Process & Energy
Realising significant scientific impact
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Delft University of Technology
Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime
and Materials Engineering (3mE)
Intensified Reaction and
Separation Systems (IRS)
Energy Technology (ET)
Fluid Mechanics (FM)
Engineering
Thermodynamics (ETH)
Living and working in Delft
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Delft University of Technology
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Overview
• The European Leuven Network: consisting of a
TU Delft, founded in 1842 by King William II, is
limited number of prominent European technical
the oldest and largest University of Technology
universities who work together in permanent
in The Netherlands, offering 15 bachelor and 33
education and research partnerships.
masters programmes to over 19,000 bachelor,
master and PhD students, 16 per cent of whom
For more information on University collaborations
are international students. The University
in Europe and the rest of the world please visit:
comprises 3,380 academic staff of whom 437 are
www.tudelft.nl/en/current/collaboration-between-
professors, and in 2014 it was ranked 42nd in the
universities
The World University rankings and was 95th in
the 2013 QS World University rankings. TU Delft
Collaboration is an essential aspect of the
is a multifaceted institution offering education
University’s approach and helps the faculties to
and carrying out research in technical sciences
build on the foundations of the University’s strong
at an internationally recognised level. Education,
identity and reputation. TU Delft aims to be a
research and design are strongly oriented towards
breeding ground for the cutting-edge technological
applicability. TU Delft develops technologies for
scientific developments that will meet the great
future generations, focusing on sustainability,
societal challenges of our age.
safety and economic vitality. At TU Delft you will
The University comprises eight faculties, namely:
work in an environment where technical sciences
• Aerospace Engineering;
and society converge. TU Delft comprises
• Applied Sciences; eight faculties within which there are exclusive
• Architecture and the Built Environment;
laboratories, research institutes and departments.
• Civil Engineering and Geosciences;
TU Delft cooperates with many other educational
• Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and
and research institutions, both in The Netherlands
Computer Science; and abroad, enjoying numerous contacts with
• Industrial Design Engineering;
governments, trade associations, consultancies,
• Mechanical, Maritime and Materials Engineering;
industry and small and medium- sized companies.
• Technology, Policy and Management.
Notable partners include:
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TU Federation: combining the strength of the
The Department of Process & Energy sits within
three technical universities in The Netherlands;
the Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime and Materials
TU Delft, University of Twente and TU Eindhoven;
Engineering (3mE).
• The IDEA League: partnering ETH Zurich, Aachen
and Chalmers;
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Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime
and Materials Engineering (3mE)
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Overview
Delft PhD programme provides a coherent and
The Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime and
integrated curriculum of scholarly and doctoral
Materials Engineering (3mE) currently comprises
education for excellent students. The 3mE
six departments, four of which (Precision and
Graduate School programme aims to support the
Microsystems Engineering, Process and Energy,
development of scholarly knowledge, personal
BioMechanical Engineering and Maritime and
generic competencies and prospective professional
Transport Technology) are directly linked to practice
development for future academic and non-
and to the strengths of the industrial economy,
academic career paths.
both today and in the future. The two remaining
departments (Delft Centre for Systems & Control,
The faculty aims to educate dedicated engineers
and Materials Science and Engineering) are
and PhD graduates and conducts breakthrough
primarily concerned with fundamental research and
scientific research in the fields of mechanical
the development of their respective disciplines. The
engineering, maritime engineering and materials
faculty’s educational activities revolve around three
science. The faculty aspires to being an excellent
BSc programmes, each of which offers a choice of
example of a dynamic and innovative faculty that
minor subjects geared towards three distinct types
pursues a leading position in Europe and makes a
of engineer: specialist/researcher; designer and
direct contribution to the economy and society.
technical manager or entrepreneur.
