The Val Benoit university site is an architectural ensemble in the modernist style. It owes its name to the fact that an abbey of the Cistercian order was once located on this site. It was founded there as early as the 13th century. As a result of the Liège Revolution, it was partially demolished. During the Second World War, what remained of it was destroyed by bombing.

Between 1930 and 1965, the University of Liège sought opportunities for expansion due to the increase in student numbers. Consequently, it built a number of new faculties here. This Institute of Applied Chemistry and Metallurgy was one of them. The building was inaugurated in 1937 in the presence of Leopold III. From 1967 onwards, the university systematically moved to the new, central site in Sart-Tilman.