News archive
31 January 2023
Phil Vardon appointed as professor of Energy Geomechanics
30 January 2023
Without mines, no electric vehicles. ‘Sweden’s discovery of rare earths fantastic for transition
13 October 2022
Volcanic rocks solving CO2 problems
What if we could capture CO2 from the atmosphere and permanently store it under the ground in the form of solid minerals? MSc student Elara Redondo Garcia didn’t think twice when she had to opportunity to go to Iceland, where they are researching CO2 mineral trapping.
22 August 2022
20 million EU Grant for research underground heat storage
The EU aims to have a net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) economy by 2050. At present, heating and cooling represent around 50% of the final energy demand in Europe and are for a large part supplied by fossil fuel derived energy. Large scale seasonal heat storage is a key strategy to decarbonize heating in order to achieve EU ambitions, because sustainable sources like geothermal and solar provide a lot of heat in summer, while we need it in winter. The PUSH-IT consortium receives this Horizon Europe grant to demonstrate and develop such heat storage systems. PUSH-IT stands for Piloting Underground Seasonal Heat Storage In geothermal reservoirs.
17 June 2022
Well-behaved piles
What happens to a foundation pile once it is in the ground? How much weight can a foundation pile sustain? And furthermore, what is the effect of the different soil layers on the pile? PhD Kevin Duffy is researching the behaviour of foundation piles in typical Dutch soil conditions. His goal? Not only to keep safety levels and standards high, but also to make a contribution towards reducing CO2 emissions associated with the production and installation of these piles.