For more information on 3mE please visit:
www.3me.tudelft.nl/en
The BSc programmes can be followed by any
one of six highly challenging MSc programmes
based on established fields of research. The TU
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Intensified Reaction and
Separation Systems (IRS)
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Overview
electric fields, plasma, light or acoustic fields)
The IRS Group is internationally recognized as the
account for a significant part of our research.
world leader in the field of Process Intensification,
“Perfect chemical reactors” are studied under
due both to its research activities and its trend-
the ERC Advanced Investigator Grant of Prof.
setting publications, including the world’s first
Stankiewicz, whereby molecular orientation and
book in the field that was recently translated
activation are locally controlled by means of electric
into Chinese. The IRS Chair is the founder of
or electromagnetic (laser, microwave, light) fields.
the European Process Intensification Centre
In another project granted by the Bill and Melinda
(EUROPIC, www.europic- centre.eu), currently
Gates Foundation, waste biomass is converted
comprising twenty leading chemical companies
tar-free to pure synthesis gas in an innovative
from Europe, USA and China.
microwave plasma reactor. An important element
of the IRS Group’s activities is the application of
The main objective of our research is the
fundamental concepts of process intensification for
development of fundamentally new concepts
improved control of the crystallization processes.
of “perfect” chemical reactors and separation
Fundamental control of crystal nucleation through
systems. We develop new methods and related
molecular association processes, templates and
equipment to influence and control molecular
alternative energies are investigated. Controlled
interactions (orientation, forces and energies)
crystallization under the influence of external fields
in systems in which such interaction plays an
such as plasma, electric fields, laser light and
important role, such as reactions, distillation or
ultrasound is also studied.
crystallization. The research involves a combination
of experimental and modelling work and spans all
The research profile of the IRS Group, which
relevant length scales, from molecule to process
focuses on intensified equipment with molecular-
plant.
level control using alternative forms of energy, is
unique on the international scale. The expertise
Intensification of and improved molecular control
in the field of applied crystallization is also unique
of chemical reactions and separations by means
within the Netherlands.
of alternative energy forms (such as microwaves,
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Energy Technology (ET)
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Overview
PhD and postdocs, develops new technologies
One of the big problems that society will face in
for power generation based on renewable
the coming decades is the provision of a clean,
energy sources such as biomass and synthetic
sustainable and reliable energy supply for the ever-
fuels. Examples are highly efficient supercritical
growing world population. Future energy supply
power cycles with CO2 as working fluid, biomass
will probably be based on a mix of several energy
gasification, and high temperature fuel cells, which
sources, such as solar, wind, biomass, fossil and
can be used to generate power from fuel and fuel
nuclear power. Due to the inherent intermittency
from power (reversible fuel cells). A large part of
of clean power generating technologies such as
the research is performed with the help of state-
solar and wind, there will be a growing need for
of-the-art large-scale experimental facilities, such
large-scale energy storage technologies. The only
as a 100 kW gasifier and a fuel cell laboratory. In
realistic option for large-scale energy storage will
addition to the experimental work, a substantial
be in the form of chemicals (synthetic fuels).
amount of computational work is performed by
The energy technology group, consisting of five
the group on flow, turbulence and turbulent heat
permanent staff members and approximately 20
transfer.
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Fluid Mechanics (FM)
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Overview
Experimental and computational studies are made
The Fluid Mechanics section at Delft University of
of systems at different scales, from lab scale to
Technology was founded by professor J.M. Burgers
industrial scale. Detailed investigations are made
in 1918, as one of the first chairs in the World to
using laser diagnostic techniques (such as particle
be dedicated to this field. For almost a century, the
image velocimetry, laser-induced fluorescence,
laboratory has pioneered applied and fundamental
and spectroscopic methods) and using advanced
fluid mechanics and has gained international
computational models, such as large-eddy
recognition in the fields of turbulence and
simulation and direct numerical simulation. The
experimental fluid mechanics. At present, the staff
programme responds to a substantial movement
of the section consists of two full-time professors,
within society and industry, towards, for example,
Prof. Jerry Westerweel and Prof. Dirk Roekaerts;
more environmentally friendly combustion
a part-time professor, Ruud Henkes, two associate
processes avoiding the formation of NOx and
professors and five assistant professors. Their
particulates (soot) in industrial combustion
research and teaching covers a wide range
systems (furnaces, gas turbines and engines),
of areas in fluid mechanics: e.g. microfluidics,
and for the development of energy efficient
multiphase flows, heat transfer, turbulence,
processes (e.g., through drag reduction). The
cardiovascular flow, combustion, measurement
activities in microfluidic flows concentrate on
and simulation techniques. This work is performed
the investigation of small-scale cardiovascular
together with about 20 PhD candidates.
