reading time: 3 min

Fighting wildfires with AI and simulations

Many Mediterranean countries suffer destructive and even deadly fires every year. For example, in August 2023 Greece saw much of its native forests incinerated by the immensely destructive Dadia wildfires. How will we protect people, nature, and infrastructure? Konstantinos Karalidis, shortened to Kostas, used his MSc thesis at the Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment to investigate the possibility of using AI-enhanced fire detection and prediction models. “This is something which can be done now, not some utopian vision.”

reading time: 5 min

CSI: Heritage – the damage detective of the architectural world

Renovation works on the Oude Kerk in Delft, an important piece of architectural heritage, revealed an unwelcome surprise. Salt crystals were found on the lower section of the tomb of Admiral Tromp. Such crystals can, under certain conditions, cause serious damage. One possible procedure is to immerse the entire affected section in water. But this monument is too massive and too valuable to risk mistakes. What to do? Consulted associate professor Barbara Lubelli: “If you truly want to protect your heritage, you need to research before you intervene.”

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reading time: 4 min

Climate change greatly increases the risk of flooding. For his master’s thesis, Jonas Lechner used a smart model to study the role households can play in reducing flood risks in coastal cities. It turns out they can play a big role. His research earned him the title of best graduate of the Faculty of Technology, Policy and Management.

Staying dry thanks to government and the public

Climate change greatly increases the risk of flooding. For his master’s thesis, Jonas Lechner used a smart model to study the role households can play in reducing flood risks in coastal cities. It turns out they can play a big role. His research earned him the title of best graduate of the Faculty of Technology, Policy and Management.

reading time: 8 min

New heat pump material to combat global warming

Current coolant gases from air conditioners and fridges either contribute a significant amount to global warming, or otherwise they are dangerous to use. Bowei Huang and Michael Maschek from the Delft company Magneto are working on a safe and environmental friendly alternative for cooling: a unique solid material for heat pumps.

reading time: 4 min

Greening steel: it can be done!

Steel is indispensable in our modern society. Unfortunately, its production releases a lot of CO2. Due to steel’s large-scale functionality, we have not managed to find a good alternative yet. But we can solve this problem, thanks to scientific research and technological developments.

reading time: 4 min

Tracing waves to find phantom plastic

Ridding the oceans of plastic waste is a huge undertaking which would be significantly helped if the location of the plastic waste could be ascertained with some accuracy. Wave expert Ton van den Bremer is using waves and satellites to track down the ‘phantom’ plastic that is polluting our oceans.

reading time: 6 min

Cleaner aviation: the logistical puzzle

Improving the sustainability of aviation is not only a technological challenge, but also a logistical one. For example, using cleaner fuels for aviation calls for sufficient facilities at airfields. Researcher Bruno Santos is exploring the impact that new types of aircraft and fuels will have on logistical operations. It is hoped that this knowledge will accelerate investments aimed at improving sustainability.

reading time: 5 min

The magic of catalysis for CO2 conversion

Catalysis is the driving force behind the production of fertiliser, which allowed the world population to triple over the past seven decades. And now, it will be just as essential in tackling the global challenge of CO2 emissions.

reading time: min

The landslide forecast coming to you from space

Watching time: 12 min

ESP Lab - Lucia Beloqui Larumbe, Power Electronics

Four designers from Delft University of Technology travelled to Lake Victoria, Tanzania and partnered with Sagar Energy Solutions to design a solar-powered fishing lamp for the night fishing industry. This effort aims to put an end to the reliance on dangerous and expensive kerosene lanterns.

Watching time: 12 min

ESP Lab - Peter Palensky, Digital Technologies

Four designers from Delft University of Technology travelled to Lake Victoria, Tanzania and partnered with Sagar Energy Solutions to design a solar-powered fishing lamp for the night fishing industry. This effort aims to put an end to the reliance on dangerous and expensive kerosene lanterns.

Watching time: 12 min

ESP Lab – Miro Zeman, Photovoltaics

Four designers from Delft University of Technology travelled to Lake Victoria, Tanzania and partnered with Sagar Energy Solutions to design a solar-powered fishing lamp for the night fishing industry. This effort aims to put an end to the reliance on dangerous and expensive kerosene lanterns.

reading time: 3, 5 min

The new interior wall: demountable, sustainable and pure

When Bob Geldermans finalised his doctoral thesis in 2020 on demountable partitioning of circular and natural materials, he did not yet know that he would be able to continue his research with a number of like-minded partners. He is now testing and further improving his design concept, which can make a major contribution to sustainability of the building industry.

