PhD students

Laser based additive manufacturing (AM) processes, such as laser powder bed fusion (PBF-LB), offer a great degree of control over how materials are processed during manufacture. Adding the capability to seamlessly change materials within a single part will offer greater design opportunities. As such, desirable functional properties can be promoted in selective regions of an additive manufactured part.

My research aims to establish guidelines for the transition from one metal to another using PBF-LB, ensuring that reliable parts are fabricated with no structural defects.

Organ tissue models have emerged as promising platforms for studying human organs in vitro, but their ability to replicate the native tissue environment remains a challenge. During my project I´m investigating a novel approach to fabricate clinically relevant hepatic tissue models by incorporating complex anatomical features using a combination of suitable materials, design tools, and Projection Micro-Stereolithography (PµSLA). My aim is to recreate liver ECM features, enhancing the biomimetic properties of the construct by using hydrogels and stochastic design tools.

The project will focus on the development and formulation of low-dimensional materials, as well as functional polymers, for inkjet printing. The properties of these materials (electronic, optical, mechanical, etc) will be tailored for specific applications. This project has the potential to further our fundamental understanding of materials formulation, as well as lead to the development of inks with commercial value.

There is an increasing demand for high performance and durable materials in additive manufacturing, particularly in the microelectronics industry. Polyimides offer attractive chemical and mechanical properties to fulfil this need, however, several barriers still exist to utilising these materials in 3D printing techniques. My project focusses on the formulation of novel polyimides that can be inkjet printed directly, without the need for using organic solvents in the printing and processing stages.

I completed my master’s in chemistry at the University of Hull. My final year project was focused on the coupling of two metal species to beta-lactam antibiotics (methicillin etc.).  
I hope to synthesize a diagnostic nanoparticle with therapeutic capabilities. 

Inkjet printing offers a new method for fabrication of flexible electronics, although this is still an emerging area of interest, and challenges are faced in the printability of different materials as well as the range of substrates available. My research involves the development of low dimensional materials and inkjet printing towards their functionalisation in healthcare electronics, primarily concerned with sensory devices. The aim is to enable the deposition of conductive materials onto flexible textile-based substrates for use in a healthcare setting aimed at wound monitoring. 

This project seeks to process glass-ceramics destined for bio-medical applications using the Additive Manufacturing technique of laser powder bed fusion, specifically selective laser melting (SLM), using a combination of experimental and numerical methods. The project will utilise cutting-edge SLM apparatus, investigating novel processing strategies in tandem with characterisation and modelling to enable the processing of glass-ceramic materials such as bioactive glasses. This group of materials possess advanced biocompatibility and therapeutic properties, which can be augmented by the flexibility of additive manufacturing, enabling multi-scale material design and bespoke structures for producing highly efficacious implants in a reproducible and cost-effective manner. Successfully processing these materials via SLM will generate impact by paving the way for the wider adoption of bioactive glasses in bespoke medical implants.

My research aims to transform near-infrared quantum dots into targeted imaging probes. This will involve the synthesis of stable QD’s with emission in the NIR region, and then the attachment of targeting molecules such as affibodies. Biocompatibility and targeting will also be assessed. 

My project focuses on the additive manufacturing of nanotechnology and bioengineering concepts.The project serves as an amelioration of the traditional manufacturing process of medical devices by utilizing novel high performing polymers for the production of bacterial biofilm resistant surfaces. The pathogenic bacteria which undergo a biofilm lifecycle on the surface of medical devices pose an extreme risk to patients. Bacteria living in their biofilm mode of growth immensely contribute to chronic infection and the emergence of drug-resistance with biofilms forming on both biotic and abiotic surfaces. Thus, the project aims to fabricate bespoke devices through additive manufacturing techniques by utilizing bacterial biofilm inhibiting materials without the need of external coatings or antibiotics. Other research interests include Nanotechnology, Polymer Chemistry, Arthroplasty Design and bringing biomaterials into Additive Manufacturing. 

The project aims to develop new approaches for sustainable materials for additive manufacturing of active release devices. We aim to engineer these devices to release substances in a controlled and precise manner, allowing applications in areas such as healthcare and agriculture.

