COZMOS is an EU-funded project that aims to provide breakthrough technology for the conversion of CO2 to C3 fuels and chemical building blocks. This will be achieved through the cooperative development, demonstration and exploitation of innovative catalyst and process technologies that will overcome the thermodynamic limitations inherent in the use of CO2 as a sustainable source for these value-added products.
The COZMOS technology will decrease CO2 emissions by 1.9 tons CO2 for every ton of C3 product produced, with expected reductions in CO2 emissions of 0.4 Mtons CO2/yr in 2030 and 2.2 Mtons CO2/year from 2034. COZMOS technology will be designed to provide a flexible solution adaptable to local requirements and different industries.
The COZMOS project involves industrial partners from the steel, refining, chemical and engineering sectors, research and technology organisations and universities. In addition to development and demonstration of the technology at TRL 5, COZMOS will ensure that the technology meets the LCA targets for CO2 emissions and will investigate the social acceptance for CO2-derived fuels and chemicals. COZMOS technology will contribute to a circular economy and the replacement of fossil fuels, leading to a decrease in CO2 emissions and European dependence on fossil resources.
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COZMOS will bring to TRL5 a flexible, energy-efficient, environmentally viable and socially acceptable technology for the reduction of CO2 to C3 hydrocarbons, that will contribute to the development of a circular economy and that will help to solve European energy challenges. The COZMOS project overview is shown below.
CO2 can be a sustainable carbon source and replace the use of fossil fuels for energy consumption and chemicals production, but its transformation to useful products is hampered by its low energy content. COZMOS aims to overcome this limitation by combining two reactions into one reactor, which will reduce energy consumption and increase the conversion of CO2. Thus, CO2 and hydrogen sourced from renewable, carbon-neutral energy sources will be transformed into the C3 hydrocarbons propane and propene. Propane can be used as a heating, cooking and transportation fuel, and propene is a valuable chemical building block for lightweight polymers and other chemical intermediates, in the case of propene. The technology will be adaptable, such that the primary product can be varied depending on the amount of renewable energy available, the industrial infrastructure and amount of CO2 and the economic requirements of the end-user.
The project goals will be met through these technical objectives
COZMOS is divided into 6 Work Packages, represented in this project overview.
WP1 Optimization of catalyst and process conditions (Leader: University of Oslo): Development of optimized catalysts with high and durable activity and high selectivity per pass for the production of C3 products from CO2 and H2. This WP will involve catalyst synthesis, testing, characterization, modelling and upscaling.
WP2 Process design and optimization (Leader: Linde AG): Development of an integrated and energy efficient process design for a large-scale application of the COZMOS technology and identify the technical risks and challenges for further development to higher TRL. This will be accomplished through the definition of the principle process topology, followed by process development, simulation and modelling.
WP3 Demonstration (Leader: Tüpras): Design, construction and installation of a TRL5 reactor and related infrastruture for continuous, stable and safe testing of the upscaled catalysts. Catalyst performance tests will be conducted continuously for 7 full days.
WP4 LCA, TEA and social aspects (Leader: Tata Steel): Provide a full techno-economic and life cycle analysis of the COZMOS technology and determine the social acceptance for implementation of the technology. This will include a scenario analysis analyzing the implemation of the COZMOS technology in different European regions.
WP5 Communication, dissemination, outreach activities and exploitation (Leader: SINTEF): Coordination of the overall dissemination and communication strategy of the project, targeting stakeholders, the scientific community, industry and the general public. Management of IPR and exploitation of the results is also part of this WP.
WP6 Project Management (Leader: University of Oslo): Coordination of the overall activities of the project, including strategic, technical, administrative, financial and contractual issues.
The TRL 5 pilot plant for the COZMOS project, designed and built by Zeton, has been delivered to project partner Tüpras and is now in operatiion for the 24/7 testing of two catalyst systems for the transformation of CO2 and H2 to propane and propene, respectively, under industrially relevant conditions.
The pilot plant was designed as a complex system with fully integrated GC, a mixed gas compressor and a furnace including air cooling for regeneration and with the processing units integrated into the existing facility.
