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Introduction Jasper Verschuur: New Team Member Climate Safety & Security Research Center

Welcome to Our New Assistant Professor: Jasper Verschuur We are thrilled to announce that Jasper Verschuur has joined our team as an Assistant Professor in Engineering Systems & Climate Security. Jasper will be playing a pivotal role within the Climate Safety & Security Research Center, within the Flagship 'Human Security and Liveable Environment.' “I joined the center as it offers a unique interdisciplinary environment to do research on some of the most pressing challenges that society faces in terms of rapidly decarbonising society, as well anticipating the adverse consequences of climate change. Moreover, the center provides a much-needed bridge to align TU Delft research with the needs of policymakers working on climate safety and security issues.” Research Focus and Objectives Jasper’s research addresses the systemic risks that climate change poses to infrastructure systems and the essential services they provide. This work spans both localized levels (e.g., household essential services) and a global scale (e.g., staple food flows). These systemic risks are complex and challenging to quantify due to the interdependencies between human, infrastructure, and economic systems. His research focuses on developing new modelling tools to better anticipate these risks and propose solutions to enhance resilience. This demands a forward-looking approach which not only tries to understand the various impacts of a changing climate, but also the evolving nature of the systems themselves, for instance due to the energy transition and rapid urbanization. This holistic perspective is crucial for devising effective strategies to mitigate systemic risks. Impact for a better society Aligned with TU Delft’s slogan, "Impact for a Better Society," Jasper's research aims to identify and address systemic risks that could lead to societal disruptions or economic losses. He focuses on ensuring that climate change does not exacerbate existing societal inequalities, particularly in the Global South, where these disparities are most pronounced. His work often includes a development angle, striving to assist those most vulnerable to climate risks. TU Delft’s mission in The Hague The mission of the TU Delft campus in The Hague is to bridge the gap and facilitate dialogue between engineering, sciences, and public policy. How can the newly established Climate Safety & Security Research Center contribute to this goal? “I see the research center as the central location to bring different people together and jointly discuss how the research center, and The Hague as a city, can make a difference in dealing with climate change.” In The Hague, there is a vibrant community of policymakers, think tanks, NGOs, and practitioners dedicated to safety and security issues. Climate change is increasingly recognized as a significant security threat. Jasper’s research is crucial for informing the decisions of those working on these challenges daily. In his near future endeavours, he aims to engage with the community in The Hague, understanding their primary challenges and collaborating to find solutions. We are excited to have Jasper on board and look forward to the significant contributions he will make to our community and beyond. Welcome, Jasper!

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George Kelesidis

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Otmar Ubbens

Giorgio Pagella

Marcell Várkonyi

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Moving the Closet

You simply cannot miss it, it is big and magenta: the Pink Closet . On 12 November 2024 the Pink Closet will head to the Main Hall of the TU Delft Library for the first time! The Pink Closet will take its place at the Nook, where it will feature as part of the Studium Generale programme on loneliness. More information on events that coincide with and incorporate the Pink Closet at TU Delft Library will soon be available on the website of Studium Generale .

Green ammonia remains a challenge, but researchers make significant progress

The production of ammonia, essential for fertiliser production, is responsible for almost 1.5% of global carbon emissions. This needs to be greener, which is why researchers have been looking for sustainable alternatives for years.

"Measuring brain activity through the skull with ultrasound opens new doors"

PhD Candidate Rick Waasdorp is looking for ways to correct the distortion caused by the skull when using Ultrasound technology. ‘’My goal is to develop an adaptive method for skull corrections that automatically measures the skull of new patients.’’

NWO funding for flexible power demand in electrically driven industry

NWO is funding two projects to explore ways to make the power demand of industry more flexible, allowing it to better align with future energy supplies. One of these projects, “DEFLAME,” is led by Machteld van den Broek from TU Delft.

