The ProHydroComp project of the Faculty of Engineering aims to develop innovative composite materials
At present, the Ukrainian hydropower industry needs support in overcoming ongoing maintenance problems and preventing the premature failure of large-scale equipment and concrete structures due to corrosion, which is exacerbated by Russia's aggressive warfare. In this context, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) has launched a call for proposals for German-Ukrainian cooperation projects for the sustainable reconstruction of Ukrainian infrastructure in 2024. HTWK Leipzig - in cooperation with the Pryazovskyi State Technical University (PSTU) Mariupol-Dnipro - was successful in this tender and launched the ProHydroComp project ("Development of technologies for the protection and rehabilitation of hydropower plants with composite materials") on 1 January 2025.
"ProHydroComp aims to stabilise the energy supply of the Ukrainian economy by developing and testing material-based maintenance measures to protect against corrosion-related damage in Ukrainian hydropower plants. My colleague Dr Rassokhin had already developed similar material systems during his work at the PSTU in Mariupol, but was no longer able to implement these concepts on a large scale due to the destruction of Mariupol. I am therefore pleased that these cost-effective and efficient protective measures can now be pursued further through a research collaboration with HTWK Leipzig," explains project manager Prof Robert Böhm (Chair of Lightweight Construction with Composite Materials). In ProHydroComp, measures for the exchange of scientific personnel are also planned in order to strengthen research cooperation between Germany and Ukraine in the future.
"Our coating technology is based on nanoparticle-reinforced thermosets, which can be used cost-effectively and over large areas and can be tested on site in Ukraine. These coatings increase the reliability of existing equipment in hydropower plants by extending their service life by a factor of three to four while preventing new corrosion damage. Our partners in Dnipro will be trialling our improved coating in existing systems in an operating hydropower plant. In the future, the coating will also be used in other areas," says Dr Dmytro Rassokhin, explaining the scientific novelty of the project. The ProHydroComp project will run until the end of June 2026.
