euromech presentation 2, version 2

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(No Transcript)
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Members

• Peter Matthews
• -Reader
• Debbie Holtham
• -about to submit PhD
• -Pore-Cor customer support manager
• Maurizio Laudone
• -Post-doc
• John Price
• -PhD student
• Daniel Gantenbein
• -about to start PhD

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Mission statement

• To carry out world class research into the
• structure of porous materials,
• and the behaviour of pore fluids,
• especially when these systems are of
• environmental importance.

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Aims

• To carry out world class research into the
  structure of porous materials, particularly
• soil, sinters, paper coatings, catalysts,
  filters and remediation adsorbents.
• To enhance understanding of the behaviour of pore
  fluids within these materials.
• To disseminate the research with publications,
  presentations, workshops and the sale of
  software.

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Six current research projects

• Structuring of soil under white clover
• PhD project jointly funded by University of
  Plymouth and the Institute of Grassland and
  Environmental Research, North Wyke. Deborah
  Holtham about to submit thesis.
• Measurement and modelling of the depth-filtration
  properties of sintered filters
• PhD project being carried out by John Price,
  funded by Porvair Technology Limited.
• Absorption and diffusion properties of
  surface-modified calcium carbonate V70
• Post-doctoral project being carried out by
  Maurizio Laudone, funded by Omya AG.
• Wettability of agricultural soils relative to
  carbon content and management practice
• Project being carried out by Peter Matthews, with
  help from John Price, jointly with Richard
  Whalley, Chris Watts and David Powlson of
  Rothamsted Research.
• Study of the cable oil absorption characteristics
  of commercial soil-based remediation compounds
• Project being carried out by Deborah Holtham,
  funded by National Grid through University of
  Plymouth Enterprise.
• Adsorption properties of pitch and stickies on
  mineral particles prevention of deposits in the
  papermaking water circuit environment
• New PhD project funded by Omya AG, carried out by
  Daniel Gantenbein.

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Overall strategy and research links

• Focus on core research activity
• Following major but abortive attempts to set up
  Environmental Diagnostics and an SEOES Modelling
  Group
• Very high pro rata output per permanent staff FTE
• Increase publication rate , and raise impact
  factor
• 2 published, plus 1 accepted in 2006 so far, 3 in
  advanced stages of preparation
• Only higher impact factor journals now being
  targeted
• Set up Pore-Cor as self-sustaining operation
• Sales now sufficient to fund Debbie Holtham
  part-time, fund future programming, and pay
  royalties
• Pore-Cor has produced 20 of all HEIF2 outputs
  (licences, courses etc)
• Major increase in funding will be sought for
  2006/7
• Promote major research links with other top
  research institutes
• IGER, Rothamsted, SIMBIOS Dundee, University of
  Rennes
• jointly funded studentship, soil wetting project,
  BBSRC grant application, BSc student

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Overall strategy and research links

• Form productive links with instrument
  manufacturers and agents
• Micromeritics
• Thermo Electron
• Quantachrome
• InterScience (Belgium)
• Bonsai Advanced Technologies (Spain)
• Folio Instruments (Canada)
• Syl and Ant Instruments (Poland)
• SESA A.S. (Turkey)
• Pro-Tech (Korea)
• Promote links with industrial sponsors
• Omya (Switzerland)
• Porvair Filtration
• National Grid
• Ultraseal
• ResLab
• Johnson Matthey Catalysts
• Lexmark (USA / International)
• SCA Graphic Research (Sweden)

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Overall strategy and research links

• Make fruitful ad hoc links with other University
  research groups
• Paul Sutton assistance with design of zero length
  cell
• Paul Worsfold external advisor on filtration
  project, etc
• Steve Rowland advisor on estrogens
• Stephen Huggett maths advisor for particle
  modelling
• Mark Anderson requested software training for the
  London Geological Society

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Research highlights

• Prizes
• Top ten posters, SET for BRITAIN at House of
  Commons, Nov 2003
• Best presentation, TAPPI Coating Fundamentals
  Chicago, May 2003
• Media coverage
• TV interview, Carlton TV, June 2003
• Interview Nov 2005 for The Furrow
• PhD completions since 2003
• Paul Bodurtha, Anthony Johnson, Maurizio Laudone,
  (Debbie Holtham imminent)
• Pore-Cor Research Suite
• Excellent reviews in Chemistry World a
  comprehensive tool.. and GeoTech and GeoEnv
  Software directory My pick of the new programs
  in 2005
• In use for a wide range of porous materials in
  around a dozen research centres world-wide
• Used to categorise the oil transmission hazard
  level for 1000 soils surrounding the National
  Grids sub-terranean high-tension cable junction
  bays, with the data incorporated into the overall
  maintenance priority schedule

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Research highlights

• International training courses
• Three 6-monthly 3-day international training
  courses for the Pore-Cor software have been held
  at Plymouth, and have attracted 20 delegates from
  France, Italy, Germany USA, Poland, Sweden and
  the UK
• Recent and pending invited lectures
• London PetroPhysical Society (March 2006)
• Filtration Society, Loughborough (Feb 2006)
• British Soil Water Physics Group meetings (Nov
  2005 and June 2006)
• Departmental seminars at Nottingham Env Sci
  (2005) and Bath Chem Eng (March 2006)
• Royal Society of Chemistry Particle
  Characterisation Group conference (2005)
• Johnson Matthey Catalysts (June 2005)
• Tectonic Studies Group of the London Geological
  Society annual conference (Jan 2005)
• See www.pore-cor.com/latest_news.htm