Simulation and logic – energy and AI reimagined
European Research Council funds two projects at TU Darmstadt with ERC Starting Grants
2025/09/04
Two early-career researchers at TU Darmstadt have been awarded Starting Grants by the European Research Council (ERC) for their excellent and innovative fundamental and pioneering research. Professor Grace Li Zhang and Dr.-Ing. Arne Scholtissek will each receive 1.5 million euros over a period of five years for their projects on neural networks and simulations for CO₂-neutral energy sources.
In the current funding round, the ERC has selected two projects by researchers at TU Darmstadt: ‘ProtoMan’ by Dr Arne Scholtissek (Department of Mechanical Engineering) and ‘LogiNet’ by Professor Grace Li Zhang (Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology).
What both scientists have in common is that their research contributes to a sustainable future – an aspect that is very close to our hearts at TU Darmstadt.
‘I am delighted that two scientists from TU Darmstadt have once again been awarded ERC Starting Grants,’ said TU President Professor Tanja Brühl. ‘Congratulations to Professor Grace Li Zhang, whose research on neural networks is setting new standards in the field of green AI and thus enriching our Information and Intelligence (I + I) research field. I would also like to extend my warmest congratulations to Dr Arne Scholtissek. With his simulations for CO2-neutral energy sources, he is innovating combustion research and setting decisive trends for our Energy and Environment (E + E) research field. What both scientists have in common is that their research contributes to a sustainable future – an aspect that is very close to our hearts at TU Darmstadt.’
With the Starting Grant, the European Union promotes outstanding research and early-career researchers. The Starting Grant is aimed at researchers who have already demonstrated excellence and now want to expand their independent research or establish their own research group at the beginning of their careers. In the current round, 494 grants were awarded from a total of 3,474 applications.
Project „ProtoMan“
The ProtoMan project (Protocol for Data-Driven Manifold Generation, Validation, and Utilization in High-Fidelity Combustion Simulations) by Dr Arne Scholtissek focuses on developing innovative simulation models for combustion processes. The goal: making numerical simulations of flames and sustainable combustion processes up to 1,000 times faster. To achieve this, ProtoMan combines state-of-the-art combustion research with machine learning techniques. The new methods are intended to accelerate the development of carbon-neutral technologies in energy systems, industry, and environmental protection.
Project „LogiNet“
As part of the LogiNet project – “Logic-Driven Efficient Computing and Analysis of Deep Neural Networks on Hardware” – Professor Grace Li Zhang is pursuing a new approach to running neural networks on modern hardware in a more energy-efficient and transparent manner. Instead of simply accelerating multiply-accumulate (MAC) operations, the focus is to examine what these MAC operations do logically and extract the high-level logic expressions of neural networks. LogiNet not only develops new solutions for green AI to benefit the economy and the environment but also lays the foundation for new directions such as logic-based DNN validation in the era of large-scale models that have started to influence our society fundamentally.
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