Vidi grants for seven leading TU Delft researchers
The Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) has awarded Vidi grants to seven TU Delft scientists. The NWO grant offers them the possibility of developing their own line of research and building their own research group.
TU Delft's Vidi laureates
The harmony of operator algebras
Martijn Caspers (EEMCS, DIAM)
Operator algebras give the mathematical description of quantum mechanical observables, like the place and impulse of small particles. This research develops techniques from harmonic analysis (or wave analysis) to unravel the fine structure of these quantum systems. We expect that exactly these methods enable us to classify them.
Responsibility for resilience in climate adaptation
Neelke Doorn (TBM, Values, Technology and Innovation)
This research is about the responsibility of citizens in climate adaptation policy. Citizens are increasingly expected to take responsibility for resilience to climate change. The researchers will develop an ethical theory to assess to what extent these responsibilities can be distributed in a way that is both fair and effective.
Please, visit the webpage of the Faculty.
Innate knowledge for Deep Learning
Jan van Gemert (EEMCS, Intelligent Systems)
‘Deep learning’ is the engine behind the world’s arms race on artificial intelligence. Deep learning allows a computer to learn from expensive, huge, datasets. Van Gemert will add innate knowledge to deep learning: what is built-in no longer has to be learned, saving valuable training data.
ADMIRE: Large-scale energy storage in geological formations
Hadi Hajibeygi (CEG, Geoscience and Engineering)
Renewable energy (e.g. solar and wind) can be converted to green fuels (e.g. H2 and CH4) to be stored in large amounts (TWh) in subsurface geological formations. Hajibeygi provides a predictive simulation method for safe utilization of subsurface formations under the cyclic injection and production of green fuels.
Clouds blowing in the wind
Louise Nuijens (CEG, Geoscience and Remote Sensing)
Clouds often visualize how the wind blows, but rarely are cloud measurements used to understand how clouds themselves change winds. This project will combine unique measurements with fine-scale simulations to unravel the patterns of wind in many diverse cloud fields. This insight is used to improve weather prediction models.
Insightful analysis of software logs
Sicco Verwer (EEMCS, Intelligent Systems)
Software problems have severe effects on our society. Fortunately, software leaves many traces that can be used to uncover these problems. Software traces are therefore stored in massive log databases. Unfortunately, the tools that provide the insight required to analyse these data do not yet exist. Verwer will rectify this.
Active wake steering within densely spaced wind farms
Jan-Willem van Wingerden (3mE, Delft Center for Systems and Control)
Wind turbines in packed offshore ‘farms’ hinder each other, which lowers their efficiency. Researchers will develop robust control algorithms which actively steers each turbine’s wake away from other turbines. A novel integrated design will simultaneously optimize the operation strategy and farm topology, considerably reducing the cost of wind energy.
About Vidi
Vidi is aimed at excellent researchers who have already carried out several years of successful research following their PhD. The scientists belong to the top ten to twenty per cent of their field. A Vidi grant enables them to do research for a period of five years. Each scientist receives a grant for a maximum of 800,000 euros.
Innovative
The NWO selects the Vidi laureates based on the quality of the researcher, the innovative character of the research, the expected scientific impact of the research proposal and possibilities for knowledge utilisation.