flows, flow geometries with complex boundary
The research is aimed at fundamental aspects
conditions (such as micro flagella), and micro-scale
of flows, but always with a clear connection to
multiphase flows.
a practical application or process in industry.
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Engineering Thermodynamics (ETH)
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Overview
understanding of the relationship between
It is a major challenge for engineers to provide
microscopic structure and macroscopic response.
the world with an increasing standard of living
This is a challenging task, because complex fluid
while significantly reducing the resulting ecological
rheology depends sensitively on both material
footprint. Engineering thermodynamics is a
constitution and deformation mode. More applied
crucial tool for meeting this challenge, as it is
research in our group is carried out in the field of
indispensable to the development of energy-
refrigeration and heat pumps. We aim to deliver
efficient processes (e.g. energy conversion
a contribution to more sustainable solutions for
processes and separation processes). Our mission
heating and cooling processes both in industry
is to apply and develop methods, tools and
and in the building sector, and to develop solar
processes that will lead to more energy efficient
energy supported thermodynamic systems that use
processes in industry. This requires a detailed
natural operating fluids and low temperature heat
understanding of the thermodynamic and transport
wherever possible. Knowledge of the molecular
properties of (complex) fluids, which are governed
and thermodynamic properties of the fluids
by interactions on the microscopic and mesoscopic
involved is essential for this task: non-equilibrium
scale. Molecular thermodynamics, molecular
thermodynamics plays a crucial part in finding the
simulation and mesoscopic modeling are important
state with minimal entropy production and thus
research areas in our group as it is often very
optimal energy efficiency.
difficult to access the required small length scales
experimentally. This molecular viewpoint is often
As it is often difficult to access the molecular
applied in the context of a distinct research goal
scale experimentally, molecular simulations and
or a process that takes place inside a machine or
molecular thermodynamics are very important tools
device, e.g. optimising the structure of a solvent,
to obtain this fundamental understanding. A key
nanoporous hosts, or liquid crystal for carbon
objective of this research is to develop and apply
dioxide removal from gaseous streams.
these approaches in such a way that they lead
to accurate predictions for macroscopic systems.
The theory of non-equilibrium thermodynamics
Molecular simulations and theory are used to
is used to find the state of minimal entropy
investigate the properties of systems of industrial
production of given processes, i.e. this is the state
interest (e.g. chemical and process industry), in
in which fewer resources are wasted. Finding
close collaboration with experimentalists (both
this state of minimal entropy production requires
in and outside Delft), theoreticians (both in and
parameters that can be obtained from simulations
outside Delft), and industry. Examples of these are:
and theory that is applied at the molecular level.
Another important research area is the flow of
1 transport and adsorption of guest molecules
complex fluids such as emulsions, suspensions,
(e.g. hydrocarbons, CO2, N2, water, alcohols)
and slurries, as they are ubiquitous in industrial
in nanoporous nanomaterials (e.g. zeolites,
processes. There is high industrial demand
for accurate constitutive relations to describe
metal-organic frameworks, carbon nanotubes);
2 s elf-assembly of nanocrystals (metal or
their deformation and flow. When fundamental
semiconductor, in solution or in vacuum, capped
understanding is lacking (which is often the
or uncapped);
case) industrial practitioners fall back on ad hoc
3m
echanical properties of gas hydrates;
fitting functions, which have a limited range of
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eveloping predictive models for
applicability and no predictive power.
multicomponent transport coefficients in fluids;
5 the development of accurate descriptions of
Our goal is to provide novel, predictive
(coupled) transport of heat and mass in zeolite
constitutive relationships based on a fundamental
membranes and other systems.
