Every year the School of Engineering hosts a number of students from various universities to be trained in the some of the research areas offered by the University of Edinburgh. This summer Michal Koziarski (Poland), Ronan Henry (France) and Yusuf Baykan (Turkey) have joined the Carbon Capture Group for few months and contributed to our research working on different topics. Ronan and Yusuf describe their experience below.
Ronan Henry: I am a French student and I am beginning my last year of Materials Engineering Degree in October 2014, at the INP-ENSIACET, Toulouse (National Polytechnic Institute of Chemical and Industrial Engineering and Technology). During this internship of three months at the University of Edinburgh, I reorganized the data base on adsorption isotherms and updated it with new data from scientific papers. Within this data base, I had to calculate some useful parameters such as the maximum coverage and the heat of adsorption for different gases on several adsorbents, and I had also to find a suitable model for each isotherm. This internship was a really great experience for me, firstly because I could improve my technical and general English, but also because I could work in a research environment, and it was perfect to get an idea for my future professional project. Finally, working here was a real pleasure: the working team is really nice, the city is amazing, and the country is lovely.
Yusuf Baykan: I am a third-year student from the department of Chemical Engineering of Ankara University, Turkey. I am planning to complete the BSc Degree by September 2015. I have worked for three months on «Feasibility of adsorption capture processes applicable to CHP plants for supplying CO2 to commercial glasshouses." under the supervision of Dr Hyungwoong Ahn at the University of Edinburgh. I focused on the calculation of mass and energy balances around the power plant and the supply of CO2 for glasshouses. For my task had firstly to look at several data found in many articles from the literature. I have learned how to conduct research in academia, how to work collaboratively as a member of a research group and how to give an effective presentation. Furthermore, I had an exceptional opportunity to improve my English language skills through constant practice and feedback . Thanks to this experience I truly believe to have invested for my future career. In the meantime, Edinburgh is a marvellous city where life is rich of opportunities.
