Two new tenure-trackers to work on the energy issue
Within the 'Computational sciences for energy research' programme of Shell, NWO and FOM, two tenure-track proposals have been awarded funding. Two female top researchers will use computational sciences to answer as yet unexplored research questions in the area of energy. Their work can therefore contribute to an answer to the energy issue.
At FOM Institute DIFFER Paola Diomede will do research into CO2-neutral fuels. For these fuels CO2 is converted into CO and O2 with the help of plasma. How that happens is strongly dependent on the way in which the CO2 molecules pick up energy from the plasma. Diomede will investigate the process using computer simulations. The project is called 'Fast and accurate computational approaches to molecular dissociation in non-equilibrium plasmas: the case for CO2 dissociation'.
"I look forward to starting this project. By working in synergy with the experimentalists at DIFFER, I hope to give insight in this promising technology that will help to reduce the environmental problems caused by CO2," says Diomede. "I can use the experience gained during the years I spent working with plasma modelling to help achieve major scientific advancements in a field that has a strong need for advanced computational techniques."
At Utrecht University Mariëtte Wolthers will start her project 'Bridging scales: computing the dynamics of mineral dissolution and growth at the atomic-to-continuum scale in carbonate rocks'. Wolthers wants to make models of the dissolution and growth of carbonate minerals (chalk). More than half of the oil and gas reserves in the world are locked up in massive carbonate rock layers. Such models are therefore needed to find new ways of extracting these supplies of oil and gas. In addition the models will have far wider applications: for example optimising the CO2 storage underground or counteracting the scale in pipelines. "With this new position I can set up a new research group to answer fundamental questions about the stability of geological materials", says Wolthers.
Commitment
The tenure-trackers could choose their own research institution or institute in the Netherlands where their research will take place. A long-term commitment is requested from both the candidate and the host institute so that a sustainable investment in computational sciences in the area of energy can be realised. During the selection of the candidates strict criteria therefore applied: the candidates had to be 'professorable'. If they successfully complete their tenure-track period of five years they will be given a tenured appointment as an assistant professor within the host institution. The ambition is that in the near future the tenure-track candidates will develop as researchers and become associate professors. To give the tenure-track candidates a flying start a PhD project for a FOM PhD student is part of the award.
CSER
The programme 'Computational sciences for energy research' (CSER) is a public-private partnership between Shell, NWO and FOM. The aim of the programme is to make a sustainable investment in the computational sciences in the Netherlands in the area of Chemistry (NWO CW), Earth and Life sciences (NWO ALW), Physical Sciences (NWO EW), Physics (FOM) and the Technical Sciences (STW). The tenure-track programme is part of the CSER initiative and has a budget of 6.7 million Euros. Within the CSER initiative a total of 52 PhD projects have ready started. The research programmes 'CO2-neutral fuels' and 'Uncertainty reduction in smart energy systems' are also part of the CSER initiative.
Further information about the CSER programme can be found on the FOM website.
Contact
Martijn de Jager, FOM Office (for questions about the CSER initiative), +31 30 600 1273
Paola Diomede, DIFFER, +31 30 609 6999
Mariëtte Wolthers, Utrecht University, +31 30 253 5042