Projects

Human parainfluenza viruses (hPIVs) are a major cause of severe respiratory disease in (very) young children and the immunocompromised. hPIVs are the second main cause of hospitalization due to acute respiratory tract infection in children under five (respiratory syncytial virus ranks first). There are no clinically approved vaccines or antivirals available against hPIVs to prevent or treat these infections. Our group recently isolated ...

It is well known that SiPV modules in the field do not have a performance of 100 %. The dominant factor in energy yield losses is typically the module temperature of operation being significantly higher than under Standard Test Conditions. The reduced open circuit voltage of cells with increasing temperature leads indirectly to a lower nominal power. Another origin of energy losses can be the nonuniformities between cells (leading to current ...

Fat crystallization plays a critical role in determining the macroscopic properties of fat containing food products, such as chocolate, butter and margarine. However, most of the currently used techniques to monitor fat crystallization are off-line techniques, while on-line techniques could have considerable financial benefits by avoiding expensive rework or disposal of out-of-specification products. The aim of this PhD research was therefore ...

In a context of customization, current assembly system configurations typically result in suboptimal use of space and capex, as (1) they are not continuously operating at full potential (e.g., volume changes due to product growth, market fluctuations or end-of-life) and (2) they need to be drastically and regularly redesigned (eg new products or volume changes). Although Reconfigurable Manufacturing Systems (RMS) were proposed in 1999, much ...

The overall aim of sEEnergies is to quantify and operationalise the potentials for energy efficiency (EE) in buildings, transport and industry, combining this bottom-up knowledge with temporal and spatial analyses to develop an innovative, holistic and research-based EE-modelling approach going beyond current state-of-the-art science based knowledge and methodologies. Because the changes in one energy sector can contribute to impacts in ...

The edges of long bones that meet in a joint are covered with articular cartilage, a highly specialized tissue that protects the epiphyses from the friction and compression forces exerted in a joint. The joint surface cartilage can be damaged due to injury, disease or chronic conditions. Unfortunately, the articular cartilage has limited healing potential and defects in the articular surface can progress into the underlying subchondral bone. ...