In March, TU Bergakademie Freiberg welcomes two new honorary professors from research and industry. Particle technology specialist Dr Karsten Keller and HIF scientist Dr Richard Gloaguen will complement the teaching in the field of innovation management in particle technology as well as applied spectroscopy and data analysis for materials underground or on the conveyor belt.
From small particles to big innovations
Professor Karsten Keller is the new honorary professor at the Faculty of Mechanical, Process and Energy Engineering. The particle technology specialist wants to combine basic teaching content in mechanical process engineering with new approaches to product and process development. Students at TU Bergakademie Freiberg benefit from his expertise and international experience in leading positions in the pharmaceutical industry in real, group-based and industry-related scenarios. The chemical and process engineer currently works as a freelance consultant for the listed biopharmaceutical company Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals.
Guiding material flows with AI-supported spectroscopy
The new honorary professor at the Institute of Applied Physics is Dr Richard Gloaguen, an internationally recognised expert in raw materials technologies. The head of the Exploration Department at the Helmholtz Institute Freiberg for Resource Technology (HIF) will strengthen the research cooperation between TUBAF and HIF as well as the courses offered by the Faculty of Chemistry, Physics and Biosciences in the field of applied spectroscopy and data analysis as an honorary professor from the summer semester of 2026.
Dr Richard Gloaguen's work at the interface of spectroscopy, sustainable raw material extraction and machine-aided data analysis touches on highly topical issues of great social and economic relevance. His research focuses on the development of sensor technologies and machine learning methods for characterising material flows. This is crucial for the development of recycling processes on the way to a circular economy and for the responsible exploration and extraction of raw materials.
Passing on pioneering technologies to students
Professor Gero Frisch, Dean of the Faculty of Chemistry, Physics and Biosciences, explains: "With Dr Richard Gloaguen, we are gaining an internationally leading scientist who perfectly complements our expertise in raw materials technologies. His appointment will consolidate and expand the successful cooperation between TUBAF and HIF in this important field."
As an honorary professor, he is now making it his mission to pass on his knowledge of these pioneering technologies to students. "His module 'Sensors, Machine Learning and Computer Vision' is a significant addition to our teaching catalogue and offers our students valuable insights into pioneering technologies," says Professor Gero Frisch. The new honorary professorship is also involved in the teaching of the international Master's programme SINReM (Sustainable and Innovative Natural Resource Management) and thus promotes young scientists for research and industry. Together with the Institute of Applied Physics, Dr Gloaguen's department has been operating laboratories in the field of optical characterisation and spectroscopy for several years. The Luna laboratory is a unique facility for luminescence dating in Saxony. In the globally unique HeliosLab, complex material flows can be characterised with the help of hyperspectral sensors, robotics, machine learning and elemental analysis.
