Tue, 25 January, 2022
Meet one of the January starters beginning their PhD journey at TWI
Arunima Bhuvanendran Nair Jayakumari is just one of last PhD students to join the ever growing programme at the National Structural Integrity Research Centre (NSIRC) in Cambridge, UK.
Supported in her doctoral research by the University of Leicester and Lloyd's Register Foundation, Arunima began her research win January 2022 and will be working alongside globally renowned scientists and engineers from TWI Ltd.
Welcome, Arunima! Please talk to us about your background and what made you want to pursue an industry focused PhD?
Thank you so much. I have a BSc in Chemistry and after completing that, I undertook a MSc with the Department of Chemistry at the University of Kerala, India.
During my Master’s, I worked as an Intern at the National Institute for Interdisciplinary Science and Technology, then and as a Project Student at Indian Institute of Science (IISc).
Working within these established and respected institutions of India has pushed my scientific curiosity and inspired me to follow a career in industrial research.
I think doing an industry-led PhD allows you to work with more experienced people, that will in-turn help you to grow professionally and personally.
And as the industrial education and research provides more focus on practical and applicable outcomes, it will contribute towards making a positive change in the world.
My strongest desire is to become a scientist and thereby contribute significantly towards the scientific community, and to society, while also gaining a great deal of personal satisfaction.
What can you tell us about your PhD topic?
I started my PhD in January and the topic of my research is ‘Design of materials for Hydrogen Service(MaHy)’.
The project will develop an understanding of materials behaviour in hydrogen for different alloy systems.
Ultimately, the aim will be to quantify the hydrogen embrittlement (HE) behaviour of metallic materials in hydrogen charging atmospheres.
How do you like to relax or spend time outside of work or research?
I love to read books and that's how I spend a lot of my spare time.
Doing yoga is also something I love, as well as dance which are both very relaxing and definitely helps me manage my stress level.
Apart from those I find happiness in baking goodies for my family and friends.
Lastly, do you have any advice for anyone trying to decide on a PhD topic?
I suggest that they read a lot about the topic, it’s relevance and how much importance it will have in the future.
Also talk with friends or colleagues who are currently pursuing postgraduate research in your topic of interest and find out more about it.
Commit yourself and go for it, that is what I would say to them!