Students Amos Yusuf, Mick Dam & Bas Brouwer winners of Mekel Prize 2024

Master students Amos Yusuf, from the ME faculty (Mick Dam, from the EEMCS faculty and graduate Bas Brouwer have won the Mekel Prize 2024 for the best extra scientific activity at TU Delft: the development of an initiative that brings master students into the classroom teaching sciences to the younger generations. The prize was ceremonially awarded by prof Tim van den Hagen on 13 November after the Van Hasselt Lecture at the Prinsenhof, Delft. They received a statue of Professor Jan Mekel and 1.500,- to spend on their project. Insights into climate change are being openly doubted. Funding for important educational efforts and research are being withdrawn. Short clips – so called “reels” – on Youtube and TikTok threaten to simplify complex political and social problems. AI fakes befuddle what is true and what is not. The voices of science that contribute to those discussion with modesty, careful argument and scepticism, are drowned in noise. This poses a threat for universities like TU Delft, who strive to increase student numbers, who benefit from diverse student populations and aim to pass on their knowledge and scientific virtues to the next generation. It is, therefore, alarming that student enrolments to Bachelor and Master Programs at TU Delft have declined in the past year. Students in front of the class The project is aimed to make the sciences more appealing to the next generation. They have identified the problem that students tend miss out on the opportunity of entering a higher education trajectory in the Beta sciences – because they have a wrong picture of such education. In their mind, they depict it as boring and dry. In his pilot lecture at the Stanislas VMBO in Delft, Amos Yusuf has successfully challenged this image. He shared his enthusiasm for the field of robotics and presented himself as a positive role model to the pupils. And in return the excitement of the high school students is palpable in the videos and pictures from the day. The spark of science fills their eyes. Bas Brouwer Mick Dam are the founders of NUVO – the platform that facilitates the engagement of Master Students in high school education in Delft Their efforts offer TU Delft Master Students a valuable learning moment: By sharing insights from their fields with pupils at high school in an educational setting, our students can find identify their own misunderstandings of their subject, learn to speak in front of non-scientific audiences and peak into education as a work field they themselves might not have considered. An extraordinary commitment According to the Mekel jury, the project scored well on all the criteria (risk mitigation, inclusiveness, transparency and societal relevance). However, it was the extraordinary commitment of Amos who was fully immersed during his Master Project and the efforts of Brouwer and Dam that brought together teaching and research which is integral to academic culture that made the project stand out. About the Mekel Prize The Mekel Prize will be awarded to the most socially responsible research project or extra-scientific activity (e.g. founding of an NGO or organization, an initiative or realization of an event or other impactful project) by an employee or group of employees of TU Delft – projects that showcase in an outstanding fashion that they have been committed from the beginning to relevant moral and societal values and have been aware of and tried to mitigate as much as possible in innovative ways the risks involved in their research. The award recognizes such efforts and wants to encourage the responsible development of science and technology at TU Delft in the future. For furthermore information About the project: https://www.de-nuvo.nl/video-robotica-pilot/ About the Mekel Prize: https://www.tudelft.nl/en/tpm/our-faculty/departments/values-technology-and-innovation/sections/ethics-philosophy-of-technology/mekel-prize

The ENHANCE Diversity Seed Fund

Are you a student at TU Delft or another ENHANCE university with a passion for promoting diversity and inclusion? The ENHANCE Diversity Seed Fund is your chance to turn that passion into action. ENHANCE provides funding to support innovative, student-led projects that address key challenges related to inclusion and diversity within our academic communities. Key Details: Funding Available: Up to 1500 Euros per project in the 1st round! Eligibility: Students from ENHANCE member universities. Staff can also join student-led initiatives. Application Deadline: 8 January 2025. More information: Join the online Information Event on the 26 November 2024 16:00-17:00 CET on Zoom . More information: enhanceuniversity.eu/diversity/diversityseedfund/

New catheter technology promises safer and more efficient treatment of blood vessels

Each year, more than 200 million catheters are used worldwide to treat vascular diseases, including heart disease and artery stenosis. When navigating into blood vessels, friction between the catheter and the vessel wall can cause major complications. With a new innovative catheter technology, Mostafa Atalla and colleagues can change the friction from having grip to completely slippery with the flick of a switch. Their design improves the safety and efficiency of endovascular procedures. The findings have been published in IEEE. Catheter with variable friction The prototype of the new catheter features advanced friction control modules to precisely control the friction between the catheter and the vessel wall. The friction is modulated via ultrasonic vibrations, which overpressure the thin fluid layer. This innovative variable friction technology makes it possible to switch between low friction for smooth navigation through the vessel and high friction for optimal stability during the procedure. In a proof-of-concept, Atalla and his team show that the prototype significantly reduces friction, averaging 60% on rigid surfaces and 11% on soft surfaces. Experiments on animal aortic tissue confirm the promising results of this technology and its potential for medical applications. Fully assembled catheters The researchers tested the prototype during friction experiments on different tissue types. They are also investigating how the technology can be applied to other procedures, such as bowel interventions. More information Publicatie DOI : 10.1109/TMRB.2024.3464672 Toward Variable-Friction Catheters Using Ultrasonic Lubrication | IEEE Journals & Magazine | IEEE Xplore Mostafa Atalla: m.a.a.atalla@tudelft.nl Aimee Sakes: a.sakes@tudelft.nl Michaël Wiertlewski: m.wiertlewski@tudelft.nl Would you like to know more and/or attend a demonstration of the prototype please contact me: Fien Bosman, press officer Health TU Delft: f.j.bosman@tudelft.nl/ 0624953733

Design and imagination as essential tools during the climate crisis

In Nature Partner Journals, ten researchers advocate the use of imagination in tackling the climate crisis. They focus specifically on urbanising river deltas, which are of great social and economic importance and highly vulnerable to climate change. "We scientists should not merely outline doomsday scenarios," says Professor Chris Zevenbergen. "Create a vision for people to believe in and work towards.”