Universitet i Oslo
The Catalysis group at the Department of Chemistry is part of the Center for Materials Science and Nanotechnology (SMN). It has five permanent scientific staff members and one adjunct professor, with expertise ranging from metal organic chemistry and homogeneous catalysis, via materials science with emphasis on synthesis and characterisation of microporous materials (zeolites, zeotypes and metal-organic framework structures) and heterogeneous catalyst performance evaluation with emphasis on structure-composition-performance correlations, as well as kinetic and mechanistic investigations. This broad expertise allows the research group to improve understanding and performance of catalytic processes. Currently, the group hosts about 30 post docs, PhDs, and MSc students. In 2007-15, the group had the leadership of the inGAP Centre (Innovative Natural GAs Processes and Products); a National Centre of Excellence for Research Based Innovation (CRI). The group is currently strongly involved in a new CRI, iCSI (Industrial Catalysis – Science and Innovation), which is hosted at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU).
University of Oslo (UiO) is Norway’s oldest and highest ranked public institution of research and higher education with 28 000 students, 7000 employees, and 3 000 PhD candidates. UiO has a special national responsibility for basic research and researcher training, and for managing research libraries and museums with scientific collections and public exhibitions. UiO has eight faculties, two major museums and Norway’s largest academic library, the Main Library, with 2.7 million items.
Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique CNRS
CNRS, “Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique” (French National Centre for Scientific Research) is a public organization under the responsibility of the French Ministry of Education and Research. CNRS is the largest fundamental research organization in Europe, with 33,000 tenured researchers, engineers, and support staff and carries out research in all fields of knowledge. CNRS aims at: Evaluating and carrying out all research capable of advancing knowledge and bringing social, cultural, and economic benefits for society, contributing to the promotion and application of research results, developing scientific information and supporting research training. Among CNRS laboratories (or research units), 1100 are located throughout France and 36 are mixed international units. In 2005, CNRS became the first French research organization to officially sign up to the principles of the European Charter and Code of Conduct for Researchers. It received in February 2017 the European commission award “HR Excellence in Research“.
CNRS is widely involved in European actions, e.g. in FP7 with 1557 financed projects (431 coordinated) and in Marie Curie Research and Training programs. Rhône-Auvergne regional section of CNRS completed more than 30 Marie Curie projects under FP7 (ITN, IRSES, IEF, CIG, IIF, ERG, IRG…) and currently participates in 3 RISE actions, 14 Individual Fellowships and 3 Innovative Training Networks under Horizon 2020.
C2P2 Laboratory (UMR 5265) is located in Villeurbanne, Rhône-Auvergne region, France. It is associated with CNRS, University of Lyon and CPE-Lyon. It is composed of two research groups, COMS (Surface organometallic chemistry) and LCPP (Chemistry of the Polymerization Processes), with more than 27 permanent members and 40 contracted staff (PhD, Post-doc). Production for 2017: 75 publications, 10 patent deposits.
COMS research group interests include the relationship between homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis, and the synthesis of single-site catalysts used in various fields of chemistry, as petroleum chemistry, polymers and CO2 and biomass valorization. The reactions of organometallic and coordination complexes with oxide, hybrid inorganic/organic materials, metallic nano-particles and functionalized polymers surfaces allow to create well-defined active sites for catalysis. To reach the establishment of reliable structure-activity relationships, the molecular understanding of active sites structures and their formation pathways are central to COMS group scientific strategy. The COMS group is internationally recognized for its scientific approach and its expertise to generate and characterize (DRIFT, Solid-State NMR, EPR, XAS, RAMAN…) surface sites onto solid matrices. This approach, joining both fundamental and applied aspects, has shown that it is possible to transfer the rules from molecular chemistry and homogeneous catalysis to the surface species and their reactivity.
Topsoe A/S is a world leader in high-performance catalysts and proprietary technologies for the chemical and refining industries. Based on cutting-edge research and development, Topsoe helps customers achieve optimal performance in all phases from design to daily operations – in the most responsible way. Topsoe is headquartered in Denmark and serves customers across the globe. Topsoe’s primary contribution to COZMOS will be catalyst scaleup and supply of catalysts for pilot plant demonstration, bringing in more than 75 years of experience in development, scaleup and commercial production of catalysts for application in the petrochemical and environmental sector.
