Division of Chemical Engineering and Renewable Energy

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On this page:

• Academic Members
• Postdoc Research Assistants
• Professional Services
• Current PhD Students
• PhD Graduates

Academic Members

Dr Folashade Akinmolayan Taiwo MEng, PhD, SFHEA Senior Lecturer in Engineering Education Primary research interests are: Student experience of teamwork as an indicator for employability skills; Engagement and retention of students within Engineering through active learning techniques; Cultural and social impacts on the approaches to learning; Diversity and inclusion within Engineering. Secondary research interests are: Process modelling and simulation; Clean Water Treatment processes.  +44 (0)20 7882 7281      f.akinmolayan@qmul.ac.uk

Dr Paul Balcombe MEng, PhD, CEng, MIChemE Lecturer in Chemical Engineering and Renewable Energy Specialises in developing unique technology-specific, probabilistic emissions/cost modelling of energy supply chains, particularly relating to methane emissions from natural gas, as well as hydrogen and ammonia supply chains.  +44 (0)20 7882 6279      p.balcombe@qmul.ac.uk

Dr Edo Boek PhD Reader in Chemical Engineering Research in the group of Dr Edo Boek focuses on energy engineering. One of the greatest challenges of our generation is the supply of energy in a sustainable, secure and affordable manner (Energy-Trilemma). Our group investigates novel technologies to achieve this goal, including 1) Geothermal Energy Engineering, in particular development of drilling fluids stable under HPHT conditions, minimising Lost Circulation and Formation Damage; 2) design of carbon electrodes for electrochemical devices, including Redox Flow Batteries, using pore-scale imaging, reactive multi-phase flow modelling and MD simulation; 3) bio-fuel extraction from micro-algae, using Photo-Bio-Reactor (PBR) / soft matter experiments; 4) sustainable drinking water treatment, including water softening and GAC filtration, using Fluidised Bed Reactor (FBR) experiments (with Waternet Amsterdam);  +44 (0)20 7882 2964      e.boek@qmul.ac.uk

Dr Adrian Briggs BSc (Eng) PhD (Lond) Reader in Mechanical Engineering Enhanced Heat Transfer, Two-Phase Flow, Condensation  +44 (0)20 7882 8876      a.briggs@qmul.ac.uk

Dr Joe Briscoe MSci (Hons), PhD, FHEA, CSci, MIMMM, MInstP Reader in Energy Materials & Devices My group's research is focused on the use of thin films and nanostructured materials for renewable energy applications, including: semiconductor photocatalysts, photoelectrocatalysis (PEC) & solar fuels; photovoltaic devices; ferroelectrics for solar energy conversion; piezoelectric energy harvesting. We have a particular interest in the use of polar (ferroelectric & piezoelectric) materials and nanomaterials in these devices with expertise in solution-based synthesis of materials, material characterisation and device fabrication and testing, including flexible devices.  +44 (0)20 7882 3552      j.briscoe@qmul.ac.uk

Dr Andrew Buchan BSc MSc PhD Senior Lecturer in Engineering Science I design numerical models for predicting the behaviour and understanding the uncertainties in the operation of nuclear reactor cores and other nuclear processing facilities. In particular I develop mathematical models to accurately predict neutron and gamma transport within nuclear reactors, and couple these to thermal hydraulic codes that model coolant flows and heat transfer within a core. I am particularly interested in analysing both current nuclear reactors as well as those due to be built within the UK in the coming years, in particular the boiling water reactors. I am also heavily involved in the design of new mathematical models that predict the progression/state of a nuclear reactor's core in the event of severe accident scenarios.  +44 (0)20 7882 6087      a.buchan@qmul.ac.uk

Prof James Busfield MA, PhD, CEng, FREng, FIMMM, FHEA Professor of Materials Examining the physical behaviour by experiment and modelling techniques of soft matter such as elastomers and rubber materials. Properties of interest include abrasion, friction, fracture, creep, fatigue, viscoelastic behaviour, modulus enhancement and composite filler reinforcement. Developing smart soft materials that can sense their environment and soft actuating materials that can change shape in response to a physical stimulus.  +44 (0)20 7882 8866      j.busfield@qmul.ac.uk

Dr Patrick Cullen PhD Lecturer in Renewable Energy My expertise is in synthesising scalably made nanomaterials and embedding them into energy devices for increased perfomance.  +44(0)20 7882 6596      p.cullen@qmul.ac.uk

