The 2011 German Environmental Award of the Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt (DBU) was presented to the managing directors of the company WS Wärmeprozesstechnik (WS Thermal Process Technology), Dr. Joachim Alfred Wuenning and Dr. Joachim Georg Wuenning. The 250,000-euro award, which is the most lucrative environmental prize in Europe, was presented by German President Christian Wulff. Wulff said that the father-and-son team had expedited a big and fundamental technological innovation with their new combustion method, FLOX.     

Dr. Fritz Brickwedde, secretary general of the DBU, said: “The combustion technology of flameless oxidation (FLOX) can make a considerable contribution to saving energy and avoiding air pollution.” The principle of fire without a flame in the FLOX burners is based on a sophisticated mixture of combustion air and gas, along with flue gases that constantly circulate and are fed back into the cycle. WS Wärmeprozesstechnik is based in Renningen, Germany. Its office in the U.S., WS Thermal Process Technology, is located in Lorain, Ohio.