Institute of Coal Chemistry Chinese Academy of Sciences
The Institute of Coal Chemistry (ICC) is a high-tech R&D institute affiliated with the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). ICC conducts basic and applied research primarily in the fields of energy and the environment, advanced materials and green chemistry. ICC’s strategic and farsighted research aims to optimize coal use as well as commercialize new, advanced technologies in its three core research areas. In the process, ICC seeks to develop quality talent, help the nation meet its energy needs and promote sustainable development.
ICC was founded in Dalian as the CAS Laboratory of Coal Chemistry in 1954. In 1961, the laboratory moved to Taiyuan, Shanxi and assumed its current name as part of its expansion. Since its foundation, ICC has developed from a small laboratory with a staff of 64 into a comprehensive national institution, which is highly influential both at home and abroad. ICC now has a staff of 583, of which 453 are scientific and technological personnel, including one CAS academician and 183 senior scientists. In addition, ICC has two National Thousand Talents Program fellows and 10 CAS Hundred Talents Program fellows.
ICC has four national-level R&D units: the State Key Laboratory of Coal Conversion, the State Engineering Laboratory of Indirect Coal Liquefaction, the State Engineering Laboratory of Carbon Fiber Preparation and the Shanxi International Research Center of Coal Chemical Engineering and Technology. It also is home to the CAS Key Laboratory of Carbon Materials and the provincial-level Engineering Research Center for Pulverized Coal Gasification. In addition, ICC has a sound support system comprising its Strategy Study and Engineering Consulting Center, Chemical Engineering Process Design Center, Environmental Impact Assessment Center, Analytical Instrumentation Center and Literature and Computer Network Center.
ICC is one of the institutions in China authorized by the State Council to confer master’s and Ph.D. degrees. ICC now has 36 doctoral advisors and 107 master’s advisors. ICC offers Ph.D. and master’s degrees in chemistry; chemical engineering and technology; materials science and technology; physical chemistry; inorganic chemistry; organic chemistry; chemical engineering; chemical technology; biochemical engineering; applied chemistry; industrial catalysis; material physics and chemistry; materials science; and material processing engineering. ICC also offers master’s degrees in environmental engineering, chemical engineering, and material engineering and has a postdoctoral research program in chemistry. ICC currently has 139 doctoral students and 181 master’s degree students.
ICC publishes the Journal of Fuel Chemistry and Technology and New Carbon Materials, both of which enjoy international recognition and were listed among the most internationally influential Chinese periodicals of 2012 by the China Scientific Bibliometric Evaluation Center. ICC has extensive cooperations with renowned universities, research institutions and companies in the USA, the UK, Germany, Japan and South Korea. The institute plays an important role in China’s innovation system and has won more than 180 national, CAS, provincial and ministerial achievement awards. Over 570 national patents have also been granted to ICC.
King Abdullah University of Science and Technology
The KAUST Catalysis Center (KCC) was established as a world-leading hub to develop a multi-disciplinary approach to catalysis and to address scientific challenges of the 21st century.
The group of Prof. Gascon focuses on the design, development and demonstration of new heterogeneous catalysts and reactor engineering concepts. Prof. Cavallo’s research interests include unravelling the mechanisms of catalysts at work; understanding of structure-function relationship in organometallic compounds and heterogeneous catalysis, olefin polymerization reactions and biological systems. The available experimental facilities at KCC are of particular relevance for the needs of COZMOS as they include a series of high-throughput reactors and in situ characterization tools that will be used for the fast screening of catalysts.
Linde AG is a leading industrial gases and engineering company with 2018 pro forma sales of USD 28 billion (EUR 24 billion). The company employs approximately 80,000 people globally and serves customers in more than 100 countries worldwide. Linde delivers innovative and sustainable solutions to its customers and creates long-term value for all stakeholders. The company is making our world more productive by providing products, technologies and services that help customers improve their economic and environmental performance in a connected world. The company is committed to technologies and products that unite the goals of customer value and sustainable development.
