Münster and Twente Universities Foster Scientific Excellence with Collaboration Grant Recipients

Münster and Twente Universities Foster Scientific Excellence with Collaboration Grant Recipients

(IN BRIEF) The Universities of Münster and Twente have announced the recipients of their Collaboration Grants for cross-border research projects. Four teams have been awarded funding to support their innovative projects. Two projects, known as Strategic Collaboration Grants, will receive €80,000 each, jointly funded by the two universities, for a duration of twelve months. The other two projects, Collaboration Grants for Young Researchers, will support bilateral research projects led by PhD students. The grants aim to promote internal start-ups, strengthen research collaborations, and facilitate cross-border cooperation. The selected projects cover diverse areas such as simulating granular materials, controlling cell volume, studying peatland degradation, and investigating two-dimensional heterostructures for solar energy harvesting. The grants provide an opportunity for interdisciplinary research and collaboration between the two universities.

(PRESS RELEASE) ENSCHEDE / MÜNSTER, 3-Jul-2023 — /EuropaWire/ — The managements of the Universities of Münster and Twente are pleased to announce the recipients of this year’s Collaboration Grants. Four teams have been awarded funding to support their cutting-edge research projects, promoting cross-border cooperation and strengthening existing collaborations between the two institutions. These grants not only provide financial support for internal start-ups but also offer the potential to secure additional external funding.

A total of 15 project applications were submitted this year, with eight teams presenting their concepts to the jury through short, five-minute presentations. The jury selected two projects for the Strategic Collaboration Grants, each receiving €80,000 for a duration of twelve months. These grants are jointly funded by the University of Münster and the University of Twente. In addition, two more teams were awarded the Collaboration Grants for Young Researchers, focusing on bilateral research projects led by PhD students. These grants provide experienced researchers with up to €50,000 per year for up to four years to support the supervision of junior researchers.

The awarded projects are as follows:

Strategic Collaboration Grants:

“Model Order Reduction for Discrete Particle Systems” – Dr. Stephan Rave (Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science, Institute for Analysis and Numerics, Münster) and Associate Professor Dr. Thomas Weinhart (represented by Dr. Anthony Thornton, professor of Granular Materials within the Department of Thermal and Fluid Engineering at the UT). This project aims to combine the open-source codes MercuryDPM (UT) and pyMOR (UM) to simulate the behavior of granular materials. The integration of these codes will significantly reduce the time and resources required for experimentation in industries such as chemical, pharmaceutical, agri-food, energy, high-tech manufacturing, mining, and construction.

“Novel tools to study and steer the volume of living cells” – Professor Dr. Bart Jan Ravoo (Organic Chemistry Institute and Center for Soft Nanoscience, UM), Professor Dr. Jeroen Leijten, and Assistant Professor Dr. Julieta Paez (Faculty of Science and Technology, Developmental Bioengineering Group). This project aims to develop a groundbreaking photo-chemical approach to precisely control the volume of living cells in three dimensions. By gaining a deeper understanding of the interaction between cells and their surrounding extracellular matrix, the researchers aim to advance healthcare treatments, tissue engineering approaches, and the study of tissue imbalances and diseases.

Collaboration Grants for Young Researchers:

3. “Quantifying and modelling peat breathing with satellite radar data” – Professor Dr. Hanna Meyer (Institute of Landscape Ecology, Münster) and Associate Professor Dr. Ling Chang (Faculty of Geo-Information Sciences and Earth Observation, Twente). This project focuses on using satellite remote sensing, specifically radar technology, to study peatland degradation and carbon release. By integrating satellite and in-situ observations with machine learning techniques, the researchers aim to develop a model that accurately captures current and future trends in peatland carbon loss, contributing to climate change mitigation.

“Role of contacts in two-dimensional van der Waals heterostructures for solar energy harvesting applications” – Professor Dr. Ursula Wurstbauer (Institute of Physics and Center for Soft Nanoscience, Münster) and Professor Dr. Rebecca Saive (Faculty of Science and Technology, Inorganic Materials Science Group, Twente). This project focuses on investigating and improving nearly atomically thin two-dimensional heterostructures for solar cells. The goal is to develop sustainable materials that promote local and renewable energy sources while minimizing material usage and enabling easy recyclability.
These projects build upon the successful collaboration between Münster and Twente Universities and highlight the value of cross-border cooperation in driving innovative research. The interdisciplinary nature of these projects allows for new research collaborations and face-to-face discussions, further enhancing the scientific value of the Collaboration Grants.

For colleagues interested in applying for a Collaboration Grant or those who have recently received one, it is crucial to have a well-defined research topic and a specific plan of work that aligns with the available funding. The grants provide an excellent opportunity to explore interdisciplinary research and establish new partnerships, ultimately advancing scientific knowledge and fostering impactful discoveries.

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SOURCE: University of Twente