Master's students
MASTER PROJECTS
Students with a background in chemistry or physics are encouraged to explore the possibilities of doing a Bachelor or Master research project at the Van 't Hoff Laboratory.
Below you can find brief descriptions of example Master research projects that could be completed in our group. Bachelor projects can be found on the Bachelor projects page.
If you are interested in a project or topic, please contact the student coordinator, Geert Schulpen for more information.
Surface-Modified Capacitive Electrodes for Desalination
In arid regions of the world, capacitive deionization of salty water can be an option to make drinking water. A voltage is applied between two porous electrodes, and each electrode removes oppositely charged ions. Via chemical modification, the surface can be given an electric charge at open circuit, altering the energetics of the electrical double layer.
Self-Assembly of Plastic Particles Under Magnetic Density Separation Conditions
Plastic particles can be separated using magnetic fluids, via a new recycling technology called ‘magnetic density separation’. However, separation of the particles due to magnetic levitation can be counteracted by dipolar self-assembly, since nonmagnetic particles inside a magnetized fluid act as ‘magnetic holes’.
Colloidal synthesis of nanolenses onto 2D substrates
Light-utilising technologies play an important role in our everyday lives, and will likely become even more important in the near future with novel applications such as optical circuitry and sustainable photocatalysis. To enable such optical nanotechnologies, it will be essential to collect and deliver optical energies as efficiently as possible. In this Master’s project, we will broaden the applicability of nanolenses by investigating how they can be grown directly onto 2D surfaces.
Synthesizing high-refractive-index nanoscale optics: Incorporating high-refractive-index materials for enhanced nanolensing
Light-utilising technologies play an important role in our everyday lives, and will likely become even more important in the near future with novel applications such as optical circuitry and sustainable photocatalysis. To enable such optical nanotechnologies, it will be essential to collect and deliver optical energies as efficiently as possible. Preparing nanolenses out of materials of high refractive index will further expand their powerful capabilities, in this Master’s project, we will further investigate this opportunity.
Please be aware that this project is only offered with a start from February 2025.