Every year, the company Dörrenberg GmbH presents the StudienAWARD for innovations in Germany as a steel location. In front of a jury with representatives from business and science, students presented their projects on materials technology issues relating to steel, heat treatment, surface technology and process engineering.

The student team led by Nick Philippi and Florian Geister came second with their submission on nanostructuring stainless steel for medical technology and was rewarded with 1,500 euros in prize money. “In our work, we researched how we can specifically provide the surfaces of stainless steel with a nanostructure so that bacteria or viruses cannot adhere to medical devices,” explains mechanical engineering student Geister. Biological proof has already been provided on a laboratory scale, but until now there has been no industrial production process that would enable widespread application. “With our forming process at the Institute of Production Technology and Forming Machines, we have managed to produce the nanostructure continuously in a large amount of material and with an industrial machine,” Philippi reports. “The interrelationships between the material and production parameters are so complex that we could only get the process up and running together. The planning, testing and discussion around our solution path were very fruitful. An implant demonstrator made from our nano-stainless steel makes the abstract research vivid and tangible.” The two students are currently writing a publication so that as many people as possible can benefit from their findings.

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