32nd SolarPACES Conference

In 2026, the international SolarPACES community will meet in Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler in the picturesque Ahr Valley. The region is not only home to Germany’s largest red wine-growing area, but also stands for resilience and innovative strength following the flood disaster of 2021. Germany’s long-standing commitment to the development of CSP technologies, as well as the growing interest in solar thermal solutions, high-temperature process heat and long-term storage, provide an ideal setting for professional exchange on the future role of concentrating solar technologies.

DLR as host of SolarPACES 2026

The German Aerospace Centre (DLR) is hosting the event this year and will be represented by the Institute of Solar Research, the Institute of Future Fuels and the Institute of Technical Thermodynamics. The conference offers the institutes an excellent opportunity to present current research, new projects and technological developments and to discuss them with international stakeholders.

In parallel with SolarPACES 2026, EuroSun 2026 will take place in Freiburg im Breisgau from 14 to 18 September 2026. For the first time, the two conferences will coordinate selected programme elements, including mutual acceptance of conference tickets, livestreamed presentations on 15 September enabling real-time participation at both venues, and a joint post-conference highlights webinar. This collaboration will bring together leading international communities in solar thermal technologies and energy systems, fostering deeper exchange and stronger alignment across the sector.

The programme for the 32nd SolarPACES Conference features a wide range of presentations, scientific findings, innovative applications and insights into current market trends, technological developments and areas of application in concentrated solar thermal energy.

We look forward to welcoming you to Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler from 15 to 18 September 2026 and shaping the future of concentrated solar energy together. Read the Chairpersons' Invitation.

Visit the contributions of our DLR employees at the SolarPACES conference – here you will find an overview:

Tuesday, 15 September 2026

8:45 AM – Opening SolarPACES, Welcome messages: Robert Pitz-Paal, Benedikt Kölsch, Conference Co-Chairs, DLR, Germany; Mona Neubaur, Minister, Ministry of Economy, Industry, Climate Protection, Energy of North Rhine-Westphalia; Meike Jipp, Divisional Board Member for Energy and Transport, DLR, Germany; Alina Gilmanova, Women+ in CSP, France

2 PM – CSP around the world; Speakers: Fengli Du, National Solar Thermal Alliance, China; Jorge Marcial Islas Samperio, Undersecretary of Planning and Energy Transition, Ministry of Energy, Mexico; Paul Goj, Engie, Germany; Joachim Krüger, ESTELA; Gregor Bern, Fraunhofer ISE & Dirk Krüger, DLR

5:30 PM – Solar Fuels and High Temperature Applications (beyond commercial status); Speakers: Kent Warren, ETH, Switzerland; Jose Gonzalez, IMDEA, Spain; Christian Sattler, DLR, Germany; Graham Nathan, Univ. Adelaide, Australia; Philipp Furler, Synhelion, Switzerland

Mittwoch, 16. September 2026

8:30 AM – AI driven autonomous operation of solar thermal power plants; Speakers: Inga Miadowicz & Mathias Kuhl, DLR, Germany, Solar Energy Autopilot - A Holistic System Architecture for CST and it´s Evaluation at the Solar Tower Jülich; Marcelino Sanchez, CENER, Spain, Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence: A Second Opportunity for CSP – From Technological Promise to Intelligent Renewable Energy; Mike Wagner, Univ. Wisconsin, US, Heliocon Consortium Overview; Jonny Liu, Cosin Solar, China, New standard on Heliostat Field Control IEC 6286-4-2

10:30 AM – Marc Röger: The Enhanced Power-On Test for Measuring Receiver Efficiency

10:30 AM – Kai Wieghardt: A Unique Test Infrastructure for Industrial-Scale Solar Fuels Technologies

10:50 AM – Nicole Carina Neumann: Designing a Solar-Powered Membrane Reactor for Syngas Production

1:45 PM – Cord Bleibaum: Modernizing Light Flux Distribution Simulation using dFlux

2:45 PM – Max Pargmann: Towards an Image Based Heliostat-Calibration Using Differentiable Kinematics

3:05 PM – Jens Keller: Impact of Oxygen Removal Strategies on the Efficiency of Solar Thermochemical Fuel Production

4:15 PM – Gözde Alkan: Development of sustainable high temperature stable solar absorber pigment coatings for particles and components

4:15 PM – Matthias Kuhl: Autonomous Operation Control Agent for Robust Solar Thermal Tower Plant Operation

4:15 PM – Christian Odenthal: Recent Advances in Molten Salt Single-Tank Storage - an Overview of DLR Activities