Worldwide, there are only a handful of companies with the detailed know-how needed to successfully deliver turnkey industrial plants. Linde Engineering is a pioneer in the development of customized process solutions. Customers in more than 100 countries around the globe partner with Linde because they trust in Linde’s specialist expertise. Whether they are located in a city, the desert or the Arctic; whether they need a small or world-scale plant; whether they want engineering, construction or operational support; the customers know they can rely on Linde to always deliver the very latest technologies. After all, Linde Engineering holds around 1,000 process patents and is constantly developing new processes to increase the efficiency, cost-effectiveness and sustainability of customers‘ operations. Because Linde believes in trusted, lasting relationships, it is also ensured that new technologies seamlessly integrate into existing plants. Worldwide, Linde Engineering has built over 4,000 plants to date. Moving forward, Linde continues to partner with its customers to collaboratively find the best solution along the entire life-cycle of plants.
More specifically, Linde Engineering is a leading EPC contractor for air-separation plants, hydrogen and synthesis gas plants, natural gas processing plants and petrochemical plants offering own technologies. Linde Engineering is providing integrated process concepts including reactor and separation technology. Next to decades of experience in steam cracking technology current activities target ethylene production by oxidative dehydrogenation of ethane and oxidative coupling of methane. The R&D at Linde Engineering is covering the full chain from initial conceptual studies over development and optimization including piloting of new technologies. In all stages, close collaboration and exchange between the relevant business unit and the R&D team is ensured.
SINTEF is one of Europe’s largest independent research organisations. Every year we carry out several thousand projects for customers, large and small. We deliver innovation by developing knowledge and technologies that are brought into practical use.
Our vision is Technology for a better society.
SINTEF is a broad, multidisciplinary research organisation with international top-level expertise in the fields of technology, the natural sciences, medicine and the social sciences. We conduct contract R&D as a partner for the private and public sectors, and we are one of the largest contract research institutions in Europe.
We contribute to value creation and increased competitiveness within the public and private sectors.
In 2018, SINTEFs 2000 employees, carried out research projects for 3700 customers. Our multidisciplinary approach enables us to create teams with the broad range of expertise our customers and projects often demand.
We offer our customers:
We offer world-leading laboratory and test facilities in a wide range of technological fields. Our advanced laboratories range from microelectronics and nanoscale technologies, to the world's largest laboratory for the multiphase transport of oil and gas, and the world's largest marine laboratory.
Tata Steel UK Limited
Tata Steel is one of Europe’s largest steel producers. We serve many different and demanding markets worldwide, including automotive, construction, energy and power, and packaging. Our primary steelmaking operations in the UK and the Netherlands are supported by a global sales and distribution network. We aim to create value by offering a sustainable and value-added steel product range supported by unrivalled customer service. Our European operations are a subsidiary of Tata Steel Group, one of the world’s top ten steel producers. With a combined presence in nearly 50 countries, the Tata Steel Group has approximately 80,000 employees across five continents and a crude steel production capacity of over 28 million tonnes. Sustainability is at the very heart of what we do and we are dedicated to managing our operations responsibly and to continuous improve our performance.
Türkiye Petrol Rafinerileri Anonim Şirketi
Tüpraş is Turkey’s largest industrial enterprise and 7th biggest refining company in Europe with four refineries located in Turkey having a total of 30 Mt of crude oil processing capacity. Tüpraş carries out R&D projects in line with the objective of enhancing the characteristics of oil products, developing environmentally friendly products and alternative fuel production technologies making use of our skill of developing the most competent technologies in refinery and applying them on the field. All R&D activities of Tüpraş are coordinated by the R&D Center, which consists of administrative building, laboratory building and pilot plants facility. R&D laboratories serve with more than 150 devices in five different fields. Tüpraş aims to reach the best available technology level by gaining technological self-sufficiency for all processes operated in Tüpraş, in the long term. In the scope of the COZMOS project, innovative catalysts and process for the production of C3 products from captured CO2 will be developed and demonstrated in pilot scale. Tüpraş will take part in the detailed design and construction of the pilot scale system as well as its operation and validation. This is of great interest to our entity as it will allow us to gain knowledge and expertise on an innovative solution to decrease CO2 emissions while transforming CO2 into valuable products.
