Science in Focus

Scientists from the University of Groningen (RUG) and the University Medical Centre Groningen (UMCG) are developing stents and valves made from soft materials as part of HTRIC’s research programme ‘Minimally invasive implants made from smart, soft materials’, financed by the Ubbo Emmius Fund.

Bayu Jayawardhana controls robots with mathematical formulas. He does this, for instance, in the new project FARMLAB, in which various types of agricultural robots work together to monitor crops in real time.

The University of Groningen is among the world leaders in the field of Systems and Control. At the Jan C. Willems Centre for Systems and Control, researchers from the University are working on the mathematics behind a wide range of applications, such as high-tech manufacturing processes or a knee prosthesis.

In the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) near Geneva, Switzerland, protons collide with each other at almost the speed of light. Physicists from the University of Groningen use these collisions to study the fundamental building blocks of matter, in their search for signs that could point to new physics.

Researchers Xin Sun and Xiaohua Li look at the life cycle of batteries, from raw materials to disposal at the end of battery life, and how to make recycling more effective and greener.

There is a small chance that rechargeable lithium batteries will ignite or even explode. Giuseppe Portale, associate professor in Polymer Chemistry at the University of Groningen, is working on safer batteries.

Edwin Otten is working on a battery that stores electric power in large containers of fluid.  To make such a battery effective and affordable, a lot more research is still needed.

A great deal of research is required to develop the best or cleanest batteries. But how does a battery actually work?

An €800 million programme funded by the Dutch National Growth Fund aims to stimulate the Dutch battery ecosystem and make a global impact. Scientists from the University of Groningen contribute to this programme, designing and building the batteries of the future.

Klaus Hubacek analyses the effects of various green solutions to reduce CO₂ emissions — such as planting more trees, sharing cars, or working less — to find out whether they realize their intended outcome. Spoiler: almost everything has a downside, yes, even planting trees in some cases.

‘Fortunately, seawater absorbs carbon dioxide (CO₂). If it didn’t, things would have been over and done with already,’ according to climate and ocean researchers Richard Bintanja and Rob Middag. But what actually happens to the ocean's carbon absorption as the climate changes?

Earth's natural carbon cycle becomes unbalanced if we, humans, continue to release extra carbon dioxide (CO₂) into the atmosphere. In this overview article about the carbon cycle, you can find out how Earth generally keeps itself in balance and how we, humans, have upset this balance over the past two hundred years.

In the year 2000, Harro Meijer, Professor of Isotope Physics at the University of Groningen, set up the Lutjewad Measurement Station near Hornhuizen. There, researchers from Groningen are mapping where CO₂ in the atmosphere originates and where it ends up.

Looking only at disease-causing bacteria and genes is too limited in the battle against antimicrobial resistance, says microbiologist Marjon de Vos. It turns out that bacteria that were seen as innocent bystanders play an important role in the development of resistance. 

As bacteria become increasingly resistant to antimicrobial agents, it is essential to use these agents as sparingly as possible. Wiktor Szymanski, Professor of Medicinal Chemistry, Photopharmacology and Imaging, and his colleagues use light to localize and attack bacterial infections.

We need new antibiotics, as more and more bacterial species are becoming resistant to the existing drugs. University of Groningen scientists Dirk-Jan Scheffers and Marthe Walvoort work on novel ways to beat the resistance by punching holes in bacteria or otherwise weakening their cell wall. 

Farmers only grow a limited number of crops these days, which has significant consequences for the animals that live there. Raymond Klaassen researches what adjustments farmers could make to improve the conditions for the species most affected by modern agriculture, such as the skylark.

Kira Tiedge investigates the chemical substances that plants use to communicate with their environment, to select robust varieties that can better withstand challenging circumstances such as diseases or drought.