The influence of bivalve shells, of different shapes and sizes, on current-driven sediment transport: Experimental flume study

In the Netherlands, the coastlands act as the principal protection against the sea. Without human interventions, the Dutch coast would be eroding due to an imbalance in the sediment budget of the coastal zone. The preferred coastal management strategy is sand nourishment, which have become larger in scale and more complex over the last 70 years....

Streamlining river groynes: Laboratory experimentsin schematised geometry under submerged flow conditions

Groynes are hydraulic structures commonly applied in the Dutch rivers. Depending on the water depth, groynes can be emerged or submerged. When a groyne is emerged, it has two main functions: maintaining the water depth in the main channel and preventing the river from eroding its bank. When the discharge in the river increases, the groynes...

The glass Sashimono joint: Designing a rigid and demountable connection for a portal frame

Glass is gaining more and more popularity as a structural material and has become a big share of the building industry. Unfortunately, the building industry is the largest polluter in terms of industrial waste and is responsible for 40% of Europe’s energy demand (CIB, 1999), and glass is also playing a significant role in this number. One...

Basalt to replace steel in concrete quay wall aprons: Evaluation of minibars and basalt reinforced polymer rebars to replace steel as reinforcement in quay wall aprons to reduce environmental impact.

An experimental research into the use of basalt as reinforcement in concrete to reduce the ECI value of a concrete quay wall apron. In this research experiments with basalt minibars and basalt reinforced polymer rebars are performed to compare directly to steel fibres and steel rebars. With the test results 4 designs are produced resulting in...

The Impact of the Inclusion of Social Dimensions on Decision-Making in the Dutch Heat Transition: an Empirical Study

We find ourselves at a crossroads; without immediate and deep emissions reductions, limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius will be impossible. For the Netherlands to achieve its climate targets, Dutch municipalities have been delegated the crucial task of the heat transition. Prior research reveals that the Dutch energy transition and...

An Experimental Investigation of the Operating Characteristics of a Flameless Combustor

This thesis covers the experimental characterisation of a multi-nozzle research combustor capable of achieving flameless combustion (FC). The combustor is operated with methane as fuel and air as the oxidiser, under an overall lean equivalence ratio ranging from 0.6-0.9. The work focused on designing and applying different experimental...

A Unified Model to Predict Excited State Cyclicity of Nitrogen Vacancy Centres in Diamond

Crucial to the behaviour of a Nitrogen-Vacancy (NV) centre are its excited state cyclicities, determining the ability to perform high fidelity readout, spin-photon entanglement generation or fast spinpumping. This work presents a unified model to predict these excited state cyclicities over a wide range of strain, electric field, magnetic field...

Laboratory study on the efficiency of water injection dredging: An analysis on the influence of different dredge settings on the density current and production rate

The Port of Rotterdam experiences large amounts of siltation from the upstream rivers in its basins and canals every year. Furthermore, container vessels increase in size every decade and therefore require a larger navigational depth. These two factors cause the yearly amount of dredged material to increase. Currently, mainly trailing suction...

Pile Dredging in Cohesive Soils: Experimental research on the influence of different dredging configurations

After decades of exploitation of hydrocarbons, the offshore facilities constructed for this purpose are nearing the end of their design life and/or economic operation. According to international law, these offshore structures need to be completely removed. Decommissioning of the substructures often requires for soil to be removed in piles to...

Disassembly of fusion bonded thermoplastic composite joints aided by induction heating: Effects of induction heating on disassembly force and damage patterns

Disassembly of fusion bonded joints aided by induction heating was investigated. Single-lap shear experiments were performed while heating the joint with an induction coil to research the effect on force required and damage inflicted during disassembly. Co-consolidated CF/PEEK samples with and without a metal mesh susceptor and ultrasonically...

Transition to turbulence in particle-laden pipe flows

Multiphase flows are found in abundant natural phenomena and industrial processes. In particular, pipe flows are widely popular in industries involving chemical processing, dredging, and oil transport to name a few. Particle laden flows are often observed in applications like dredging, sediment, and slurry transport through pipes, etc. Therefore...

Vibrations In An Active Controlled Hexapod

The Ampelmann system occasionally starts vibrating unexpectedly, especially while the system is placed on a pedestal. These vibrations are believed to be caused by the eigenfrequencies of the system and/or amplification caused by the motion control algorithm. In this research an investigation in this phenomenon was done. This investigation was...

Backward erosion piping: Experiments on erosion and progression rate

Backward erosion piping is a form of internal erosion where small pipes are formed below a dike. These pipes are formed in a direction opposite to the flow that transports sand particles. Piping is a very important failure mechanism in the protection of dikes, which can be unpredictable due to the different soil characteristics. Piping is well...

Experimental research into the effect of freeboard on the stability of a crown wall on a rubble mound breakwater

A crown wall is a gravity based L- shaped concrete structure on top of a rubble mound breakwater. Functions of a crown wall are: reduction of wave overtopping, enable transport on the breakwater and placement of pipelines on top of the flat surface. Marine contractor Van Oord was awarded to extend a breakwater with a crown wall on top, located...

Experimental research on the effects of surface screens on a mobile bed

In 2000 the Dutch government chose a new point of view for the Dutch rivers: “Room for the River”. This viewpoint is the basis for a new approach of high water protection in the Netherlands. Instead of strengthening and raising the dikes, solutions must be based on space and spatial quality. One of the suggested measures is the addition of...