Universita Degli Studi di Torino
The Università degli Studi di Torino (UniTo) is one of the largest Italian Universities, with about 80,000 students, 3,900 employees (academic, administrative and technical staff) and 1,800 post-graduate and post-doctoral research fellows. Research and training are performed in 27 Departments, encompassing all scientific disciplines. According to ARWU, in 2018 UniTo ranked among the top 300 universities out of 1,200 and the second university in Italy. The NTU Taiwan ranking for 2018 had UniTo in 171st place of the 500 top universities worldwide, and in 6th place in Italy. UniTo is also 55th of 600+ worldwide and 2nd in Italy in the 2018 ranking by GreenMetrics, assessing the environmental and social sustainability of academic activities and infrastructures. As for internationalization, UniTo is involved in about 600 cooperation agreements worldwide, including joint educational programs at undergraduate and doctoral level.
UniTo manages roughly 500 projects per year, both at the national and international level. The long record of participation of UniTo in the EU strategic research agenda results from 115 FP7 funded research projects, among which 33 coordinated projects, 5 ERC grants as host institution and 4 Research Infrastructures projects. Under H2020, 106 projects have been funded so far, among which 26 coordinated projects, 7 ERC and 6 Research Infrastructures grants. Within EIT Food actions, 31 projects have been funded so far in which UniTo is involved.
University of Sheffield
The University of Sheffield (USFD) is a research-led university, part of the Russell Group of elite UK universities and ranking in the top 100 World Universities. Sheffield have become the first university to embed sustainability principles in to all its courses, from science and engineering through to the arts and humanities. USFD is home to the Advanced Manufacturing Park which houses university collaborators such as Boeing, Rolls Royse, Siemens and McLaren. Research funding for Engineering at USFD is the highest in the UK.
The UK Centre for Carbon Dioxide Utilisation and CO2Chem Network are part of the Department of Chemical & Biological Engineering which is home to the Styring Group (www.styring-research.com). The Group’s aim is to provide a whole systems approach to carbon dioxide utilisation from the design of sorbents and catalysts, from small scale laboratory studies to the construction of pilot plant facilities. This is all underpinned with an in-depth knowledge and application of life cycle and supply chain assessment and complex process simulations. The Styring Group has carried out road-mapping studies for UK and EU governments and contributed to numerous high level policy briefings. The Group’s role in COZMOS is to undertake LCA, TEA and public perception research of CO2 utilisation.
Please see the points below for information on COZMOS dissemination!
The key results and findings from a survey to assess the social acceptance of CCU and CO2-based propane and propene are provided in this Public Deliverable from the COZMOS project: /sites/default/files/users/user1218/d.4.5_public_report_on_social_readiness_of_the_cozmos_technology_oct_2023_approved.pdf
The COZMOS White Paper, with recommendations on CCU for policymakers, universities and research institutes and LCA practitioners is now available! The recommendations are derived from analysis of the benefits of CCU for hard-to-abate sectors and the current CCU policy landscape. /sites/default/files/users/user1218/cozmos_white_paper.pdf
Public report on the main results obtained with the best identified tandem system for the direct conversion of CO2 into propane, from the initial synthesis at lab-scale to the catalyst upscaling.
Public report on the test results of zeolitic catalysts for the MTO reaction, including the catalysts' relative activity for methylation and hydrogenation of alkenes in the targeted temperature and pressure ranges. https://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/documents/downloadPublic?documentIds=080166e5c585609d&appId=PPGMS
Public report on the synthesis and characterization of the combined catalysts. https://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/documents/downloadPublic?documentIds=080166e5e7beeefa&appId=PPGMS
COZMOS publication #16 is a review of the zeolite/zeotype function in the oxygenate-mediated conversion of COx to hydrocarbons, examining the potential of methanol, dimethyl ether, and ketene as possible oxygenate intermediates.
COZMOS publication #15 in Appl. Catal. A is available. The paper provides spectroscopic characterization of the fresh, spent and regenerated PdZn/ZrO2+SAPO-34 bifunctional catalyst for conversion of CO2 + H2 to propane.
COZMOS publication #14 in ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces is available. The paper describes the challenges with upscaling of the active, lab-scale catalyst PdZn/ZrO2 + SAPO-34, for the hydrogenation of CO2 to propane.
COZMOS's thirteenth publication in J. CO2 Util. is available online. The paper describes a CO2 valorisation plant for the conversion of CO2 and H2 to propane.
