Research News 2023

Join us on Thursday 2 February 2023 at Stereolux, Hall 6 West. For this new edition of the "Nuit Blanche des Chercheurs" in Nantes on the theme "Vibrations". Come along and discover the buzzing world of research in Nantes! Centrale Nantes' research teams will give presentations on themes ranging from Marine Renewable Energies to earthquakes and the properties of explosions!

In 2022, the offshore test site SEM-REV began a phase of investment and works to enhance its capacity to host new demonstration and research projects. Following the award of the underwater equipment supply contract launched in 2022, a consortium, led by INYANGA, recently delivered the new submarine cables and connectors.

The Mervent 2025 project led by Zéphyr & Borée and its partners CWS, GTT and Centrale Nantes was selected as part of the CORIMER Call for Expression of Interest 2022. Mervent aims to build the first container ship powered by hybrid sail/synthetic fuel.

The European research project FLOATECH is back at the LHEEA's wave and ocean engineering tank for a second test campaign. The teams involved continue to study the hydrodynamic forces that impact a floating wind turbine in order to improve its performance.

Investment on the SEM-REV site continues! After receiving the site's new cables and connectors, the teams, led by INYANGA, have completed the installation of the connectors on the cables and prepared them for the installation offshore.

On 13 April 2023, the French Ministry of Higher Education and Research celebrated the 1500 ERC grant holders with ground-breaking research projects funded by the European Research Council (ERC). Ioannis Stefanou, professor at Centrale Nantes, is one of the three ERC grant-holders invited to share their passion for research at this event.

The FOWT 2023 conference (Floating Offshore Wind Turbines) will be held in Nantes on 10 and 11 May. These two days will be followed by technical visits, one of which will take participants offshore to visit the SEM-REV site.

Velella aims to develop several technological components and methods needed to prepare the deployment of commercial floating wind projects under the best economic, social and environmental conditions.

Emmanuel Rozière, Professor and Director of Sustainable Development at Centrale Nantes, won the AFGC 2022 prize. It was presented to him on 3 May 2023 by Emmanuel Ferrier, chairman of the association's Scientific and Technical Committee.

The conference (in French) is organised as part of the Nantes University Scientific Days which will take place on 5 June 2023 at the Cité des Congrès in Nantes.

The congrès Français du Génie Civil (French Civil Engineering Congress), organized by AFGC, AUGC and École normale supérieure Paris-Saclay, was held in Gif sur Yvette from 23 to 25 May 2023.

Thomas Heuzé will defend his Accreditation to Supervise Research (HDR) on 13 June 2023.

Imane Elkhaldi, who holds a PhD in Civil Engineering from Centrale Nantes, received the award at the Congrès Français du Génie Civil, held at the École Normale Supérieure Paris-Saclay in May 2023.

The Sixth International Conference on Cable-Driven Parallel Robots will be held at the Laboratory of Digital Sciences of Nantes (LS2N) from 25 to 28 June 2023.

Lhyfe's offshore hydrogen production test platform has been towed some 20 km off the Atlantic coast and successfully connected to the SEM-REV electrical hub.

Four days of discussion and training in Nantes with international experts in nuclear medicine research for 20 students, young researchers or clinicians.

Building on five years of successful research cooperation, Centrale Nantes and MAN Energy Solutions France are extending their industrial research chair for a further eighteen months. 

The CARGO cluster, newly created in 2023, brings together all the Nantes-based research players involved in meeting the challenge of decarbonizing maritime transport.

10 years after the installation of the export cable, the SEM-REV marine renewable energy test site has enjoyed further investment. The aim was to upgrade the site and pave the way for hosting future prototypes. Thanks to funding from the French State, the Pays de la Loire Region and Europe, which Centrale Nantes applied for as part of the "France 2030" programme, the site has been able to connect new prototypes since April.

It's official: as of 1 September 2023, the SEM-REV offshore test site is now solely in the hands of the OPEN-C Foundation. Centrale Nantes, which in 2007 initiated what will rapidly become the first multi-technology offshore test site, is continuing its research activities and supporting the site in its development. Through this transfer of activity, and as a founder of the OPEN-C Foundation, Centrale Nantes is playing its part in driving forward France's energy transition through Marine Renewable Energies. We take a look back at SEM-REV's progress to date, and its future within the newly-created OPEN-C Foundation, which will coordinate offshore testing focused entirely on floating wind turbines and marine renewable energies!

Nicolas Chevaugeon will defend his Accreditation to Supervise Research (HDR) on 18 September 2023.

This event organized by Centrale Nantes and INRAE will take place on campus and will focus on biomasses (polymers, fibers, assemblies and colloids), processes and characterization methods, as well as the materials and composites used on a daily basis.

Stanford University has updated its list of the world's most cited researchers by their peers for their scientific work. The list, which represents the world's most influential researchers, is based on an international transdisciplinary database.