Bart Erich

Bart Erich is research associate in the group transport in permeable media at Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e). To date, his research has focused on transport processes in coatings and packaging materials. In recent years, he has been moving towards energy related research in materials, ranging from aesthetic solar harvesting in facades of buildings (TNO) to heat storage in thermochemical materials (TU/e and TNO). These materials allow storage of harvested heat, to balance supply and demand.
Bart’s scientific profile covers experimentation as well as modelling. Transport processes are generally best understood from experiments (especially using non-invasive spatial resolving techniques such as Nuclear Magnetic Resonance), to be followed by modelling to understand the detailed processes, and enabling steering of processes for material innovation.
Bart has been coordinating several EU projects within FP7 ‘AXIOMA’ focusing on protecting materials against growth of micro-organisms by smart release of anti-microbial substances, and the Horizon 2020 ENVISION project, focusing on introducing aesthetic energy harvesting in building facades.

Transport processes are everywhere! Transport processes in materials are crucial for many reasons, ranging from durability and reactivity to energy storage. Understanding these phenomena provides key knowledge required for new material innovation.