DMEC at the European Researchers’ Night 2025

On Friday, September 26^th, 2025, in the evocative setting of the Loggia dei Mercanti in Milan, a team of researchers from the Department of Mechanical Engineering of Politecnico di Milano and CNR-ICMATE took part in the European Researchers’ Night.

The initiative, promoted by Coscience, is part of the outreach activities of the European project EIC M-TES, coordinated by the Department of Mechanical Engineering. The project aims to develop innovative solutions for thermal energy management and storage through the use of advanced materials.

At the interactive booth “Seeing and Feeling the Heat: Tactile and Visual Experiences”, visitors had the opportunity to discover firsthand how composite phase-change materials (C-PCMs) can store and release heat.
Through simple tactile and visual experiments – such as a metal “flower” that became transparent during melting – participants could see and feel the heat, observing how these materials can slow down or speed up thermal storage processes.

The event offered a valuable opportunity to bring the public closer to scientific research, experience materials science firsthand, and understand the role of innovation in the transition toward a more sustainable energy future.