BTU Becomes One of Three Turkish Universities Funded Under Horizon Europe MSCA Programme

A project led by Bursa Technical University (BTU), under the coordination of Prof. Dr. Deniz Uzunsoy, has been selected for funding within the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Staff Exchanges Programme, one of the most prestigious research programmes of the European Union under Horizon Europe.

Focusing on the recycling of metal materials, the project places BTU among the three universities in Türkiye whose proposals were supported in the role of “coordinator” within this highly competitive call.

BTU academics continue to receive both national and international support for their innovative research projects. In this context, Bursa Technical University has achieved a significant success under the 2024 call of the Horizon Europe Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Staff Exchanges Programme.

The project titled “Sustainable Production of High Entropy Alloys from Secondary Metals (SUSHEAS)”, coordinated by Prof. Dr. Deniz Uzunsoy from the Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, has been awarded a total funding of €736,476.

BTU is not only one of the three universities in Türkiye to receive support under this programme, but also among a limited number of institutions across Europe to achieve this distinction.

International Consortium with Seven Partners

The SUSHEAS project brings together an international consortium including:

1. Brunel University London (UK)
2. Norwegian University of Science and Technology – NTNU (Norway)
3. Sağlam Metal Industry and Trade Inc. (Türkiye)
4. Suranaree University of Technology (Thailand)
5. University of Porto (Portugal)
6. Bournemouth University (UK)
7. International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory (Portugal)

Reducing Dependence on Primary Raw Materials

Providing insights into the project, Prof. Dr. Deniz Uzunsoy emphasized that SUSHEAS represents an innovative step in both environmental sustainability and advanced materials technologies:

“Within the scope of the project, we aim to reduce dependency on primary raw materials in the production of chemically complex, multi-component High Entropy Alloys (HEAs). By recovering and reusing secondary metals, we will contribute to more environmentally friendly and energy-efficient production methods.”

Significant Contribution to Industrial Processes

Highlighting the current challenges in HEA production, Prof. Dr. Uzunsoy noted that existing methods largely rely on costly and environmentally intensive primary resources. SUSHEAS aims to introduce a sustainability-driven perspective by reintegrating secondary metals into the production cycle.

“Our work will contribute to industrial applications through AI-supported optimization, metal recovery processes, manufacturing improvements, characterization studies, and prototype demonstrations. Furthermore, the project will strengthen knowledge transfer between academic and industrial partners through structured research staff exchanges.”

Laying the Foundations for Future Engineering Materials

Prof. Dr. Uzunsoy also underlined the broader impact of the project:

“SUSHEAS will not only promote sustainable production methods for high entropy alloys but will also lay the foundations for environmentally conscious manufacturing approaches in next-generation advanced engineering materials.”

Rector Çağlar: ‘This Success Demonstrates Our Research Strength Once Again’

Congratulating Prof. Dr. Deniz Uzunsoy and the project team, BTU Rector Prof. Dr. Naci Çağlar stated:

“Being one of only three universities in Türkiye to receive support from such a prestigious programme is of great importance. In line with our research-oriented university vision, our growing institutional capacity in project development and access to international funding clearly demonstrates that we are on the right path.

The recognition of our academic potential at the European level reflects the high level our scientific production has reached. We strongly believe that our project achievements will continue to increase both nationally and internationally.”