Editorial

Dear InterPore colleagues,

A few years back, I started working for the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, an independent research institute (lots of science!) but also a ‘trusted advisor’ to the Dutch government. Up to that point, I never really considered the connection between my scientific endeavours and formal policy, apart from the mandatory society relevance-sections in proposals…

However, these days I do have to take existing policy (EU directives, Dutch laws) into account when designing research that answers policymaker questions and follow the political news (e.g. the failure of the INC 5.2 Global Plastic Treaty negotiations), however frustrating that can be (like spending an entire day finding that single space that completely ruins the simulation code!).

Curious (about policy)? Check the item on policy and diplomacy!

All the best,

Matthijs de Winter
Editor-in-Chief
InterPore News

Call for 2026 Conference Courses

Submission of proposals for Conference Courses at InterPore2026 is now open! Courses will be organized as satellite events of the InterPore Annual Meeting in Nantes, France on the following dates:

• Monday, 18 May 2026

• Saturday, 23 May 2026

Standard duration of a given course will be half a day (3-hour lecture). Proposals for non-standard duration, if well justified, will be considered. Main criteria for selection of proposals include track record of the proposers as well as the opportunity to ensure diversity to a full extent across all courses.

To submit your proposal, please complete the submission form.

Call for New Minisymposia

The call for new minisymposia proposals for InterPore2026 is now open! Proposals may be submitted until 15 September 2025.

Please note that the Program Committee has recently reorganized the list of existing minisymposia to reduce their overall number and eliminate topic overlaps. As a result, the Committee will be very selective in approving new minisymposia. To ensure your proposal is considered, please avoid duplication with existing topics.

Proposals should be submitted by email to conference2026@interpore.org.

We look forward to your innovative contributions to help shape a strong and focused scientific program for InterPore2026!

Testimonial Spotlight

Sightseeing hunt...in Nantes!

InterPore2026 will be in Nantes. This week's cultural highlight: Le Lieu Unique

Right next to the conference centre stands Le Lieu Unique (“The Unique Place”), a vibrant hub for contemporary culture housed in the former LU biscuit factory along the Canal Saint-Félix. Here you’ll find art exhibitions, concerts, literary gatherings, philosophical debates, and festivals. And don’t miss the chance to climb its 38-meter-high tower!

Photo credit: adapted from “Bretagne_20230721_DSC1842” by Maarten Heerlien, CC BY 2.0

Call for Volunteers – Social Media Management

InterPore Foundation Welcomes New Board Member

Eric Morales-Casique joins the Board as Communications Officer

We are very pleased to have Eric Morales-Casique join the Board of the InterPore Foundation. As Communications Officer, he will focus on maintaining our website content. A big Thank You goes out to Ann Hansen for her prior contributions in that role. 

Science, Policy and Diplomacy: A New Opportunity for InterPore

InterPore2025 featured a moving talk about near-future water shortage around the Rio Grande basin. Manageable by policy, requiring a clear-cut, policy-science connection. 

How to link our science to policy and diplomacy? Please read the full statement on our website and participate in the online questionnaire.

Update on Kimberly-Clark Lectureship 2025

Prof. Rainer Helmig recently lectured at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh and drew a mutli-displinary attendance of over 50 attendees in person and online. He participated in small group discussions with PhD candidates and early career researchers, toured a lab showcasing experimental capabilities at the Institute of GeoEnergy Engineering and took part in many social events.

Prof. Helmig from the University of Stuttgart has presented 16 lectures in universities and institutions all over the world. His next tour will be in the USA in October at the University of Arizona, Southern Methodist University, Montana State University and MIT.

Report on the 8th UK InterPore Chapter Meeting

The 8th InterPore UK Chapter Conference in Porous Media, held at Loughborough University between the 1st and 2nd of September 2025, brought together researchers, industry experts, and students to discuss recent advances in porous media research. 

A full report, the conference agenda and the complete book of abstracts can be found on the InterPore website via the link below.

The viability of subsurface storage of solar thermal-sourced hydrogen: A techno-economic comparative analysis between salt caverns and depleted porous reservoirs

Hasan Vural,  Robert A. Taylor, Peyman Mostaghimi

As the transition to hydrogen accelerates, it is critical to focus not only on green hydrogen production but also on its reliable, large-scale storage. In this context, our study presents a full techno-economic analysis of a hybrid energy system that couples solar power tower technology with underground hydrogen storage. Analysis employs end-to-end models of the hydrogen value chain, including its generation, underground cycling, purification, and distribution. The storage performance of salt caverns and depleted reservoirs is assessed within the hybrid system. The findings demonstrate that the depleted reservoir employing the thermochemical electrolyser produces the most favourable economic outcome.

Anchored Physics-Informed Neural Network for Two-Phase Flow Simulation in Heterogeneous Porous Media

Jingqi Lin, Xia Yan, Kai Zhang, Zhao Zhang, and Jun Yao

The authors introduce Anchored-EPINN, a new approach that integrates an adaptive tensorization mechanism with a novel anchoring strategy. This “tensorize-then-anchor” design expands learning capacity while reducing computational costs, achieving ~30% faster runtime for NN-based two-phase flow simulation in heterogeneous porous media — all while preserving accuracy. The method demonstrates a promising path for faster and more efficient simulations.

Enhancing Effective Thermal Conductivity Predictions in Digital Porous Media Using Transfer Learning

Mohamed Elmorsy, Wael El-Dakhakhni, and Benzhong Zhao

Understanding the thermal behavior of subsurface porous media is critical for technologies such as nuclear waste disposal, geothermal energy, and underground thermal storage. Yet, estimating effective thermal conductivity (ETC) has long been a bottleneck — existing approaches are either overly simplified or computationally intensive. Elmorsy et al introduce a machine learning framework that leverages transfer learning to predict ETC in 3D digital rock samples with high accuracy and drastically reduced computational cost.

InterPore Journal

Thank you for your ongoing dedication to our community!

Check out the Events at InterPore

There is always something going on at InterPore! We have courses, workshops, and webinars through the InterPore Academy, Chapter Meetings across the globe, and the Annual Meeting in a new and different location every year. Check out the offerings through the button below.