Axel Funke

Dr. Axel Funke serves as Team Leader and Principal Investigator for the Pyrolysis group at the Institute of Catalysis Research and Technology (IKFT), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Germany. His work drives the bioliq^® project's biomass-to-liquid fuels initiative through fast pyrolysis technology development since 2013.

Education:

• Energy and Process Engineering at Technische Universität Berlin (Germany)
• Energy and Process Engineering at Royal Institute of Technology (Stockholm, Sweden)

Research Interests:

Specializing in engineering wet/dry thermochemical biomass conversion systems, Dr. Funke's work advances auger reactor design, heat transfer in moving particle beds, and condensation systems for pyrolysis applications. His biochar research draws from 'terra preta do indio' principles to enhance soil carbon sequestration and waste valorization.

Scientific Awards:

• PhD scholarship from the German Federal Environmental Foundation (DBU)

Project Leadership:

As Task Leader for IEA Bioenergy Task 34 (2019-2021), he directed global research on direct thermochemical liquefaction. He currently leads KIT's work package in alProWa (2018-present) for thermochemical process water valorization and manages the BRISK 2 EU consortium (2017-present), serving on its Executive Committee board.