Academia-Industry Partnership Advances Materials Science

The Materials Innovation Centre (MatIC) – a long-term strategic partnership between TWI and the University of Leicester established in 2016 – is at the forefront of metallic materials research into how properties and performance relate to the processing-dependent microstructures, and the development of computational models to explain these interdependencies.

The University of Leicester is led by discovery and innovation – an international centre for excellence renowned for research, teaching and broadening access to higher education. It is among the Top 30 universities in the Times Higher Education (THE)’s Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2021 rankings, with 89% of research assessed as world-leading or internationally excellent, with wide-ranging impacts on society, health, culture and the environment. The University is home to more than 20,000 students and approximately 4,000 staff.

TWI has been one of the world’s leading, foremost, independent research and technology organisations for over 75 years. It provides advice, knowhow and safety assurance for engineering, materials and joining technologies, helping industries to design, operate and manage the best products and systems possible. TWI also serves around 600 Industrial Member companies, and 6,000+ individual Members of separate professional body, The Welding Institute.

The idea for the Materials Innovation Centre (MatIC) was sparked by the backgrounds and capabilities of, respectively, the University of Leicester, through its School of Engineering, and TWI, in the field of materials science. This led to an exploration of the research and development (R&D) potential offered by building on the two organisations’ existing relationship, materials-focused academia-industry interface and complementary expertise. MatIC was then subsequently formed, and its operational structure follows that of the successful TWI Innovation Centre model first introduced in 2009.

Objectives

The Centre’s objectives are to:

Create a shared research and technology cap` `ability specialising in small and full-scale materials testing in harsh environments
Develop new, experimental techniques and computational models to understand the fundamental mechanisms underlying materials behaviour
Be world-leading in the field of metals research
Undertake joint research programmes with like-minded companies and RTOs
Secure research funding from UK and EU grant funding instruments
Develop the next generation of technologies and engineers in materials science

Approach

MatIC brings together experts from academia and industry, including its own researchers, other universities, RTOs, SMEs and larger companies, to focus on the fundamental understanding of metallic materials, both theoretical and experimental, and how properties and performance are related to processing dependent microstructures, as well as computational, mechanised and material processing models.

The success of MatIC’s R&D activity is reflected in its ongoing portfolio of collaborative technology projects, delivered in conjunction with fellow consortia members as a result of winning enabling grant funding from instruments such as Innovate UK and Horizon Europe, and its predecessor Horizon 2020. The highly intensive grant application process includes ideation and concept development, identifying a suitable grant funding competition, also known as a ‘call’, building a suitable project consortium, financial planning, proposal writing and review, and online submission to meet the funding call deadline. TWI’s Technology Innovation Management team specialises in matching technology concepts to funding opportunities, and is available to assist MatIC, and other TWI Innovation Centres, with the end-to-end project proposal process, as needed.

MatIC also helps nurture engineers of the future, by hosting PhD students who undertake their studies with the University of Leicester and the National Structural Integrity Research Centre (NSIRC), a state-of-the-art postgraduate engineering facility established and managed by TWI. The PhD students work on real-world projects on site at TWI, where MatIC is based, giving them direct access to support from materials science, and other technical, experts. This enables them to expand their knowledge of materials related technologies and industries, and associated capabilities, as well as provides opportunities to co-author technical papers, present at conferences and represent their project at international exhibitions.

NSIRC students at MatIC have opportunities to present at international conferences.

Solutions

The work undertaken by MatIC researchers, in collaboration with UK and European partner consortia, in the years since it was established has created a rich and diverse portfolio of projects, some of which are completed while others are ongoing. Typically, this type of project has a duration of one to three years, and includes dissemination of the technological and industrial findings, and impacts. Below are a selection of MatIC projects which demonstrate the depth and breadth, and industrial relevance, of its R&D activities.

Sol-Rec2: Innovative strategies for multi-layer packaging recycling (Horizon 2020/H2020 funded)

Sol-Rec2 focuses on tackling the challenges of recycling multi-layer packaging, especially in the pharmaceutical and food industries. This packaging type often consists of several layers of polymers and metals, and is a significant source of pollution. Sol-Rec2 aims to develop smart digital watermarks that can help sort these materials more efficiently and create eco-friendly solvent systems to minimise waste. By advancing these technologies, the project will promote sustainable packaging design and reduce the need for new raw materials, ultimately supporting both the environment and industries that rely on packaging and recycling. Relevant industries: Product packaging, recycling, pharmaceutical, food.