4:35 PM – Inga Miadowicz: Solar Energy Autopilot: A Digital Twin Framework for Autonomous Solar Thermal Plants

5:15 PM – Andreas Rosenstiel: Global Cost Assessment of Hybrid CSP/PV Systems for Solar Fuel Production

5:35 PM – Christos Agrafiotis: Perovskites-based thermochemical coatings for protection of molten salt receivers

5:55 PM – Enric Prats-Salvado: Utilization of Waste Heat from Solar Thermochemical Fuel Production for Point-Source Carbon Capture

Poster Session 6:15 PM
– Clarisse Lorreyte: Design, Commissioning and Testing of a Solar Receiver with Particle Heat Carriers for Solar-Driven Pyrolysis Application
– Niklas C. Dicke: Application of Solar Preheating of Parabolic Trough Solar Fields with Liquid Salts
– Christoph Hilgert: Getter Temperature Measurement and Absorption Capacity Assessment in Heat Collecting Elements
– Navina Konz: Evaluation of Two Parabolic Trough Pilot Plants and Development of New Assembly Jigs

Thursday, 17 September 2026

Poster Session 9:00 AM
– Johannes Grobbel: Development of a solar particle receiver for ultra-high temperatures required by thermochemical processes
– Nico Kleemeyer: Tail Gas Recirculation from Fischer-Tropsch-Synthesis for Redox-cycle Syngas Production
– Marc Petzold: Design of Moving Bed Reactors for Solar Thermochemical Fuel Production aided by DEM
– Stefan Brendelberger: Development of the R2Mx Proof-of-Concept Test Rig
– Charlotte Linden: Sustainable absorber materials made from secondary raw materials from the steel industry
– Navina Konz: Development of a novel underground heat storage for temperatures up to 400 °C
– Leonard Koch: New insights into the corrosion mechanism between molten nitrate salts and slags for packed bed thermocline systems

10:50 AM – Dirk Krüger: Parabolic Troughs for Industrial Process Heat: Current Status, Local Content and Carbon Footprint

11:30 AM – Onur Polat: Understanding Convective Losses from a Centrifuging Cavity Receiver Under Wind

11:50 AM – Maximilian Drexelius: Experimental Validation of an Air-Cooled Secondary Concentrator Module for High-Flux Applications

1:45 PM – Martin Bolten: Decarbonization of ceramic kilns through innovative solar-powered energy supply concepts

2:05 PM – Thomas Bauer: Analysis of Molten Salt Quality in Commercial CSP Plants

2:25 PM – Matthias Loevenich: Low-Carbon Solar-Driven District Heating Solutions with Seasonal Storage: Parabolic Trough vs. PV with Air Source Heat Pump

3:35 PM – Benedikt Kölsch: Evaluation of Commercial Inclinometers for High-Precision and Long-Term Stable Tracking in Parabolic Trough Systems under Cyclic Thermal Loading

4:15 PM – Rafael Schiewe: Conversion of Solar Radiation Spillage with Concentrating Photovoltaics: Solar Tests of Receiver-Integrated CPV Modules

4:15 PM – Dominik Steinberg: HelioHealth - Development and Experimental Validation of a Cost-Efficient Condition Monitoring System for Heliostat Drive Units

4:55 PM – Lukas Jäger: Wind Loads on Heliostats: Determining Dynamic Amplification using Artificial Intelligence

5:15 PM – Yann Fabel: Task-aware latent-space coupling for generative intra-hour solar forecasting

5:15 PM – Andreas Pfahl: Injection Molded Components for Most Cost-Effective Heliostats

5:15 PM – Mathias Pein: Experimental validation of thermochemical energy storage unit based on perovskite 3D-structures

Poster Session 6:15 PM
– Ana Cleia González Alves: Collector Ring Material Erosion Caused by Ceramic Particles
– Christian Jung: Gas solubility in Heat Transfer Fluids
– Lucas Jonath: Design and Validation of a Water-Cooled Calorimeter for Concentrated Solar Power at 50 kW
– Fabio Pierno: Improved Flux Density Measurement for a Solar Thermochemical Receiver-Reactor Using FMAS-II
– Christian Jung: The Formation of Nitrogen Oxides from Molten Salts
– Florian Wiesinger: Solar Absorber Coating under Extensive Thermal Cycling
– Javier Inigo Labairu: Modeling Hybrid CST Systems for Industrial Heat: Enhancements in the greenius Simulation Tool

Friday, 18 September 2026

9:10 AM – Christian Raeder: Integration of STRAL software into experiment analysis using OFIP

9:50 AM – Markus Reichart: Plug detection in molten salt plants using gamma ray spectroscopy