Inaugural address: machine optimisation key to more efficient logistics system

The processing and transport of materials can be made much more efficient, says TU Delft professor Dingena Schott in her inaugural address, ‘Advancing Transport and Processing: from Model to Impact’. She will deliver her address on 15 November. Her research focuses on the interaction between machines and materials, with a special emphasis on granular materials.

FAST University Fund invites all TU Delft students

FAST University Fund invites all TU Delft students to apply for the Ambitious Project Grant or the Event Grant of up to €15.000!

Education demonstration in Utrecht cancelled

Safety cannot be guaranteed In our post of 22 October , we announced that students and staff of TU Delft will have the opportunity to take part in protests against the cabinet's plans to cut higher education. Today it has been announced that the demonstration against the cuts to higher education and science on 14 November in Utrecht has been cancelled because the safety of the demonstrators cannot be guaranteed. Read the reaction of Universiteiten van Nederland to the cancellation of the education demonstration in Utrecht (Dutch only).

Young Investigator Award for Gabrielle Laloy-Borgna

Gabrielle has won the technical Young Investigator Award at Euroson 2024 (congress of the European Federation of Ultrasound Societies in Medicine and Biology) with her presentation entitled: “Ultrasound imaging in bones: tissue characterization, anatomical images
and blood flow measurements”.

Ilaria Orsi joined ImPhys as PhD student

Ilaria started her PhD program in the Renaud group about ultrasound imaging inside bones, contributing to the advancement of such non-invasive technique to characterize tissue composition and to quantify blood flow.

First prize for ZhenZhen Wu at the 2024 NWO Biophysics poster awards

ZhenZhen Wu's poster, “Absolute Voltage Imaging in Developing Zebrafish,” won first prize in the 2024 NWO Biophysics poster awards, competing against over 150 posters. The BioPM Poster Prizes are awarded to the best posters presented at the NWO Biophysics Conference, and the winners are selected by a jury. ZhenZhen Wu z.wu-3@tudelft.nl

Enrolment for new courses open on 13 November

The new courses will start from Monday 18 November. Enrolment for these starts from Wednesday 13 November at 08.00! In the second quarter, a new series of courses awaits you. You can find out more on the website. Maybe you already know that you want to attend your favourite course again or maybe you want to discover and try something new; it's all possible. The enrolment moment for the course depends on the day the course takes place. At 08:00 enrolments for Monday's courses open, at 10:00 for Tuesday's courses, at 12:00 for Wednesday's courses, at 14:00 for Thursday's courses and at 16:00 for courses on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Enrolments go fast Enrolment for our courses always runs fast, so don't wait too long or be surprised by a course where spots are still available! Enrolment closes Enrolment closes on Friday 22 November at 16.00.

Contributions of SPTL at the CVS Congress (21-22 November, Utrecht)

On November 21 and 22, the 51st edition of the CVS congress is held in the Railway museum in Utrecht. Members of the Smart Public Transport Lab contribute to the following sessions: Knus in de bus op dinsdag; zijn alle werkdagen nog wel hetzelfde? Thursday, November 21, 16:00-17:30 Julia Bickel, Maxim Meijers and Niels van Oort [abstract] Stedelijkheidsgraden in transportmodellen: Een analyse over de impact van de ruimtelijke omgeving op reisgedrag Thursday, November 21, 16:00-17:30 Janine Grauss, Justin Hogenberg and Niels van Oort [abstract] Van en naar het treinstation: Voorkeuren van reizigers voor gedeelde elektrische micromobiliteit Friday, November 22, 11:30-13:00 Nejc Geržinič, Mark van Hagen, Dorine Duives and Niels van Oort [ abstract ] Gamen maakt de toekomst – Serious gamen voor een optimale mobiliteitsmix Friday, November 22, 11:30-13:00 Tessa Leferink, Niels van Oort and Sander Lenferink [abstract] De verkenning van de potentie van fietsparkeren bij het ov: een casus in Den Haag Madeline Lai, Dorine Duives, Stefan Talen, Nejc Geržinič and Niels van Oort Friday, November 22, 14:00-15:30 [abstract]

