INSPIRING THE NEXT GENERATION OF MARINE SCIENTISTS

Inspiring the next generation of marine scientists. The Marine Institute’s Eoin Sweeney Scholarship Programme aims to provide research training opportunities for scientists in oceanography, marine engineering and related marine science disciplines leading to the acquisition of a higher degree. Through annual placement of the researchers at the Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands (PLOCAN) the programme increases collaboration between Ireland and Spain though research undertaken using the test-bed and demonstration facilities in both countries.

The students appointed under the initial two scholarships awarded in 2020 are now entering their final year of their four-year PhD, and you can read about their projects below.

Céline Burin

PhD Student: Céline Burin

Supervisor: Professor Peter Croot, School of Natural Sciences, University of Galway.

Funding Awarded: €120,000 from the Marine Institute, Ireland in collaboration with Plataforma Oceánica de Canarias (PLOCAN), Spain.

“My PhD is titled ‘Application of AUVs to studies on diel cycles of ocean plankton and biogeochemistry in the northeast Atlantic’, This project aims to plan and implement the use of the Marine Institute gliders and other AUVs to study the diel and seasonal variations in relevant biogeochemical parameters, described as Essential Ocean variables (EOVs) for the study of climate change, in the coastal and open Northeast Atlantic. To estimate the values of primary productivity and respiration, two proxies for the ocean’s health, the gliders deployed measure oxygen and phytoplankton abundance (two EOVs) at a much higher resolution than traditional research vessels. My training and collaboration experiences at PLOCAN (the Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands) have been instrumental in my project. I was trained in the maintenance and piloting of underwater gliders and had many opportunities to assist during their seasonal deployments and to contribute to the installation of new sensors on a glider. These visits to PLOCAN have given me many skills and competencies that I have been able to apply during my deployments around Ireland with the Marine Institute. I will complete my PhD in August 2025 and look forward to continuing my career in marine research.”

Iain McLeod

PhD Student: Iain McLeod

Supervisor: Professor John Ringwood, Department of Electronic Engineering, Maynooth University.

Funding Awarded: €120,000 from the Marine Institute, Ireland in collaboration with Plataforma Oceánica de Canarias (PLOCAN), Spain.

“My PhD is titled ‘Developing a small-scale wave-powered data buoy’. My PhD project aims to investigate the merits of specifically small-scale Power Take-Offs (PTOs), such as the triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG), and compare their performance with scaled down versions of more conventional PTOs, such as the Oscillating Water Column (OWC). Scaling down PTOs presents a number of challenges, as effects from friction and drag become exaggerated. Additionally, the inclusion of conventional wave energy PTOs on data buoys, has direct implications for the operation of onboard sensors. The project to date has been made possible through involvement with project collaborators, both internationally and nationally. This includes the University of Porto, whose expertise in TENGs has been invaluable, and Dundalk Institute of Technology here in Ireland, with whom I have worked closely, as they develop their own OWC based data buoy. Through these collaborations wave tank test data has been made available, that has allowed computer models to be validated against experimental results. As the project enters its final year, we hope to make use of the opportunities for in-situ testing at a number of locations, including PLOCAN (the Oceanic Platform of the Canary Islands) and SmartBay, here in Ireland. Deployment of a wave-powered data buoy in real seas will test these PTOs against the same harsh conditions that full scale Wave Energy Converters (WECs) will be exposed to, and hopefully pave the way for a more widespread adoption of this underutilised source of renewable energy. I will complete my PhD in June 2025 and look forward to continuing my career in the ocean renewable energy sector then.”

The Marine Institute is delighted to continue this collaboration with PLOCAN, with launch of the next Eoin Sweeney Scholarship call planned for later this year.

These projects are supported by the Marine Institute and funded under the Marine Research Programme by the Government of Ireland, in collaboration with PLOCAN (Plataforma Oceánica de Canarias), Spain.

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