|
|
| Goodbye to Hans Geerlings |
On June 1, Hans Geerlings said farewell to TU Delft and e-Refinery due to his retirement.
He became a part-time professor at Delft University of Technology in 2007, alongside his position at Shell. He left Shell in 2020 and continued as a part-time professor in Delft in the research area of CO2 capture and subsequent conversion into solar fuels or minerals. Hans also contributed to and supervised many student projects and was a highly valued lecturer. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
We asked Hans some questions to look back on his time at e-Refinery:
Can you briefly describe what your research at TU Delft was about?
"My main research interest is related to synthesis of solar fuels. I have been working in this field for about 20 years. Naturally, synthesis of solar fuels is at the heart of the e-refinery. The idea is to produce relevant molecules for application as fuels or chemicals, which are essentially CO2-neutral. The latter conditions should also hold for hydrocarbon products, which yield CO2 upon combustion.
One way to ensure CO2-neutrality is to capture CO2 from the environment. Using solar energy, this captured CO2 can be converted in the desired product. In general many different process schemes (using electrochemical and/or thermal conversions) can be envisaged, which might be able to do the job. One question, which is continuously on my mind is related to scalability. Can a specific process be scaled up to such a level that meaningfull deployment becomes feasible? In my view this is a crucial question...."
What has your involvement in e-Refinery meant for your research and vice versa?
"The e-refinery naturally requires cooperation of many different disciplines, each of which is unable to achieve a real breakthrough by itself. The idea of solving a really tough problem together (as it can not be solved otherwise), is a notion I find very attractive."
What do you look back on with great pleasure in the work and collaboration within e-Refinery?
"Through the years, I have met many bright people with the right 'problem-solving' mindset. I have learned a lot."
What do you look forward to with great pleasure now that you are retired?
"My retirement does not imply that I will become inactive. I remain interested in e-Refinery related problems, as these have not all been solved yet. Naturally, I have more time for other things now. One specific field I will spent more time on is garden design. I will be active as a land scaper." |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
