Maike Baltussen (TU/e) is an Assistant Professor at the research group Multiscale Modelling of Multiphase Flows of Prof. Hans Kuipers in Eindhoven.
Read more about Maike Baltussen on the website of TU/e

What do you do?
I’m specializing in simulating gas-liquid and gas-liquid-solid flows using mainly Direct Numerical Simulations. Within MCEC, I work on the flow in trickle beds and riser reactors. Besides, we are working on the formation of droplets in a spray dryer. Finally, soon a project on water electrolysis is starting.

A new sub-grid scale method
Besides these projects, my personal focus is trying to investigate the mass transfer from single bubbles. I have been developing a new sub-grid scale method, which enables us to simulate high Schmidt numbers. Currently I’m trying to extend this to multiple bubbles and bubbles interacting with structures.

Length and time scales
The main challenge in performing numerical simulations without rigorous assumptions is covering all the relevant length and time scales. For example, the boundary layer in mass transfer is much smaller than the hydrodynamic boundary layer (about 10-30 times). To resolve it, we have to create a higher resolution, which will result in a high grid count or very slow simulation (waiting for several months).

Future collaboration
The next step in multi-scale modelling of gas-liquid and gas-liquid-solid models is to optimize the code even further. This will enable us to model more realistic systems. In addition, the current models are only including simplified kinetics. To create a more realistic model, we have to include the realistic kinetics.

To include these, I think collaboration is of high importance. Currently I am collaborating with Ivo Filot, using his microkinetic modelling to include the essential kinetics in our reactor models. Combining this with the heat and mass transfer in our models, will enable us to make a realistic prediction of a real reactor.

 

Sander Huisman has obtained his PhD degree in physics at the University of Twente on turbulent Taylor Couette flows. During his postdoc he stayed for two years at the École Normale Supérieure in Lyon looking at particles in turbulence.

Since September 2017 Huisman has returned to Twente to start as assistant professor. He will be leading the high Reynolds number turbulence and multi-phase flows part of the Physics of Fluids group and fulfil his teaching duties.

Turbulent flows are ubiquitous in industry and nature, and generally involve dispersed phases (bubbles, sand, etc.) for example in rivers, chemical reactors, atmospheric flows, etc. It is therefore important that we understand the properties of highly turbulent flows, and understand in detail how the dispersed phase acts inside the carrier flow. This can be important for catalytic reaction, where the catalyser should `explore’ the entire reactor.

At the University of Twente, he will look at high Reynolds number multi-phase flows inside the Twente Turbulent Taylor-Couette facility, the Boiling Twente Taylor Couette facility, the Twente Water Tunnel facility, and the newly constructed Twente Heat and Mass Transfer Tunnel.

I obtained my PhD degree from Utrecht University (2015). Currently (2016–2017) I am a NWO Rubicon postdoctoral fellow at ETH Zurich. Starting in 2017 I have joined the MCEC program, and from 2018 will fully return to Utrecht University. My research focuses on three main topics: (1) optical spectroscopy of (individual) nanoparticles; (2) modeling of charge-carrier and excited-state dynamics; (3) self-organization of nanoparticles into larger (ordered) superstructures.

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Florian Meirer (ScD) was born and raised in Vienna, Austria and studied technical physics at the Vienna University of Technology with special emphasis on X-ray physics, especially synchrotron radiation induced X-ray fluorescence analysis and absorption spectroscopy in total reflection geometry in the group of Prof.  Christina Streli. He graduated in 2008 and started a postdoctoral research fellowship (Erwin Schrödinger fellowship, Austrian Science Fund) at the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource, Menlo Park, USA in the group of Prof. Piero Pianetta. In 2010 he obtained a Marie-Curie Cofund fellowship and joined the team of Dr. Massimo Bersani at the Fondazione Bruno Kessler, Trento, Italy focusing on dopant activation research for advanced CMOS technology. Since 2013 he is employed as an Assistant Professor in the Inorganic Chemistry and Catalysis group at Utrecht University, reinforcing the group of Prof. Bert M. Weckhuysen.