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Living and working in Delft
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The Kingdom of The Netherlands consists of
twelve provinces in the Northwest of Europe
(commonly known as The Netherlands) as
well as three islands in the Caribbean. The
Netherlands, with a population of over 16 million,
is a constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary
system. Geographically, it is a low-lying country,
with about 20 per cent of its area and 21 per cent
of its population located below sea level, and
50 per cent of its land lying less than one meter
above sea level. This small nation boasts a wealth
of cultural heritage and is famous for its painters,
windmills, tulips, clogs and notoriously flat lands.
and research centre. Today, it revels in the ‘High-
Today, international trade is still the main motor of
tech’ tag due to the abundance of technology-
economic growth. The Netherlands is the sixteenth
based institutions and organisations close to
largest economy in the world and one of the ten
and often involved with the University. Built on
leading exporting nations. As a modern European
reclaimed marshland, a ‘polder’ area, Delft borders
country, it preserves its highly international
on the agricultural centre of the Randstad. The
character and is known for its liberal mentality. As a
city of Delft enjoys a worldwide reputation thanks
founding member of EU and NATO, and as the host
to its connection with Johannes Vermeer, the
to the International Court of Justice in The Hague,
master of light and the creator of ‘The Girl with
The Netherlands is at the heart of international
the Pearl Earring’, while the world famous Delft
cooperation. Its small size, its welcoming attitude to
Blue earthenware and the Royal House relive its
travellers and its many sights make it a unique and
glorious past as you wander along canals and past
easily discoverable destination.
churches, mansions and courtyards. This university
town also offers canal tours, museums, markets
Dutch society
and many pubs and restaurants. The Old and New
Dutch society is multicultural and focused on
Church and the ‘Prinsenhof’ are a testament to the
international relations, thanks to the merchant and
strong connection between Delft and the Dutch
exploring spirit of the Dutch as well as to the influx
Royal Family.
of immigrants. The country is the birthplace of
Nobel Prize winners and controversial philosophers
Taxation
as well as ground-breaking artists and scientists.
Certain categories of international staff can receive
The United Nations has ranked The Netherlands
tax exemption on approximately 30 per cent of their
as the fourth happiest nation on earth, with the
gross salary. This is to compensate for the extra
happiest children (as ranked by UNICEF). The
costs they incur in living abroad, such as having
benefits of living and working in The Netherlands
to rent temporary accommodation, etc. In principle,
include a satisfying balance between life and
the 30 per cent rule applies to foreign staff who
work, a high standard of living, an excellent
have been specifically recruited and who have a
education and health system, and a strong sense
formal contract of employment in The Netherlands.
of community.
More information
About Delft
For more information on moving to Delft, including
Delft is a compact, historic town between
housing, healthcare, schools, transport, banking
Rotterdam and The Hague in the province of
and leisure please see: www.tudelft.nl/en/about-
South-Holland. It forms part of the ‘Randstad’, the
tu-delft/working-at-tu-delft/tu-delft-as-employer/
urban agglomeration in the western part of The
international-candidates/
Netherlands and is the nation’s main educational
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Colophon
Production
Text: Department Process & Energy
Photography: Twan de Veer Photography – www.twandeveer.nl
Lay-out: Liesbeth van Dam (Media Solutions)
©TU Delft
April 2015
Delft University
of Technology
Faculty Mechanical, Maritime and Materials Engineering (3mE)
Process & Energy
Leeghwaterstraat 39
2628 CB Delft
The Netherlands
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