University of Bradford - Equipment Account

We propose equipment to enhance our specialist advanced materials processing facilities and suite of at-process monitoring and off-line characterisation equipment aimed at advanced materials with healthcare applications, including extensive nanoscale characterisation, plus modelling facilities for processing and materials performance. These will complement our current advanced materials manufacturing process technology and characterisation facilities in the Polymer IRC laboratory at Bradford.
SPECIALIST ADVANCED MANUFACTURING PROCESSES: We undertake fundamental processing-related studies (for novel polymer nanocomposites, blends, and biomaterials/ biocomposite and pharmaceutical formulations, and reactive processing) which lead to process feasibility projects (e.g. processability of new formulations, with underpinning material characterisation) or novel product development. Products may be prototypes (typically at the small scale for limited availability or expensive materials), or full production items. Facilties for process feasibility research or micro-scale processing are proposed for small scale products, micro/nano surface features, and macro scale processing.CHARACTERISATION AND MONITORING FACILITIES: Characterisation at nano- and other length scales is required for hierarchichal structure materials and functional gradients. This will be 'off line' for pre-process materials and post-process products; while at-process characterisation aims to evaluate real material process histories, which is important for time and temperature dependent materials. At-process monitoring is in effect, advanced manufacturing metrology.

Our process structuring research for polymer-related materials has had significant impact in fundamental research results through to commercial spin outs, and has achieved high levels of academic and industrial collaboration, and a strong international cooperation platform. The current proposal seeks to resource our team to build upon these successes - inside our university, regionally and nationally, and internationally, all to the clear benefit of the UK. The resourcing will be from a partnership of EPSRC, the University of Bradford, industry and UK and international academic collaborators, in association with actual ongoing and new research projects.
Prof P D Coates FREng is leading a large team of colleagues; our team have excellent track records as EPSRC PIs or Co-Is, or running KTPs/TSB projects and many industry contracts, and a proven international track record. Our ambition is to support UK scientific excellence in our own university and in collaborating universities and industry, and promote increasingly valuable international links (especially with China - emphasis on advanced materials, and India - emphasis on green processing), leading to innovative materials and products associated with healthcare and other application areas we address, through intelligent processing. There is clear national and international value in the programme as our programme aims to focus on advanced materials for development of products aligned with strategic priorities of the British government in health delivery policies and associated industries - very much in line with EPSRC priorities. It also aligns with UK-China agreed strategic priorities for research collaboration. The international angle is of particular interest for impact, given the global nature of our sector and its supply chains, and the common demography issues related to aging populations.Clearly patients will benefit directly from enhanced healthcare technologies, including those which arise from our joint research. Some advances will be significant steps, and some incremental. Main beneficiaries of the outputs from the programme are intended to be (a) patients through enhanced treatments or technology, (b) the health delivery services who will apply the products, (c) associated companies in Medical Technology and Pharmaceutical Sciences who will make the products or processing equipment, and, of course, (d) each of the collaborating organisations - Bradford and our Chinese and Indian partner institutions, and our UK collaborators (University partners, companies). Other parties will have opportunity to benefit from our Training and Research networks, which will exploit the new equipment. Our University is also a principal beneficiary, through the increased research capability and the increased capacity it attracts, and also the increasing strength of industrial co-operation and the high level bridge with China and India, in line with our University strategy to develop the these overseas markets, i.e. to develop student recruitment and research collaborations. Our colleagues who are introduced to industrial or international co-operators will also benefit from this programme, so building our industrial and international engagement in research.
We run technology days at Bradford, exploiting our leading facilities, which are supported by equipment suppliers (e.g. Anton Paar, Shin-Etsu, Kistler, Autodesk, ThermoFisher), bringing in further potential collaborators. We have very strong presence at international meetings in the advanced materials - especially polymer-related - areas (at a wide range of materials, biomedical and pharmaceutical events which we are involved in.We run a range of live web sites, several of which are resources for our teams, including www.polyeng.com, www.polymerirc.org, www.ukmig.com, www.sciencebridgeschina.com, www.ukchina-amri.com, www.polymermnt.com, www.brad.ac.uk/research/rkt-centres/advanced-materials-engineering.