The aim of this project is to develop a kinetic model to investigate the mechanism fornitrobenzene hydrogenation reaction and the role of polymer in a reaction. To achievethis goal, a hybrid material containing catalyst functionalities will be prepared. Thismaterial contains palladium supported on a non-porous SiO 2 sphere that is covered withpolymer brushes that can modify the selectivity and activity of the catalyst depending onthe solubility of the reactants in the polymer layer.

Ring Opening Polymerization of Polyethylene 2,5-furandicarboxylate (PEF)The commercialization of plastics has changed the way we work and live. We cannot imagine our world without the synthetic polymers used in manufacturing, medical, food production and conservation. This versatile material, however, also has a downside. During the last 50 years since the booming of the plastic industry, humongous amounts of plastic waste have been generated. These materials are difficult to recycle and therefore research is conducted towards more renewable recourse-based materials which can support a transition from petroleum to a renewables based economy.One of the materials with the highest potential of replacing one of the most used petroleum plastics is PEF. This material is a furan-based polyester which has the same or increased material properties as compared to conventional petroleum plastics.During this internship work was conducted towards the synthesis of high molecular weight PEF using Ring Opening Polymerization (ROP) together with finding upscaling relations between different synthesis scales.

Junior researcher at the chair of Nanobio InterphaseThe damage caused by hydrothermal treatment of glass fiber composites (epoxy) has been investigated using different characterization techniques ranging from Mechanical Polishing, Focused Ion Beam Etching (FIB), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and DIC Microscopy. Sample material differed in adhesive materials between fiber and epoxy and different types of epoxy resins.

Bachelor Internship at Apollo Global R&DTo improve the production together with the chemical understanding of tyre manufacturing, Apollo Tyres has invested in a ‘new’ analytical technique called Low Field NMR. Using this technique, the influences of raw materials and vulcanization packages on T2 relaxation times was investigated using the low field (H)NMR.