Leo Pel

Leo Pel is an Associate Professor in the group transport in Permeable Media at the Department of Applied Physics, Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e). Leo does research in Fluid Dynamics, Materials Science and Experimental Physics. His main research interest is the combined moisture and ion transport and crystallization in porous media in order to understand damages. In the group, the potential of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) imaging on multiple length scales is combined with physical and mathematical modeling. Over the past years, the group we has built up a collection of NMR setups, which offer the unique possibility to non-destructively measure the moisture and ion content in porous media over various length scales. 

Leo’s current research focuses on Cl transport in concrete, electro kinetic transport of Li in concrete and expansion of wood due to moisture. His group studies the transport of moisture and ions in a variety of permeable materials, ranging from porous building materials of macroscopic dimensions, such as brick and concrete, over chemical reactors up to thin polymer coatings. The goal is to improve the performance by identifying the key parameters that govern the transport and damage mechanisms. 

Understanding the durability of materials is understanding the moisture and ion transport