Prof Xi Jiang PhD, CEng, FIMechE, AFIChemE Director of Division of Chemical Engineering and Renewable Energy / Professor of Mechanical Engineering The expertise of Prof Jiang is primarily in sustainable and cleaner energy utilisation, which includes but not limited to the applications of high-fidelity modelling and simulation to the following research areas: (1) combustion utilisation of alternative and renewable fuels including chemical kinetics studies, (2) greenhouse gas mitigation technologies including combustion mitigation of low-concentration methane; (3) flow in porous media and geological carbon storage, and (4) battery thermal management and thermal management in computer systems.  +44 (0)20 7882 5009      xi.jiang@qmul.ac.uk

Dr Ana Jorge Sobrido PhD, MIMMM, FHEA Reader in Sustainable Energy Materials Ana's research focuses on the development of new electroactive materials for energy conversion and storage devices. Her group's expertise ranges from the synthesis of new compounds through multiple synthesis approaches to electrode ink formulation strategies and assembly and testing into real electrochemical devices.  +44(0)20 7882 6782      a.sobrido@qmul.ac.uk

Prof Andrew Livingston PhD, MSc (Economics), BEng (Hons) Vice-Principal (Research) and Professor of Chemical Engineering Molecular Separations. Membrane fabrication, membrane characterisation, membrane transport processes, membrane process simulation. Chemical and biochemical processes. Synthesis of exact polymers, including oligonucleotide therapeutics, peptides, PEGs and Antibody Drug Conjugates (ADC). Membrane processes in organic systems. Organic Solvent Nanofiltration (OSN). Defined monomer sequence synthetic polymers. Polymer therapeutics. Scale up of chemical processes. Scale up of membrane fabrication processes. Creation of new technology platforms for oligo synthesis, peptide synthesis, advanced ADC, PEGylation of biopharmaceuticals.  +44 (0)20 7882 3006      a.livingston@qmul.ac.uk

Prof Hazel Screen BEng MRes PhD(Lond) CEng Professor of Biomedical Engineering My research aims to understand how our tissues are built to be able to withstand the loads they experience in the body. I am particularly interested in understanding tendon and heart valve; how and why they get injured, and ways to prevent this happening. By looking at the ways a tissue is supposed to work when it is healthy, we can identify how small changes in the structure, such as those which occur with age, can make injury more likely and look to prevent or treat these specifically.  +44 (0)20 7882 8875      h.r.c.screen@qmul.ac.uk

Dr Radomir Slavchov BSc, MSc, PhD Lecturer in Chemical Engineering (i) Adsorption of surfactants and electrolytes; (ii) capillary shapes, capillary flows, wetting, biomechanics; (iii) theory of surface electric phenomena; (iv) chemical physics of mixtures, fuel chemistry; (v) combustion engines.  +44 (0)20 7882 8938      r.slavchov@qmul.ac.uk

Prof Stoyan Smoukov Professor of Chemical Engineering  +44 (0)20 7882 5305      s.smoukov@qmul.ac.uk

Dr Yi Sui PhD, MInstP, Fellow HEA Reader in Fluid Mechanics  +44 (0)20 7882 7763      y.sui@qmul.ac.uk

Dr Petra Ágota Szilágyi PhD, MRSC, FHEA, MSc, MA Co-director of Division of Chemical Engineering and Renewable Energy / Senior Lecturer in Functional Materials I am interested in developing materials for energy applications, in particular for fuel synthesis. When solid materials are of very small particles their properties (such as colour, electric conductivity. etc.) starts to depend on the particle size. My main goal is to achieve control of the properties of materials by controlling their particle size and shape. There are various ways to control particle size, and in my approach templates of well-defined size and shape are used. The above templates are pores of a kind of material called metal-organic frameworks. This is a relatively new kind of materials and they can enter very diverse interactions with guest materials, which I aim to explore to further tailor the latter's properties.  +44 (0)20 7882 7948      p.szilagyi@qmul.ac.uk

Dr Roberto Volpe PhD Senior Lecturer in Chemical Engineering I design pyrolysis and gasification experiments to study the fundamental aspects of biomass thermal decomposition. My expertise ranges from the investigation of the pathways to thermo-chemical breakdown of solid biofuels to the synthesis of gaseous/liquid energy vectors and renewable carbon materials for catalysis and environmental applications such as water or soil remediation.  +44 (0)20 7882 7748      r.volpe@qmul.ac.uk

