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Director of climate technology |
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Photo: Geir Otto Johansen |
Although SINTEF currently enjoys a leading international position in research and development on renewable energy resources, CO2 capture and storage, efficient energy use and other aspects of environmental technology, it is not staying put. And SINTEF plans to increase its efforts even further in these areas. This is clearly seen by the appointment of Nils A. Røkke as SINTEF's Director of Climate Technology. Since 1992, Røkke has coordinated SINTEF's research on natural gas and the capture and storage of CO2 from coal- and gas-fired power stations.
Røkke is recognized as one of the world's leading experts on CO2 capture and storage, and is frequently referred to as SINTEF's “CO2 general”. At international level, he heads a number of EU projects in this field, and is a member of the programme board for the EU's major demonstration project on CO2 capture and storage. His Norwegian responsibilities include the national “BIGCO2” project, which is the most important individual public-sector effort in Europe on CO2 capture and storage.
NTNU has been selected as having Europe’s best engineering education for environmental and sustainable development. The top marks were awarded by the EESD Observatory (Engineering Education for Sustainable Development). The second and third places went to the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm and the Rostor State University of Civil Engineering.
Extending the Norwegian oil age |
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Photo: Synnøve Ressem/NTNU Info |
A quiet revolution is underway in the international petroleum industry: Advanced information technology is making it possible to remotely operate offshore oil and gas fields from shore which increases both safety and production levels. It also increases the value of the fields as it enables them to be kept in production longer and recover more of the oil or gas in place. This approach is called integrated operations.
The Norwegian Oil Industry Association has calculated that the technology will increase the production value of fields on the Norwegian continental shelf by as much as NOK 300 billion.
A cooperative project between NTNU and Siemens will develop new models for the control and optimization of the whole production system, from the ocean floor to the process facilities on a platform or ashore.
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Photo: Tor H. Monsen/NTNU Info |
When he was 19, Heri Ramampiaro left Madagascar to study in Norway. He could only speak French and Madagascan, and was first told that he was not qualified to study in Norway. Sixteen years later, in 2007, the associate professor in the Department of Computer and Information Science at NTNU has been named one of Norway’s 10 most successful immigrants.
This is an annual, national award, which focuses on positive role models and representatives from minorities who have made first-rate contributions to Norway’s workplaces and culture. Ramampiaro is an expert on the storage and search of biomedical information, and has developed a search engine called BioTracer.
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NOK 20 billion for scientific equipment |
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Photo: Thor Nielsen/SINTEF Media |
A joint initiative led by the Norwegian Confederation of Industry, the University of Oslo, NTNU and SINTEF has proposed that NOK 20 billion should be invested in laboratories and scientific equipment during the coming decade. The request is also supported by the Research Council of Norway and a number of Norwegian companies. SINTEF President Unni Steinsmo believes that it is essential to invest in world-class laboratories in areas in which we can make a contribution at an international level.
Here she has identified renewable energy sources, materials and energy systems of the future as fields of technology in which Norway is capable of being a global leader. This will require long-term research and first-class scientific equipment, as well as close cooperation between universities, research institutes and industry. Funds would be put into laboratories, scientific equipment, plant and other research infrastructure, creating the foundations for more advanced technological research in Norway.
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Photo: Mentz Indergaard/NTNU Info |
One of the most serious complications of cystic fibrosis (CF) is the thick mucus that coats a patient’s airways, which can be extremely difficult to cough up. These patients must have comprehensive physical and medical treatment to cope. Now researchers at NTNU’s Department of Biotechnology have discovered that particles from brown algae can loosen up this mucus. The discovery offers hope that CF patients will be able to clear their lungs by themselves in the natural way by breathing in algae particle dust through a standard inhaler. A clinical trial will soon be underway.
Baby brain damage caused by shaking |
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Photo: Ole Sæther/Apollon |
A doll that was originally designed for use in car crash tests is about to be used as a research tool by forensic scientists who are studying brain damage. The Department of Forensic Medicine at the University of Oslo is studying “shaken baby syndrome” and the relationship between shaking and brain damage. Scientists at SINTEF ICT have installed accelerometers inside the head of the doll in order to measure the forces caused by shaking and impacts with solid surfaces.
The measurements will be stored on a computer for subsequent analysis at SINTEF. In Norway around 15 babies are severely shaken by their parents every year, and about one third of them are left with serious long-term injuries. Court cases often have to be unresolved due to lack of sufficient evidence. The forensic medical scientists hope that this situation will soon change.
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