Innovation & Networking Days in Supercapacitors
HEDAsupercap at the Innovation & Networking Days in Supercapacitors: Advancing Energy Storage Technologies in Europe
On 27-28 February, the Innovation & Networking Days in Supercapacitors took place at Friedrich Schiller University Jena, bringing together leading researchers, industry experts, and policymakers to discuss the future of supercapacitor technology and advanced materials.
The event was co-organised by HEDAsupercap, EMPHASIS-Supercaps, MUSIC, and GREENCAP, four EU-funded projects working to advance next-generation supercapacitor technologies. This initiative aligns with the Horizon Europe HORIZON-CL4-2022-RESILIENCE-01-24 call on Novel Materials for Supercapacitor Energy Storage, which promotes collaboration between projects to accelerate innovation and strengthen Europe's technological and industrial leadership in energy storage.
Keynote Address: Strengthening Europe’s Position in Energy Storage
The event opened with a keynote speech by Tina Züchner (European Commission DG RTD), who outlined the European Union’s priorities for advancing research and innovation in energy storage. She emphasised the importance of closing the innovation gap, supporting decarbonisation while ensuring industrial competitiveness, and reducing dependencies in strategic technologies. These goals align closely with the mission of HEDAsupercap, which is developing high-energy-density asymmetric supercapacitors that use sustainable and scalable advanced materials to deliver efficient, high-performance energy storage solutions.
In her address, Züchner highlighted the need to scale up innovations and enhance industrial uptake of advanced materials, ensuring that Europe remains at the forefront of clean energy technologies. The discussions throughout the event reinforced the importance of collaborative efforts between academia, industry, and policymakers to bring cutting-edge research closer to market adoption.
Presenting HEDAsupercap’s Advances and Future Directions
As coordinator of HEDAsupercap, Miguel Muñoz, Group Leader at INL, presented the project’s latest advancements and its contribution to the supercapacitor landscape. He emphasised the scientific and technological innovations being developed within HEDAsupercap, particularly in materials engineering and asymmetric cell design, which are crucial for increasing energy density and making supercapacitors more competitive for real-world applications.
A key focus of the project is last-mile mobility, where kinetic energy recovery in e-scooters is being explored as a viable solution. However, HEDAsupercap’s long-term vision extends beyond this sector, with potential applications in electric vehicles and other energy storage solutions. Sustainability remains a major priority, and the project is conducting a preliminary life cycle analysis to assess the environmental impact of the materials used and ensure that scalability is aligned with sustainable production.
A Collaborative Approach to Driving Supercapacitor Innovation
The event also featured contributions from other European initiatives working on supercapacitor research and development: StoRIES, Hyflow, Enercap, and MetSupercap, presented on all of which are contributing to advancing energy storage technologies through different approaches. These discussions reinforced the importance of cross-project collaboration in shaping the future of the field.
Speakers throughout the event highlighted the scaling and regulatory challenges that must be addressed for supercapacitors to gain widespread adoption, as well as the need for increased awareness and education among end users. While batteries are well understood by both industry and the public, supercapacitors require more visibility to increase investment and market readiness. The role of education and workforce development was also a major theme, as ensuring a skilled future workforce will be key to Europe’s leadership in advanced materials and energy storage.
The Innovation & Networking Days in Supercapacitors provided a valuable platform for collaboration and knowledge exchange, with HEDAsupercap and its partners actively contributing to discussions that will help shape the future of energy storage technologies. The event demonstrated the impact of European-funded research projects in driving innovation and fostering collaboration across sectors. With growing momentum, follow-up initiatives will be crucial to ensuring that supercapacitors continue to gain traction as a viable, scalable, and sustainable energy storage solution.