FLEXIBAT: Graphene-enhanced, thin, flexible printed battery for electronic wearable and Internet of Things (IoT) devices (Innovate UK/IUK funded)

The battery source in wearable and IoT devices, such as fitness watches and smart sensors, is holding back market expansion because existing flexible batteries have limitations such as insufficient power generation and high cost. FLEXIBAT addressed the situation by developing a novel, single-use, cost-effective battery based on zinc-carbon chemistry and metal collectors. This was achieved by creating a special corrosion-protective layer for battery metal collectors and electrodes, using graphene to enable a thinner, more flexible and higher energy battery, and then developing a technology demonstrator prototype of the full battery system which was tested in a controlled environment. Relevant industries: Wearable and flexible electronics.

GEOHEX: High performance heat exchanger materials for geothermal application (H2020)

Geothermal power plants provide a flexible source of energy, however, the harsh environments they operate in mean that components are under threat from corrosion and scaling issues, resulting in high capital, running and maintenance costs. An area identified as important to addressing this situation is the optimisation of the heat exchangers used. GEOHEX developed materials for three different heat

transfer mechanisms; single phase heat transfer, condensing surface and boiling surface, together with sustainability and cost models. The project findings were also incorporated into a knowledge based engineering tool combined with a multi-criteria decision-support system. Relevant industries: Renewable energy.

FORGE: Innovate coatings for energy-intensive industries (Horizon Europe/HE)

The FORGE project aimed to develop cost-effective, protective coatings, based on novel, compositionally complex materials (CCMs), for use in a range of challenging applications. The new coatings, incorporating smart monitoring of deterioration, met industry’s need to improve the tolerance of base structural materials to damage mechanisms such as erosion, corrosion, surface oxidation and hydrogen embrittlement. Machine learning models, thermodynamic calculations and high-throughput experiments were also incorporated into the project. Once formulated, the effectiveness of the new coatings was demonstrated via testing on processes including waste heat recovery, and components subject to wear and tear in kilns. Relevant industries: Steel, cement, ceramics.

CoCaCo2la: Conversion of captured CO2 to industrial chemicals

Carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) is likely to be a key enabling technology for the UK in achieving its net zero targets by 2050. The CoCaCo2la project aims to assist this by devising a method to convert CO2 to ethylene on demand, applying flexible, tuneable CO2 electrolysers and a nanostructured copper catalyst, while harnessing excess renewable energy at times of low or negative energy prices, or when the power grid is overloaded. Benefits include more flexibility in the grid, the generation of value-added chemicals, such as polyethylene, and a reduction in CO2 emissions. Relevant industries: Power generation, renewable energy.

Benefits

During the years since MatIC’s inception, the underpinning strategic relationship between the University of Leicester and TWI has delivered a wide range of benefits to academia and industry as well as to the partners themselves:

Materials related R&D output has been boosted through winning competitive grant funding to deliver technology projects
Access to industrially relevant, fundamental research at Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) 1-3 has been amplified through the incorporation of NSIRC PhD students into MatIC activities
Novel, materials-related technologies and processes have been created and validated through the delivery of grant funded, collaborative projects
The materials knowledge base has deepened as a result of cross fertilisation of knowledge and expertise
New R&D opportunities have been opened up via expanded networks built through working with UK and European partners on collaborative projects
Industry and academia with interests in materials science have been able to learn from MatIC, as a result of collaborative project dissemination by its researchers including the co-authoring and publishing of in excess of 30 technical publications in leading scientific and industry journals, presenting at international conferences, and participating in project-based webinars and workshops
The next generation of materials science professionals is being supported, through the transition of a number of NSIRC PhD students into MatIC staff, post qualification

MatIC’s forward thinking, collaborative approach, and success in formulating novel concepts that are turned into deliverable projects through the securing of grant funding, mean that it is will well positioned to continue innovating in the field of materials science, thereby contributing to academia, industry, the environment and the careers of materials specialists.

GEOHEX: High performance heat exchanger materials for geothermal application.

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