Successful Launch of the Training Initiatives
On 11 December 2025, the series of educational initiatives under the project “Development and Sustainability of the HITMOBIL Centre of Competence” was officially launched. The activities will continue until the end of 2029.
IEES-BAS, as the lead organisation of the project, acted as organiser and host of a full-day educational forum dedicated to the topic “Development and Construction of High-Efficiency Energy Devices for Hydrogen Production, Storage and Conversion”. Within its framework, the first training seminar and demonstration event were held.
The Head of the СС HITMOBIL, Corresponding Member Prof. Evelina Slavcheva, DSc, opened the event with a welcoming address to the more than 75 attendees who filled the Conference Hall of IEES-BAS — school pupils, university students, PhD candidates and lecturers from educational institutions, as well as young researchers and scientists from research organisations. In her remarks, she emphasised the importance of hydrogen technologies for the energy transition, the need for in-depth study and advancement of such systems, and the role of innovative solutions in the sector.
Training Seminar
The morning session took the form of a training seminar with contributions from lecturers — experts from the HITMOBIL Centre of Competence — who presented the following topics:
- Hydrogen energy systems and experimental results – Chief Assistant Prof. Elitsa Petkucheva, PhD (IEES-BAS)
- Technologies of high-temperature fuel and electrolysis cells – Assoc. Prof. Gergana Raykova, PhD (IEES-BAS)
- Design and construction of an electrochemical hydrogen pump/compressor – Assoc. Prof. Galin Borisov, PhD (IEES-BAS)
- Stabilisation of polybenzimidazole-based membranes – Assoc. Prof. Hristo Penchev, PhD (IP-BAS)
- Microbial fuel cells – Prof. Yolina Hubenova, DSc (IEES-BAS)
- Catalysts for clean hydrogen production – Assoc. Prof. Dimitrinka Nikolova, PhD (IC-BAS)
Participants had the opportunity to ask questions and discuss challenges related to the presented topics.
Practical Demonstrations
In the afternoon, the programme continued with a module of practical demonstrations held in the specialised sections of Laboratory 3 “Hydrogen and Fuel Cells” at the HITMOBIL Centre of Competence. The interactive format allowed participants to closely explore the latest equipment, methods, and technologies used in contemporary hydrogen research. School pupils, students, PhD candidates, and young scientists were introduced to:
- Testing of PEM fuel cells and electrolysers, as well as a hydrogen compressor – Assoc. Prof. Galin Borisov, PhD
- Solid oxide fuel cells and impedance spectroscopy – Assoc. Prof. Blagoy Burdin, PhD
- Polymer electrolyte membranes and their application in PEM cells – Assoc. Prof. Hristo Penchev, PhD
- Bioelectrochemical systems and specialised laboratory equipment – Prof. Yolina Hubenova, DSc
- X-ray diffraction analysis – Chief Assistant Prof. Mariela Dimitrova, PhD
- Scanning electron microscopy – Chief Assistant Prof. Ognyan Dimitrov, PhD
- Porometry and BET analyses – Eng. Adriana Gigova
The strong interest shown by the young participants in the presented research activities, experimental instruments and equipment, and achieved scientific results gives the organisers confidence that the training initiatives planned within the project will support the preparation of a new generation of specialists and encourage productive cooperation between the scientific community and educational institutions.
Implemented with the financial support of Grant Agreement No. BG16RFPR002-1.014-0009 “Development and Sustainability of the Centre of Competence HITMOBIL,” funded by the Programme “Research, Innovation and Digitalisation for Smart Transformation” 2021–2027, co-financed by the European Union through the European Regional Development Fund.