My research aims to address the knowledge gap surrounding metallic functional materials and establish new methods for multi-metal additive manufacturing (AM). This requires the identification of suitable material combinations for laser based additive AM and the determination of appropriate design guidelines for the interfaces formed between dissimilar materials. Investigating structural and thermal behaviour of interface regions will therefore play a key role throughout this research project, done by studying the printing laser parameters effect on these regions. Additionally, gaining an understanding on material distributions at the interface regions will be important. Furthermore, my research will continue where I left off from my MSc research project. Here, I investigated how mixed feedstock from multi-metal AM can be recovered and separated into its respective components, enabling its reuse in future manufacturing iterations.

My research is in the field of inkjet printing for 3D electrically active materials. My aim is to create complex 3D conductive structures embedded in a supportive, insulating matrix for use as GHz-THz metamaterials and antennae. To enable this, I am researching the balance of processing conditions and material properties required for simultaneous multi-material printing. I’m also developing novel printing strategies for improved geometric control over the final print

“The research focuses on the development of 3D printed glass for use in flow chemistry systems. Polymers have extensive use in the fabrication of microfluidic systems due to their controllable properties such as shape fidelity and applicability to different 3D printing methods. However, limitations around chemical compatibility, temperature tolerance, material leeching and air-permeability are yet to be suitably addressed. Glass is a desirable material for use in AM due to its chemical inertness, high transparency and physical tolerances. Additional work will be undertaken in adding both sensing and reactive functionality to the printed glass.

As part of the EPSRC/SFI - CDT in Sustainable Chemistry, this work is supported by The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, Grant Number - EP/S022236/1”

I'm investigating the mechanics of how mussels and other organisms adhere in wet and hostile environments, then seeing how we can mimic those mechanics for use in engineering applications

During the course of my PhD I will be processing Fe-based soft magnetic bulk metallic glasses via L-PBF for applications in motors for E-mobility.  A major goal of my research is to look for a solution to the inverse problem or the inverse model, in which I want to define a temperature history for a part that will give desired properties and then model the parameters needed to recreate this part history.

My research project lies at the intersection of additive manufacturing and electrical machines. I am looking at the optimized printing of conductive materials (such as copper and copper alloys) using the L-PBF (SLM) AM process for the application of stator windings in electrical machines to enable the 3D printing of windings for electrical machines. 

Application of selective laser sintering in biomedical filed has been hampered by the lack of suitable polymeric materials. In order to overcome this hurdle, Marica is synthesising biocompatible core-shell particles.Shell of the particles is composed of sintrable material, while core is made of photocurable non-processable matrix with drug-incorporating potential.Particle synthesis is performed in coaxial jet mixer, which can be upgraded to continuously fabricate particles, in amounts of up to several kg/day.

I am investigating characteristics of immobilised enzyme reactors and the use of light-based printing to produce reactors of higher performance than previous designs. Optimisation will be achieved through the development of materials and structural design.

MetalJet is an emerging AM process that facilitates the digital deposition of various metal materials. This EPSRC-funded PhD study concentrates on the extension of MetalJet technology from its original single-material capability to a multi-material potential, based upon insights gained from previous MetalJet studies. The project started with constructing a dual-head MetalJet system equipped with an innovative control system. The primary objective of this project is to address the emerging issues associated with multi-material printing, namely relevant to printhead alignment, jetting temperatures and substrate temperature. This study will investigate material pairings at both low and high temperatures. 

This PhD project is in collaboration with BP Castrol and will apply both chemistry and engineering to develop novel polymeric lubricants for electric transportation. Polyurea based lubricating greases have attracted much interest due to its excellent oxidative and thermal stability, good load bearing character and promising material compatibility with elastomers and paints. Specifically, this project aims to develop a series of isocyanate free polyurea polymers that have the desired properties to fit with the intended end use application and continuous manufacturing techniques to manufacture high performance polyurea lubricants. Microwave technology and reactive extrusion in particular will be considered as new manufacturing options for polyurea based lubricating grease. 

Current high performance magnetic shields for quantum technologies and fundamental physics experiments use thick layers of high permeability metal in order to reduce the magnetic field in the enclosed volume. This is very effective, but leads to cost and weight issues due to the amount of material used, which is especially a problem in space-based and portable applications. By manufacturing the magnetic shield using laser powder bed fusion, it should be possible to tailor the shield’s geometry and topology in order to make a lighter shield that still meets the application’s magnetic shielding requirements.