COZMOS's twelfth publication in Nature Catal. is available online. The publication describes a GaZrOx/H-SSZ-13 composite catalyst that shows selective hydrogenation of CO2 to propane.
COZMOS's eleventh publication in Catal. Sci. Technol is available online, as part of a Themed Collection on in situ and operando spectroscopy in catalysis. The publication describes the use of in situ FT-IR spectroscopy to follow the Methanol-to-Olefins reaction on a Co-APO-18 catalyst.
COZMOS's tenth publication in Appl. Catal. A is available online. The publication describes the synthesis, characterization and activity of a PdZn/CeZrOx reduced catalyst combined with SAPO-34, for the conversion of CO2 and H2 into hydrocarbons.
COZMOS's ninth publication in Chem is available online. The publication describes the activity of a catalyst consisting of Cr2O3(SG) oxide and H-SAPO-34 zeolite for the conversion of CO2 and H2 to ethene.
COZMOS's eighth publication in ACS Catalysis is available online. The publication presents a series of isomorphically substituted zeotype catalysts with the AEI topology (MAPO-18s, M = Si, Mg, Co, or Zn) and describes the superior performance of the M(II)-substituted MAPO-18s for the Methanol-to-Olefins (MTO) reaction.
COZMOS's seventh publication in J. Phys. Chem C is available online. The publication describes investigations into the structure of three Zn-doped ZrO2 CO2/CO hydrogenation catalysts by combining powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) and X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS).
COZMOS's sixth publication in JACS Au is available online. The publication describes a highly active and selective PdZn/ZrO2+SAPO-34 multifunctional catalyst for the direct conversion of CO2 to propane.
COZMOS's fifth publication in ChemSusChem is now available online. The publication reviews the life-cycle environmental impacts of several CCU processes and concludes that there is a clear need to harmonize LCA methods for the analyses of CCU systems, and to document and justify such methodological choices.
COZMOS's fourth publication in Catal. Sci. Technol. is now available online. The publication describes the catalytic hydrogentation of CO2 to C3 hydrocarbons with three different Zn-doped ZrO2 catalysts combined with two different zeolites.
COZMOS's third publication in Chem is now available online. The publication shows that the combination of the catalysts Zn0.5Ce0.2Zr1.8O4 and H-RUB13 can produce 2-3 times more propene and butene than other previously reported catalyst systems.
COZMOS's second publication in Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. is available online. The publication discusses a toroidal inorganic cluster of Zirconium(IV) oxysulfate of unprecedented size and that displays different packing of the ring units and thus several polymorphic crystal structures.
See our first publication in Cat. Sci. Technol. on the effect of composite PdZn and H-ZSM-5 catalysts on CO2 hydrogenation to hydrocarbons.
Guillermo García-García from the University of Sheffield gave an invited presentation on Life Cycle Analysis at the 3rd Science for Sustainable Development event organised on 3 March, 2020, at the University of Warwick, by the Network of Early-Career Sustainable Scientists and Engineers (NESSE). He presented the LCA methodology that will be used to assess the sustainability performance of the COZMOS technology, as part of an overview of the main concepts, software tools, current challenges and future directions of LCA research.
Marta Cruz Fernandez from Tata Steel presented the COZMOS project activities within Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), Techno-economic Assessment (TEA) and Social Acceptance at the poster session of the CO2Chem Winter School in Sheffield, UK, 20-22 January, 2020.
Arzu Arslan Bozdag from Tüpras presented an overview of the COZMOS project at the Istanbul Chamber of Industry on 21 October, 2019.
Richard Heyn from SINTEF presented an overview of the COZMOS project at the poster session of the 17th International Conference on Carbon Dioxide Utilization in Aachen, Germany, 23-27 June 2019.
All the presentations from the International Workshop on CO2 Capture and Utilization, held online on 16-17 February, 2021, can be found here: IWCCU presentations.
Please check out the technological advances made in our sister projects, funded under the same H2020 call.
The 4th and final COZMOS Newsletter (October 2023) is here!
COZMOS Newsletter No 3 (May 2022) is here!
The latest Newsletter (No 2, May 2021) is here!
See our first Newsletter (No 1, June 2020) here!
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University of Oslo, Center for Materials Science and Nanotechnology
Communication and Dissemination