A look back: The winners of Jugend forscht 2017

© Stiftung Jugend forscht

Philipp Sinnewe (18) - this year's winner of the Federal President's Award for outstanding work - investigated whether there is a more efficient and therefore more climate-friendly alternative to conventional aircraft engines that emit carbon dioxide. Sinnewe built a small model of a jet engine and used it to test a new type of fuel: instead of the kerosene commonly used in aviation, the young researcher used a mixture of water and alcohol. The water has the function of expanding when it evaporates in the engine and increasing the thrust.