Prof Wen Wang PhD, CEng, FIMechE, FHEA, FAIMBE, FREng Vice-Principal and Executive Dean for Science and Engineering Vascular endothelial mechanics, cell mechanobiology, flow and solute transport in extracellular matrices, microcirculation, arterial haemodynamics, cell & tissue mechanics  +44 (0)20 7882 3031      wen.wang@qmul.ac.uk

Dr Yousef  Zawahreh BEng(Hons), PhD, PGCert, FHEA Senior Lecturer in Engineering Materials & Design My background is in materials, an area of that spans all other engineering disciplines (almost). My interests lie in identifying and commercialising design-related solutions that come from the boundaries between disciplines. Sustainability and healthcare are at the top of my list. Engineering education is another passion of mine. The current coronavirus pandemic upheaval has been challenging but perhaps in a good way. Innovation and progress are borne out of adversity and this situation is no different. I am extremely interested in how can we use this upheaval to advance engineering education in a post-COVID era.  y.zawahreh@qmul.ac.uk

Dr Han Zhang MEng, PhD, PGCAP, FHEA, CEng, CSci, MIMMM Senior Lecturer in Materials Science Han's expertise in the field of composites range from design and manufacturing to characterization of advanced composites and nanocomposites, especially of multifunctional composites for future lightweight structural applications. His current research focuses on the sustainable development of advanced composites, including energy efficient sustainable manufacturing, integrated health monitoring and easy repairing functionalities for extended components' life.  +44 (0)20 7882 2726      han.zhang@qmul.ac.uk

Postdoc Research Associates

Ms Maria Burggraef Research Assistant/Early Career Researcher  m.burggraef@qmul.ac.uk  Supervisor: Andrew Livingston

Dr Stephen Burrows MEng, MSc, PhD Postdoctoral Research Assistant  07999088315      s.burrows@qmul.ac.uk  Supervisor: Stoyan Smoukov

Dr Jianxin Chen PhD Visiting Postdoctoral Research Assistant  +44(0)7421466592      jianxin.chen@qmul.ac.uk  Supervisor: Stoyan Smoukov

Dr Marcus Cook Research Associate  marcus.cook@qmul.ac.uk  Supervisor: Andrew Livingston

Dr Danilo Cuccato Research Associate  d.cuccato@qmul.ac.uk  Supervisor: Andrew Livingston

Mr Jingyu Feng BSc, MEng Project Assistant  jingyu.feng@qmul.ac.uk  Supervisor: Patrick Cullen

Dr Simon Grossemy Postdoctoral Research Assistant  s.grossemy@qmul.ac.uk  Supervisor: Hazel Screen

Dr Zhiwei Jiang Research Associate  zhiwei.jiang@qmul.ac.uk  Supervisor: Andrew Livingston

Dr Jihoon Kim Research Associate  jihoon.kim@qmul.ac.uk  Supervisor: Andrew Livingston

Dr Weiqi Li BMed, MMed, PhD Postdoctoral Research Assistant My research focuses on the vascular biology and vascular engineering. Particular interest goes to the endothelial glycocalyx, a protective layer along the luminal surface of the blood vessel. I aim to elucidate how the glycocalyx develops and sheds under healthy and diseased vascular conditions. I also work on endothelial mechanics and directional cell migration on different types of substrate, with the ultimate gold of understanding the process of vascular stiffening and aging.  +44 (0)20 7882 7821      wei-qi.li@qmul.ac.uk  Supervisor: Wen Wang

Dr Daniel Melling Postdoctoral Research Assistant  d.melling@qmul.ac.uk  Supervisor: Stoyan Smoukov

Miss Lokeshwari Mohan Postdoctoral Research Assistant  l.mohan@qmul.ac.uk  Supervisor: Joe Briscoe

Dr Ehsan Nourafkan Postdoctoral Research Assistant  e.nourafkan@qmul.ac.uk  Supervisor: Stoyan Smoukov

Dr Michael Thielke Postdoctoral Research Assistant  m.thielke@qmul.ac.uk  Supervisor: Ana Jorge Sobrido

Dr Charlie Waugh Marie Sklodowska-Curie Research Fellow  c.waugh@qmul.ac.uk  Supervisor: Hazel Screen

Dr Naveed Zaidi Research Associate  n.zaidi@qmul.ac.uk  Supervisor: Andrew Livingston

