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Today’s “Chair of Thermal Processing Technology” has its seeds in the academic year of 1911/12, when the “Lehrkanzel für Allgemeine Metall- und Sudhüttenkunde” has been founded. From that time on till this day students have been taught in the fields of thermal engineering and industrial furnace engineering. With repeated adaptations being made in the 100 years of existence of the chair, it could be ensured that the fields of research meet the needs of industry. Due to these modifications also the name of the chair changed.

Initially the core area of thermal engineering has been, somewhat simplified, the quality management due to the implementation of thermotechnical actions. Because of massive growth in energy demand economical and ecological considerations got increasingly important. Henceforth issues concerning increases in energy efficiency, the use of alternative energy resources or secondary fuel as well as measures to protect the environment were arising.

In closed association with the work on these new questions Professor Max Ussar has to be mentioned, who has performed notable pioneering work, while he was leading the at that time “Institut für Wärmetechnik und Industrieofenbau” called chair in the years 1962 till 1983. This was one of the most important times for the chair because of the multitude of supervised diploma thesis and dissertations and the building of research in new fields. Prof. Ussar has been credited with being ahead of the posse on issues like environmental protection and renewable energy. His work could even be seen as the cradle of “Industrial Environmental Protection, Waste Disposal Technology and Recycling”, which nowadays is an independent field of study at the Montanuniversität Leoben.

Fig.: Prof. Raupenstrauch and Prof. Ussar on the occasion of 100 year anniversary of the Chair

Since the appointment of Professor Harald Raupenstrauch 2007/01/01 following main fields of research were established:

• Modelling and Simulation
• High Temperature Process Technology
• Energy Technology
• Process and Plant Safety
  
  

In the university education the introduction of a unique Bachelor and Master Degree Program could be achieved. This represents a field of study that is singular in the whole German-speaking area and beyond.