My research visit to Austria began last August, when I arrived in a swelteringly hot Vienna. Fortunately, a pleasantly warm autumn soon followed.
My workday begins with a metro ride through Vienna, from which I transfer to a train that takes me through beautiful landscapes to the town of Tulln. Upon arrival in the "Espoo of Vienna," I’m greeted by a large research building that houses not only BOKU University but also other research organizations.
After enjoying a delicious morning coffee with friendly colleagues, I head downstairs to the laboratories, which are equipped with various devices for wood and material testing. The "weathering" device has been particularly useful for my research. It exposes samples to humidity fluctuations, water spray, and UV light. Professor Wolfgang Gindl-Altmutter kindly offered me a free workstation and computer in a shared room reserved for post-docs, for which I’m very grateful.
The building's lunch restaurant serves tasty local, Hungarian, and international cuisine. On the way home, I enjoy Vienna's beautiful architecture, and I might pick up a döner kebab along the way — they’re high-quality and inexpensive in Austria.
Along the Danube River, there are great paths where I can go jogging and cycling. At the beginning of my visit, I lived in a small Airbnb apartment while my family was still in Finland. Later on, finding a good apartment near my child’s English-language daycare proved to be quite a challenge.
Thank you to the Finnish Forest Products Engineers' Association and the PI PostDoc Grant for making this research visit possible!
During my stay, a major milestone also took place. Together with my former colleagues in Finland, we founded an Aalto University spin-off company, SHIMBER (www.shimber.fi), with the goal of commercializing the research results from my doctoral studies. When my visit to Vienna ends in August, I will focus on developing production methods for nanocellulose-based structural colour.
Best regards, Konrad
Pictures: https://boku.ac.at/en/about-boku and Konrad Klockars