HomeEducationDoctorate (PhD & EngD)TGS Award 2016 for Rolf Postma

TGS Award 2016 for Rolf Postma

The 2016 TGS Research Honours PhD Award for Twente Doctoral Top Talent has been awarded to Rolf Postma, researcher with the Faculty of Science and Technology.

He will receive the award on Monday 5 September at the official opening ceremony for the start of the UT academic year. The prize also consists of a € 2,500 cheque that he may use for studies or exchange programs over the course of his research.

Postma (24) is researcher as part of the catalysis group of chemical technology: “I do research into the synthesising of ammonia using plasma catalysis. Ammonia is an important basic chemical substance, which is produced at high temperatures and under very high pressures. By using plasma, we can instead perform this process at room temperature and ambient pressure and completely electrically-controlled. However, this plasma process is not energy-efficient. My idea is to significantly increase the efficiency of the process by using a catalyst. Because this is a fully electrical process and can easily be switched on and off, it may potentially be used for the temporary storage of renewable energy. As soon as this energy is needed, the ammonia can be used, either in a gas turbine or in a fuel cell, to reclaim it. As such, my idea will be able to contribute to the large-scale use of renewable energy sources in our current society.”

“Imagine: it’s a beautiful day and a lot of people are heading to the beach. People would then not be using a lot of energy in their homes, because they are outside. However, wind turbines and solar panels throughout the country are still working hard and produce excess energy, which causes overvoltage in the system. If you could turn that excess energy into chemical energy to convert back into electrical energy later on in the day to, say, turn on the lights, or power the washing machine, that would be a wonderful source for a great amount of renewable energy for society. It is a sustainable way of storing renewable energy both in the short and in the long term, and to absorb peaks in the electricity system.”

Background of the TGS Award

6 candidates total presented their ideas on 28 June 2016 aiming to convince the TGS Award jury that theirs was the best proposal. The students all received six months’ worth of a TGS Bridging Grant (a maximum of six months of bridging after their studies, at a value of six months’ worth of research assistant/PhD candidate salary) to allow them to write their proposals. The six candidates were selected from twenty applications in total after having successfully completed the two-round selection procedure. Same as last year, the candidates came from all different faculties. The winner was chosen by a jury led by Miko Elwenspoek. The other jurors were Mireille Claessens, Bernard Geurts, Fokko Jan Dijksterhuis, Peter Apers and Petra De Weerd-Nederhof, and they were supported by Anne Dijkstra. They judged three different elements: the research proposal, external reviews (two for each proposal), and presentation and questioning. Each candidate was offered a writing workshop geared towards developing their research proposal, as well as a presenting workshop, and four out of 6 candidates participated in the Research Honours master’s degree excellence scheme. As far as we know, each of the six candidates will continue to pursue their PhDs at the UT.

Call for next edition of the TGS Award

The selection procedure for the TGS Award 2017 has since started: the deadlines are 15 September 2016 and 15 January 2017. The sign-up forms for the next round may be downloaded here. The eligibility criteria have been included on the form and can also be found on the website. Please note: the Award is only for candidates who are currently working towards a master’s degree at the UT (in order to better integrate the master’s and PhD tracks).

drs. J.G.M. van den Elshout (Janneke)
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