A key solution to grid congestion

On behalf of the TU Delft PowerWeb Institute, researchers Kenneth Brunninx and Simon Tindemans are handing over a Position Paper to the Dutch Parliament on 14 November 2024, with a possible solution to the major grid capacity problems that are increasingly cropping up in the Netherlands. The Netherlands is unlikely to meet the 2030 climate targets, and one of the reasons for this is that large industry cannot switch to electricity fast enough, partly because of increasingly frequent problems around grid capacity and grid congestion. In all likelihood, those problems will actually increase this decade before they can decrease, the researchers argue. The solution offered by the TU Delft PowerWeb Institute researchers is the ‘flexible backstop’. With a flexible backstop, the current capacity of the power grid can be used more efficiently without sacrificing safety or reliability. A flexible backstop is a safety mechanism that automatically and quickly reduces the amount of electricity that an electric unit can draw from the grid (an electric charging station or a heat pump) or deliver (a PV installation). It is a small device connected or built into an electrical unit, such as a charging station or heat pump, that ‘communicates’ with the distribution network operator. In case of extreme stress on the network, the network operator sends a signal to the device to limit the amount of power. Germany recently introduced a similar system with electric charging stations. The backstop would be activated only in periods of acute congestion problems and could help prevent the last resort measure, which is cutting off electricity to users. ‘Upgrading the electricity network remains essential, but in practice it will take years. So there is a need for short-term solutions that can be integrated into long-term planning. We, the members of the TU Delft PowerWeb Institute, call on the government, network operators and regulator to explore the flexible backstop as an additional grid security measure,’ they said. The entire Paper can be read here . Kenneth Brunninx Associate Professor at the Faculty of Engineering, Governance and Management, where he uses quantitative models to evaluate energy policy and market design with the aim of reducing CO2 emissions. Simon Tindemans is Associate Professor in the Intelligent Electrical Power Grids group at Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science. His research interests include uncertainty and risk management for power grids. TU Delft PowerWeb Institute is a community of researchers who are investigating how to make renewable energy systems reliable, future proof and accessible to everyone.

25 year celebration of formal collaboration between Delft University of Technology and the University of Campinas

On 25 October 2024 we celebrated 25 years of formal collaboration between Delft University of Technology and the University of Campinas. What began as a project to exchange some students in chemical engineering has now grown to a multifaceted and broad academic collaboration which accumulated into 24 joint research projects (>20 M Euro); 16 advanced courses and 15 Doctors with a Dual Degree PhD. Patricia Osseweijer, TU Delft Ambassador Brazil explained, “We are proud to show and reflect on this special day the added value we created resulting from our joint activities. The lessons we learned demonstrate that especially continuity of funds and availability for exchanges has contributed to joint motivation and building trust which created strong relations. This is the foundation for academic creativity and high-level achievements.” The program presented showcases of Dual Degree projects; research activities and education. It discussed the future objectives and new fields of attention and agree on the next steps to maintain and strengthen the foundation of strong relations. Telma Franco, Professor UNICAMP shared that “joint education and research has substantially benefitted the students, we see that back in the jobs they landed in,” while UNICAMP’s Professor Gustavo Paim Valenca confirmed that “we are keen to extend our collaboration to more engineering disciplines to contribute jointly to global challenges” Luuk van der Wielen highlighted that “UNICAMP and TU Delft provide valuable complementary expertise as well as infrastructures to accelerate research and innovation. Especially our joint efforts in public private partnerships brings great assets” To ensure our future activities both University Boards have launched a unique joint program for international academic leadership. This unique 7-month program will accommodate 12 young professors, 6 from each university. The programme began on 4 November 2024 in Delft, The Netherlands.

POW team wins TU Delft Education Team Award 2024

During the Teaching Academy's Education Day, the awards were presented for Educator of the Year and Education Team Award. The team that developed the Personal Development Weeks (Persoonlijke OntwikkelingsWeek or POW) of the Bachelor Renewal won the award for TU Delft Education Team of the Year.

Scholarships Abroad Week

Receive funding for your time abroad Are you going abroad for your study programme in Semester 2, 2024-2025? Or are you going abroad for a traineeship/thesis/project in 2024-2025? You can receive additional funding for your time abroad. Come join the scholarship abroad presentation sessions to find out more. Presentation for Exchange students 19 November 13:00 – 13:30 in Lecture Hall C – Daniel Bernoulli (ME, 34.A-0-620) 19 November 19:00-19:30 – online in Teams Presentation for Internship/thesis/project students 19 November 13:00 – 13:30 in Lecture Hall B – Isaac Newton (ME, 34.A-0-720) 19 November 19:00-19:30 – online in Teams For more information visit the Student Portal .