life problems become visible. 💡

➡️ More details in the “Junge” feature by Die Presse: https://www.diepresse.com/41191516/ist-bald-schluss-mit-ueberhitzten-handys?utm_source=newsadoo

📸 Image: © Helmut Lunghammer

Sie lässt Mobiltelefone im Dienste der Wissenschaft demolieren und sorgt dafür, dass es beim Telefonieren nicht zu heiß hergeht: Lisa Mitterhuber-Gressl vom Materials Center Leoben.

25/08/2026

🚀 Success Story: New Materials for a Hydrogen-Powered Future

A digital materials development approach combining simulations, machine learning, and AI led to two new alloys with higher strength and improved hydrogen resistance, while significantly reducing development time.

Benefits:
✅ Faster material development through AI-supported design
✅ Higher strength combined with improved hydrogen resistance
✅ Contribution to the Energy Transition
✅ Safer and more reliable hydrogen and cryogenic systems
✅ Lighter, more compact components with lower material consumption
✅ Reduced development costs and fewer trial-and-error experiments

For industries such as hydrogen technologies, energy, aerospace, and advanced manufacturing, this means faster innovation, greater safety, lower costs, and a stronger competitive position in the transition to a sustainable energy future.

Link to story: https://www.mcl.at/en/funding-programs/comet/success-stories/success-story/?cHash=224c2f76ecb8cc7bff0a663a7b46fbf2&tx_news_pi1%5Baction%5D=detail&tx_news_pi1%5Bcontroller%5D=News&tx_news_pi1%5Bnews%5D=993

20/08/2026

Microstructure & Material Defect Analysis @ MCL 🔬

Understanding a material's microstructure is key to ensuring its performance, quality, and lifetime. At MCL, we provide advanced analytical methods to characterize microstructures, identify material defects, and support product development, quality assurance, and failure analysis.

Our services:

🔹 Metallography & optical microscopy

🔹 XRD phase analysis

🔹 Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM)

🔹 Computed Tomography (CT)

🔹 Scanning Acoustic Microscopy (SAM)

⭐ Accredited retained austenite measurements according to ISO/IEC 17025 and ASTM E975



Your benefits:

✔️ Accredited, internationally recognized testing

✔️ Reliable and reproducible results

✔️ Early detection of material defects

✔️ Better quality assurance and process optimization



Applications:

⚙️ Heat-treated steels

🔬 Product development & quality assurance

🛠️ Failure analysis

📊 Material model validation

More information: https://services.mcl.at/en/lab-services/microstructure-material-defect-analysis

📧 Contact: [email protected]

18/08/2026

Summer greetings from MCL – Our backpack on tour 🌍🎒☀️

The MCL backpack is on the move again, sending summer greetings from around the world! Whether in the mountains 🏔️, by the sea 🌊, or at conferences 🌆, our backpack accompanies our team on their travels.

13/08/2026

Residual Stress Measurements @ MCL

Residual stresses significantly influence the performance and quality of materials and components. Using advanced measurement technologies and extensive expertise, we provide precise evaluation and interpretation of residual stress states.

Our services:

🔹 X-ray residual stress analysis (lab & mobile) – accredited, also on-site

🔹 Electron microscopy – high-precision analysis at the micro scale

🔹 Cut-compliance method – depth profiling at greater depths

🔹 Raman spectroscopy – non-contact analysis for thin films and composites

🔹 Accredited measurements according to ISO/IEC 17025 and EN 15305 (XRD)

Your benefits:

✔️ High accuracy and reproducibility

✔️ Internationally comparable results

✔️ Non-destructive testing

✔️ Reliable, standards-compliant conditions

Applications:

🔧 Quality assurance and process monitoring

🔥 Heat treatment, welding, coating

📊 Service life assessment and optimization

✈️ Aerospace, automotive, energy, and research

More information: https://services.mcl.at/en/lab-services/residual-stress-measurements

Contact details: [email protected]

11/08/2026

Success Story: Understanding Crack Growth – From Surface to Depth

A novel testing method reveals that “shallow” and “deep” cracks exhibit similar fatigue behavior. This makes available data from experiments with defects deeper than real-world defects usable in lifetime predictions of application-relevant components.

Benefits for companies:

✅ More reliable lifetime predictions for components

✅ Use of existing fatigue data – reduced testing effort

✅ Solutions even without standardized specimens

✅ Better understanding of real defects for optimized materials

For industries such as aerospace, automotive, and advanced materials, this means more efficient development, improved safety, and a stronger competitive edge.

Full story: https://www.mcl.at/en/funding-programs/comet/success-stories/success-story/?tx_news_pi1%5Bnews%5D=1013&tx_news_pi1%5Bcontroller%5D=News&tx_news_pi1%5Baction%5D=detail&cHash=e83f7bfdae036f586d666ce4e12bd974

06/08/2026

🚀🔬 Career Opportunities @ Materials Center Leoben

Materials Center Leoben is currently offering a wide range of exciting career opportunities for talented professionals and students. We are looking for candidates for PhD positions, Master's thesis projects, Laboratory Technician roles, and positions in Order Management / Junior Controlling.

Whether your passion lies in research, engineering, laboratory work, or administration, you'll have the opportunity to contribute to innovative materials solutions while working in a collaborative, interdisciplinary environment.

Explore our current openings and apply today: https://www.mcl.at/en/careers/

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Karrierechance @ Materials Center Leoben 🚀🔬

Am Materials Center Leoben warten derzeit zahlreiche spannende Möglichkeiten auf neue Talente: von PhD-Positionen und Masterarbeiten über Labortechniker:innen bis hin zu Positionen in der Auftragsabwicklung / Junior Controlling.

Ob Forschung, Technik oder Administration – bei uns haben Sie die Chance, aktiv an innovativen Materiallösungen mitzuwirken und Teil eines interdisziplinären Teams zu werden.

Jetzt entdecken und bewerben: https://www.mcl.at/karriere/