His current research (NWO VIDI Grant) focuses on the development and application of spectro-microscopic techniques (mainly but not limited to X-rays) for obtaining insights about nanoscale processes that are critical for a better understanding of how advanced functional materials operate at multiple length scales. His field of expertise in the area of atomic spectroscopy includes X-ray spectroscopic techniques, especially absorption spectroscopy in combination with 2D and 3D imaging or special experimental setup geometries (e.g. grazing incidence or grazing exit geometries), and, not limited to X-ray spectroscopy, multi-variate analysis of large spectroscopic data sets.

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Ivo Filot was born on the 28th of January, 1985 in Sittard. After having finished pre-university college at Trevianum Scholengroep in Sittard, he studied Chemical Engineering and Chemistry at the Eindhoven University of Technology.

During his Bachelor’s program, he undertook extracurricular courses in physics, mathematics and computer sciences. In 2007, he obtained his Bachelor’s Degree with the judicium cum laude. He started his Master’s program in the Molecular Engineering Track. His graduation project focused on the elucidation of the cooperativity effects in the stacking behavior of benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxamides under the supervision of prof.dr. Bert Meijer.

At the end of his Master’s studies, he did an internship at Technip Zoetermeer where he optimized the insulation thickness of thermal cracking installations. In December 2009, he obtained his Master of Science degree with the judicium cum laude.

In January 2010, he started his Ph.D. research on the quantum chemical and microkinetic modelling of the Fischer-Tropsch reaction under the supervision of prof.dr.ir. Emiel Hensen. In 2012, he was selected to participate in the 63rd Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings. He has won the best lecture prize at the 14th Netherlands Chemistry and Catalysis conference as well as the best poster award at the 7th TOCAT conference in Kyoto, Japan. At the end of 2011, he founded the company Zuidstijl, which provides services in the development and maintenance of web-based inventory management software and web content management systems. Since 2015, he is employed as an Assistant Professor in the group of Emiel Hensen. His research endeavors relate to the elucidation of mesoscale processes in catalysis employing state-of-the-art computational simulations.

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Mathieu Odijk is recently appointed as assistant professor starting a tenure track on Micro- and Nanodevices for Chemical Analysis in 2015. He finished his MsC in electrical engineering in 2007, followed by a PhD on the topic of miniaturized electrochemical cells for drug screening in 2011. He has been a visiting scientist at EPFL (prof. Girault, 2012), the Wyss institute at Harvard (2013), and MIT (prof. Jensen, 2014). His expertise is in microfluidics, electrochemistry and microfabrication. He has a ‘teachers heart’, shown by pushing new teaching developments and as his role as expert in the development of a high-school (NLT) module Lab-on-Chip. He was nominated as one of 9 technological top talents by STW in 2010, and awarded a VENI grant in 2014.

The theme of microdevices for chemical analysis aims at engineering novel devices to measure chemical quantities, pushing boundaries in applications to explore unknown territory. Often, this relates to faster, or better spatially resolved measurements at lower concentrations in small volumes. Micro- and nanofabrication techniques are used to enhance electrochemical, optical or mass spectrometric readout. The ultimate goal is to create new, yet robust tools for routine use in the lab or point-of-care applications.

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Rob Lammertink (1972) received his PhD (2000) in Chemical Engineering from the University of Twente. He subsequently started a postdoctoral project at the California Institute of Technology. At the beginning of 2004, he was appointed as assistant professor in the Membrane Technology Group. In this group, he initiated a research cluster related to microstructured interfaces for membrane applications. This cluster was extended into fields of microreactor technology and microfluidics. As of April 2010 he is heading the Soft matter, Fluidics and Interfaces group. The research focuses on interfacial aspects in relation to mass and heat transport. Within MCEC, the research will focus microscopic observations of species transport near catalyst surfaces for biomass conversions. For this, microfluidic platforms will be designed that allow observations within the boundary layer.

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