Future of industry: Cottbuser DLR presents CO2-poor heat pump!

Future of industry: Cottbuser DLR presents CO2-poor heat pump!

Cottbus, Deutschland - On June 24, 2025, the time had come: A delegation of the young district of the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWE) visited the DLR location in Cottbus. The focus of the visit was the tour of the DLR Institute for CO2-poor industrial processes and the latest innovation, the Cobra pilot facility. This system is a high-temperature heat pump that reaches impressive 300 degrees Celsius and offers an important alternative to fossil fuels in energy-intensive industrial processes. Here it becomes clear what progress in energy research is made to address the challenges in industry, so DLR reports.

The Cobra system can deliver process heat in a temperature range of 100 to 500 degrees Celsius and is therefore of great importance for many industries, such as nutritional, paper and chemical industry. It was developed in order to enable industrial companies without doing without fossil fuels, even at the high temperatures that are often required in production processes. The name Cobra is composed of the towns of Cottbus and the Brayton process of thermodynamics, which underlines the linking of regional engagement and technical progress, explains [Photovoltaik] (https://www.photovoltaik.eu/waerme/dlr-nimmt-hochtemperature-WaermePumpe-Fuer industrial process).

research and development for industry

The DLR heat pumps represent a technical novelty that enables the previous limits of heat pump technology to be exceeded. With a heat output of around 200 kilowatts, the Cobra system generates a remarkable temperature stroke, which meets the requirements of many industrial applications. The system uses air or argon as a working medium, which offers the opportunity to work climate -neutral through regenerative energy sources.

A core destination of the DLR is to enable massive CO2 reductions in industry through these progress. This is not only a technical, but also an ecological progress. In Cottbus, work is made with regional companies to further develop the facility and scale for different industrial branches.

heat pumps in change

Not only in industry, heat pumps have found their place. Even in residential construction, they are no longer uncommon. Originally intended for new buildings and single -family houses, the possible uses have expanded significantly. Today, heat pumps are used in old buildings, apartment buildings and even entire districts, as Fraunhofer ISE describes in detail.

With capacities that extend into the double-digit megawatt area, heat pumps support the defossilization and electrification of heat supply. They enable the efficient use of renewable energies and contribute to the stability of the power grids. This makes electricity consumption flexible and the heat supply is sustainable.