Collection Climate Action

reading time: 5 min

Compact nature for the compact city

Urban dwellers need green public spaces. To put oxygen in their lungs and improve their mental health. To capture carbon dioxide and mitigate extreme weather. To ensure balance between the built and the natural environments. But in densely built-up cities there is little space for greenery at ground level. So, what can be done about this? For his graduation project, Menno de Roode studied and designed compact urban public green spaces: “Following nature as far as possible enables you to avoid unnecessary maintenance and management.”

reading time: 5 min

Monitoring buildings to boost performance

Professor Laure Itard is working to identify solutions for energy waste and faulty indoor climate within buildings. The key question facing the recently-launched Brains 4 Buildings (B4B) research programme is: how can artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning contribute to improving sustainability and comfort? Living

Collection Climate Action, Collection Climate Engineering

reading time: 6 min

Climate technology you hope you’ll never need

Could clouds be modified to slow global warming? Cloud expert Herman Russchenberg is investigating climate intervention but hopes his theories will never be put to the test.

Collection Climate Action, Collection Climate Engineering

reading time: 6 min

Heading for space to save the Earth

A membrane the size of the European continent. Together with other scientists, TU Delft researcher Jeannette Heiligers is currently exploring the possibilities for positioning a gigantic solar shield in space to combat global warming. A huge intervention which is not without its own issues.

reading time: 4 min

The added value of closing resource flows by communities at the neighbourhood level

Residents of IJburg were keen to participate in sustainable development of the new urban district of Strandeiland. How should they approach this in practice? Els Leclercq and Mo Smit offered them some guiding principles with the ‘Value Flower Model’ and ‘Value Flower Field Maps’, the results of their ‘Waardevolle Wijken’ research into exemplary case-studies of community-based circularity initiatives on the scale of neighbourhoods and urban districts.

reading time: 10 min

Innovation needs a place to grow

Mitigating the impact of climate change, facilitating the energy transition, solving the housing crisis… The built environment needs to address pretty big challenges, which ask for innovative solutions. Students at the Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment have plenty of good ideas to create the necessary innovations, but how can their ideas successfully evolve?

Collection Climate Action

reading time: min

From the plane into the train

Few travellers combine plane and train: too much uncertainty, too much hassle. What needs to be done to get passengers on the train for a transfer before or after a long flight? Delft Design master's student Rosa Hendrikx researched how passenger service can be improved, designed a service to combine international train journeys and flights, and graduated cum laude

Collection Climate Action

reading time: 5 min

Sand on the horizon

It’s a decade since the creation of the Sand Motor, an artificial sand bank off the North Sea coast. What happens to a natural system following human intervention on such a large scale.

reading time: 4 min

Zooming in on and out of a circular region

Like the energy transition, the transition to a circular economy impacts the way we use space. So how should we go about planning structural reuse and value retention? For students on the Urbanism Master's track, this is not merely a theoretical question. A range of spatial strategies have recently been put forward for a circular South Holland region.

reading time: min

From the plane into the train

reading time: 5 min

Sand on the horizon

reading time: 3 min

Fighting wildfires with AI and simulations

reading time: 5 min

CSI: Heritage – the damage detective of the architectural world

leestijd: 7 min

Supercomputing power for racing cars and quantum states

reading time: min

How does your heart work? A digital twin holds all the answers

reading time: 3, 5 min

Is leasing a building façade feasible business?

reading time: 5 min

Responsible and affordable building in vulnerable delta regions

How the aviation industry can leave behind fewer climatic trails

reading time: 4, 5 min

Entrepeneurial thinking is a must for innovation

leestijd: 7 min

Sustainable artificial intelligence: from ChatGPT to green AI

leestijd: 7 min

'Elderly' first Dutch nanosatellite celebrates fifteenth birthday

reading time: 7 min

Knit to find the perfect fit

reading time: 3 min

The next steps towards circular renovation

leestijd: 7 min

An All-In Approach to Electrical Engineering

leestijd: 7 min

Lunar Zebro: students take aim at the Moon

Is there life elsewhere in our solar system?

reading time: 6 min

Mars is not a back-up option

reading time: min

The science and “alchemy” of making sustainable steels

reading time: 5 min

Climate neuroscience for aviation

reading time: 6 min

An additional wind turbine out of thin air

reading time: 5 min

How do you make an open and paved urban space climate-proof?
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