TUM in Singapore
Microalgae for the megacity
Two centimeters of research data: the tiny green plants sprouting behind glass are soybeans. They are growing in climate chambers on the ground floor of the CREATE Tower on the campus of the National University of Singapore. They are not destined to be eaten or fed to animals, but are part of an experiment: Their job is to grow under changing conditions. Light, temperature, humidity, soil composition, and distance between plants - all these factors affect growth, and the aim is to find the optimum conditions for the highest possible yield.
The experiment with the soybeans is a TUM research project and, at the same time, part of a big plan for the small country of Singapore. Because the city-state, with a population of almost six million, only has as much available space as the German city of Hamburg and because only one percent of its land can be farmed, most of the food has to be imported. But Singapore is seeking to become more self-sufficient and has announced the "30-30" plan: By 2030, 30 percent of the country's food is to be produced domestically and sustainably. This can only be achieved with new methods and high tech—like those fast-growing soybeans.
TUMCreate research platform
TUM researchers have been working in the CREATE Tower in Singapore since 2010. CREATE stands for "Campus for Research Excellence and Technological Enterprise." In addition to TUM, ETH Zurich and MIT are also located in the tower. Together with Singapore's universities and regional industrial partners, they are seeking solutions for Singapore's sustainable future. "This collaboration is unique," says Prof. Ulf Schlichtmann, CEO of TUMCreate. "Everyone here is very open to unconventional and creative ideas."
"Controlled environment agriculture" is the branch of research of the soybean experiments. The hope is that edible crops can be grown and harvested in small areas, such as the roofs of high-rise buildings. Soybeans are one of the world's most important crops, but they can only be harvested once a year in the field, and a field yields only four tons per hectare. Trials have shown that rooftop-farmed soybean plants can be grown up to three times more densely than in the field and can be harvested three to four times a year. The optimum yield is 40 plants per square meter and four harvests. In theory, the yield can then be 30 percent higher than in the field—and with far less fertilizer.
The soybeans are part of the "Proteins4Singapore" research program, which aims to show how the megacity can be adequately supplied with high-quality food in the future through innovative agriculture or the 3D printing of proteins from soy or microalgae: TUM professor Thomas Becker and the entire consortium are trying to optimize the production of vegan, meat-like structures. They seek to better understand how to vary the main ingredients—proteins, water, or substances called hydrocolloids—to produce products with the desired firmness. "This project not only allows us to completely rethink food, but also has a major impact on research work here in Germany towards future-oriented sustainable food safety," says Thomas Becker.
Close links between research and teaching
A few kilometers away from the CREATE Tower, Prof. Corinna Dawid is teaching a block course in Molecular Sensory Science in the TUM Asia lecture hall. At the start of the 2024/25 academic year, TUM launched a new Master's program: the Master Sustainable Food. "I teach what my team is researching on site," says Corinna Dawid, Professor of Functional Phytometabolomics at the TUM School of Life Sciences: For example, how do you select the raw materials for turning soybeans or microalgae into a tasty product? "Partially hydrolyzed microalgae, for example, do not taste good," Dawid says, and adds that in general, botanicals often have a bitter, grassy taste. There is still a lot of research to be done before Singapore can really move towards a plant-based diet.
Corinna Dawid therefore sees great potential in the Master's program: "The students come from the best universities and are very well educated," she enthuses. The course structure is demanding—eight hours of lectures and tutorials every day for two weeks—but she is convinced that it is worth it: "We're building an excellent international network here."
TUM Asia currently offers a total of seven Master's programs and more are in the pipeline: "We are currently in talks with Nanyang Technological University about jointly offering another Master's program in electronics," says Dr. Markus Wächter, Managing Director of TUM Asia. According to Wächter, semiconductors are in high demand in Singapore at the moment as the politically tense relations between China and Taiwan have the whole world searching for new locations for chip production. Singapore, which sees itself as a bridge between the West and China, is an obvious choice.
In Singapore since 2002
A bridge that TUM has been using for a long time: TUM Asia has been on site since 2002, a unique commitment; no other German university has a campus of this kind outside of Europe. "German Engineering Excellence with Asian Relevance" is TUM President Prof. Thomas F. Hofmann´s description of the special character of TUM Asia, offering the best engineering education for the Asian market. Success is proving TUM right; TUM Asia now has around 3,000 graduates from 45 countries, most of them from China and India. Many work in leading research institutions and companies in the region and around the world.
One of them is Madan Jhanvi, who proudly received her Master's degree in Industrial Chemistry in July 2024. She now plans to join the family agrochemicals business that her grandfather founded in Delhi. "In my Master's degree, I found the perfect combination of chemistry and engineering that I need for our business,” she says.
Singapore is the ideal place to develop scalable solutions that can then be applied in other countries.
Singapore's net zero emissions goal is to stop releasing greenhouse gases into the atmosphere by 2050. TUM researchers are helping to achieve these ambitious goals. One of their projects is to harness geothermal energy for Singapore; another promising option is green hydrogen produced from geothermal energy, which could provide 170 tons per year.
During the first funding phase of TUMCreate, numerous projects were developed that are now helping the city-state to electrify its transportation. The "Singapore Integrated Transport Energy Model" (SITEM), which aims to create the basis of a zero-emission transport system in Singapore, uses two TUMCreate simulation models: the "City Mobility Simulator," which accurately maps all traffic flows on the island, and the "Multi Energy System Modelling & Optimization," which simulates the effects of distributed energy resources such as solar photovoltaics on the grid. "This is a very exciting project with many stakeholders, and we are delighted to be involved," says CEO Ulf Schlichtmann. "Our simulation tools can provide valuable recommendations for Singapore's transportation planning."
This is why TUM President Thomas F. Hofmann is convinced: "With TUM Asia and TUMCreate, we are contributing to the sustainable transformation of cities—in Singapore, but also beyond. Thanks to the short geographical distances and the possibility of rapid implementation, the megacity is the ideal place to develop scalable solutions that can then be applied in other countries."
This article was published in the 01/2025 issue of the new TUM Magazine.
Technical University of Munich
Corporate Communications Center
- Jeanne Rubner
- rubner@tum.de
- presse@tum.de
- Teamwebsite
