How Ukrainian energy science works under infrastructure strikes – and what solutions it already offers today? This was the focus of the working visit of the leadership of the NAS of Ukraine to the Institute of Thermal Power Engineering Technologies.
On March 24, 2026, the President of the NAS of Ukraine, academician of the NAS of Ukraine Anatoliy Zahorodniy, familiarized himself with the research base of the Institute, its key areas of work, and the latest research results.
Together with the President, the Institute was visited by the First Vice-President of the NAS of Ukraine, academician of the NAS of Ukraine Vyacheslav Bohdanov, Acting Chief Scientific Secretary of the NAS of Ukraine, Doctor of Philosophy Oleh Kubalskyi, academician-secretary of the Department of Energy and Energy Technologies of the NAS of Ukraine, academician of the NAS of Ukraine Andriy Rusanov, as well as scientific secretaries of the Section and Department – Doctor of Technical Sciences Serhiy Bespalov and Candidate of Technical Sciences Vladyslav Titko.
During the visit, the Academy’s leadership inspected laboratory and pilot-experimental setups, communicated with scientists, and discussed current directions for the Institute’s development – from fundamental research to applied solutions for energy and industry.
The building where the Institute currently operates is itself part of the history of Ukrainian energy. It is the former Central Electric Station (DES-1) in Podil, built between 1898-1906 – essentially the first city-wide alternating current power plant in Kyiv that has been preserved to this day. It was located near the Dnipro River for a reason: the operation of steam engines and boilers required a large amount of water.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the station was expanded: steam boilers and powerful machines with three-phase current generators were installed, supplying electricity to the city and the Kyiv electric tram. After decommissioning, the building was transferred to the Academy of Sciences, and today this complex – with a substation, pumping station, and brick chimney – combines the status of an industrial heritage monument with modern scientific infrastructure.
The Institute’s director, Doctor of Technical Sciences Nataliya Dunayevska, spoke about the current directions of the Institute’s work. She presented the main scientific schools, personnel potential, and experimental capabilities of the institution, and also highlighted the adaptation of research to the challenges of war – damage to energy infrastructure and the need to develop renewable energy and resource-efficient technologies.
Among the developments introduced to the Academy’s leadership is a complex of laboratory and pilot installations for studying the conversion of coal, biomass, and organic waste. In particular, these are technologies for producing hydrogen and synthesis gas using steam gasifiers, water-gas shift reactors, and carbon dioxide absorption systems.
Scientists also demonstrated air and plasma gasification units that enable the production of synthesis gas enriched with hydrogen, as well as experimental solutions to improve the efficiency of these processes – including the use of catalysts and the study of fuel conversion kinetics.
A separate block of research concerns the preparation of solid fuel for thermal processing, analysis of its physicochemical properties, and purification of flue gases from pollutants.
Among applied solutions is a prototype pyrolyzer-gasifier unit created within the framework of the National Research Foundation of Ukraine competition "Science for Strengthening Ukraine’s Defense Capability." It is designed to provide electrical and thermal energy to areas with interrupted centralized energy supply.
An experimental VGP-100V unit for studying combustion and gasification processes of solid fuels in a vertical downward flow was also presented.
According to information from the Institute of Thermal Power Engineering Technologies of the NAS of Ukraine
Photo: Press Service of the NAS of Ukraine
