Where the future has already begun

What will tomorrow’s world be like? What new things will be part of everyday life? Where are today’s new technologies taking us? What are the implications of people getting older? What will society need in ten or twenty years’ time? Asking questions like these is a vital part of detecting trends in their infancy and identifying the markets of tomorrow. Evonik has analyzed the coming trends for itself and embraces the growth potential harbored in sustainability issues such as mobility, lifestyle and energy. With our own science-to-business centers, we already have a strong position in the key technologies of ‘white’ biotechnology and nanotechnology.

We believe responsible use of the Earth’s dwindling resources will gain in importance. This is something we can turn to our competitive advantage. In particular, we plan to convert resource-intensive chemical production processes to biotechnology. So we are pressing ahead in our Bio technology Science-to-Business Center with research on 'white' biotechnology—sustainable industrial production processes based on renewable raw materials.

A second technology trend is toward ongoing miniaturization and performance gains in electronic components. Research at our Nanotronics Science-to-Business Center therefore focuses on the importance of nanotechnology in electronics. The center brings together our expertise in nanomaterials, electrochemistry, sol-gel technology, organic synthesis, semiconductors, ceramic chemistry and analytics, and applies this expertise to develop pilot technologies. Examples include transparent conductive films—the core component of flexible displays. Then there are flexible thin-film solar cells for harvesting solar energy more economically. And last but not least, there are the electrodes and separators that deliver high-performance energy storage in what everyone knows as lithium-ion batteries.