Fraunhofer Research Institution for Materials Recycling and Resource Strategies IWKSFraunhofer IWKS appoints Dr. Emanuel Ionescu as Deputy Director
Dr. Emanuel Ionescu has been appointed Deputy Director of the Fraunhofer Research Institution for Materials Recycling and Resource Strategy with effect from January 1, 2023. He will support Prof. Dr. Anke Weidenkaff, Director of the Institute in the further development of the institution.
Since November 2021, Ionescu has been head of the department "Digitalisation of Resources" at Fraunhofer IWKS. He is also a private lecturer at the Department of Mathematical and Geosciences at Technical University of Darmstadt.
His scientific background and interests are generally related to (inorganic) materials synthesis and processing, and in particular to the development of advanced ceramics and (nano)composites with tailored compositions, morphologies, microstructures and property profiles. His current work at Fraunhofer IWKS also addresses aspects of the circular economy, process modelling, sustainability assessment and digitalization of processes.
He studied chemistry and physics at the University of Bucharest and the Technical University of Braunschweig and received his PhD in inorganic chemistry from the University of Bonn in 2005. In 2015, he habilitated at the Technical University of Darmstadt and received the Venia Legendi. From April 2014 to September 2015, he held a substitute professorship at the Institute of Inorganic Chemistry at the University of Cologne.
Emanuel Ionescu is very well networked nationally and internationally. He is a member of the German Society for Materials Science (DGM) and the Society of German Chemists (GdCh) as well as the American Ceramic Society (ACerS), the European Ceramic Society (ECErS) and the German Ceramic Society (DKG). Since 2018 he has served as Secretary of the Rhein Ceramics Chapter Germany of the American Ceramic Society and since 2019 as Editor of the Journal of the European Ceramic Society. He also serves as Associate Editor for Materials Letters and International Journal of Applied Ceramic Technology.
In 2022, Emanuel Ionescu was awarded the Global Star Award by the American Ceramic Society.
"I am very pleased to be able to recruit Dr. Emanuel Ionescu for this responsible task. As head of the department "Digitalization of Resources", he not only has extensive knowledge of materials science, but also brings a deep understanding of the research areas of the Fraunhofer IWKS. With his scientific focus, management expertise and good networks, he is the ideal addition at the top of our Fraunhofer institution," says Institute Director Prof. Dr. Anke Weidenkaff.