Dr Danae Zamboulis DVM, PhD Postdoctoral Research Assistant I am a postdoctoral research associate with an interest in musculoskeletal biology and in particular the development of structure function in tendons. I completed a degree in Veterinary Medicine and an internship in Equine Medicine and Surgery from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece, and subsequently undertook a PhD at the University of Liverpool. I have expertise in tendon biology, molecular biology techniques, proteomics and a good understanding of biomechanics.  d.zamboulis@qmul.ac.uk  Supervisor: Hazel Screen

Mr Hao Zou Research Assistant  h.zou@qmul.ac.uk  Supervisor: Han Zhang

Professional Services

Dr Russell Bailey PhD, FRMS, SI Analytical Laboratories Manager Oversees the technical support provision within the analytical laboratories of the school. Facilitates support for research and teaching, in line with the universityâ??s long-term strategic objectives. Primary areas of expertise are electron and scanning probe microscopies, and mechanical testing.  +44 (0)20 7882 8468      r.j.bailey@qmul.ac.uk

Dr Erica Di Federico PhD Mechanical Testing Technician Provides comprehensive technical support for the mechanical testing facilities for academic staff, postgraduate, and undergraduate students within the School to enable the achievement of teaching and research aims and objectives. This comprises supporting appropriate research projects, managing contract testing and assisting with practical classes, demonstrations and in the development of prototypes and experimental equipment for teaching and research. Responsible for the operation and upkeep of the materials processing and mechanical testing laboratories. Responsible for the instruction, guidance, and supervision of staff and students in the use of laboratory equipment and techniques as appropriate.  +44 (0)20 7882 5054      e.difederico@qmul.ac.uk

Mr Nick Duggan Workshop Technician I'm a mechanical production engineer with many years experience in all aspects of mechanical maintenance, manufacture and workshop practice. I have wide experience in working on a range of equipment and plant in the chemical, process and mechanical engineering fields, specifically those in research, teaching and pilot plants.  +44 (0)20 7882 6836      n.duggan@qmul.ac.uk

Dr Benjamin Gridley MChem, PhD Technical Facilities Manager  +44 (0)20 7882 8740      b.m.gridley@qmul.ac.uk

Dr Shoghik Hakobyan PhD Materials Characterisation Technician  +44 (0)20 7882 6943      s.hakobyan@qmul.ac.uk

Mr Dennis Ife Mechanical Workshop Manager Provides and manages comprehensive mechanical technical support for staff and students in the School to enable the achievement of teaching and research aims and objectives. Responsible for the operation, upkeep and management of the mechanical workshops and the technical team within those areas. Mechanical/Research Workshop, G54. Makerspace suite, 106. Whitehead Laboratory.  +44 (0)20 7882 6383      d.ife@qmul.ac.uk

Dr Armando Lacerda PhD Research Laboratories Manager  +44 (0)20 7882 7461      a.m.lacerda@qmul.ac.uk

Ms Jun Ma BSc, MSc, MPhil Laboratory Technician Provides comprehensive technical support for staff and students in the School to enable the achievement of teaching and research aims and objectives. To be responsible for the operation and upkeep of the laboratory area of Instrumentation. Responsible for the instruction, guidance and supervision of staff and students in the use of laboratory equipment and techniques as appropriate.  +44 (0)20 7882 5057      j.ma@qmul.ac.uk

Mr Andrew McDonald Mechanical Workshop Technician Apprentice trained mechanical engineer providing support to students and staff in manufacturing and CAD/CAM processes to enable the achievement of teaching, research aims and objectives.  +44(0)20 7882 6383      andrew.mcdonald@qmul.ac.uk

Mr Danny Neighbour BSc,MSc,CEng MIEE Laboratory Technician Provides comprehensive technical support for staff and students in the School to enable the achievement of teaching and research aims and objectives. To be responsible for the operation and upkeep of the laboratory areas of Robotics and Servo PBL. Responsible for the instruction, guidance and supervision of staff and students in the use of laboratory equipment and techniques as appropriate.  +44 (0)20 7882 5056      d.neighbour@qmul.ac.uk

Dr Giovanni Santagiuliana BSc, MSc, PhD Polymer Research Manager Thermoplastic polymer processing, nanocomposites, graphene-based composites, materials characterisation, analytical modelling, materials and products development, cycling  +44 (0)20 7882 2792      g.santagiuliana@qmul.ac.uk

Mr James Searles Mechanical Workshop Technician I have 20 years experience in the manufacturing industry primarily in the f1 and aerospace industry  02078826577      j.searles@qmul.ac.uk

Current PhD Students

PhD Graduates