Our Laboratories

see the  lab plan here

Processing

  • Micro & Nano Technology processing WB11    (see above)
    - ultraprecision injection moulding using electric and ultrasonic injection technologies, high speed in-process measurements
  • Injection moulding - large scale WB9
    - electric and hydraulic injection moulding, 2K moulding
  • Extrusion large scale WB10
    - medium scale twin screw extrusion, precision feeders; large scale single screw extrusion; precision fibre extrusion
  • Precision solid phase processing WB17
    - small scale die drawing and supporting precision extrusion facilities
  • 3-d printing  WB17
    - fused deposition and liquid laser curing facilities 
  • Clean Room  Suite WB13
    • Reactive Extrusion, with 40:1 L/D twin screw reactive extrusion
    • Nanomaterials Compounding - twin screw extruders and precision feeders
    • Pharmaceuticals processing - stainless steel twin screw extrusion; microscale extrusion compounding
  • Polymer battery manufacture WB15
    - double extruder system
  • Films -  Extrusion & Biaxial stretching WLB1
    - cast film, blown film, film on substrate extrusion facilities;  +  ‘Long’ biaxial stretcher; vertical biaxial stretcher with windowed oven
  • Solid phase processing large scale WLB3
    - large scale die drawing facilities - batch, and continuous die drawing
  • Electrospinning WG37
    - twin stream with roller collector
  • Cell culture WG37
    - two laminar flow units
  • Coating WG17
    - a range of experimental coating facilties for fluid flow/ air entrapment/ rheology studies
  • Compression moulding WLB1, WLB3
    two temperature controlled  (heating and cooling) presses
  • Processing store  WLB4
    - machine elements, spares


Materials Characterisation

  • Surface properties WG21
    - 3 Atomic Force Microscopes, one with confocal laser microscope; 2nd confocal laser microscope; nanoindenter; 
  • Micromechanical properties WG21
    two high precision micromechanical testers - Biomomentum and Bose
  • Rotational & Extensional Rheometry WG21
    - two high precision rotational rheometers, with add on extensional rheometry and shear cell, temperature controlled extension cell
  • Thermal characterisation WG21
    - DSC, TGA
  • Spectroscopy WG33
    - NIR, UV, Raman Surface Mapping
  • TEM WG34
    - FEI/Thermo TEM
  • X-ray WG34
    - Anton Paar SAXSpace
  • Micro CT  WB16
    - Nikon micro CT, large data storage
  • SEM benchtop WB11
    - Hitachi bench top SEM
  • HPLC WG16
    - Waters HPLC
  • Capillary Rheometry WG9
    - Rosand RH10 and Rosand RH7 twin bore capillary rheometers
  • Norcroft Building:  University Analytical Centre
    - SEM/nmr/Raman microscopy/ DMA/ 


Materials Preparation

  • cryomicrotoming  WG21
  • microscopy sample preparation  WLB1
  • chemical preparation - Clean Room WG13
  • fume cupboard - Clean Room WG13
  • TEM sample preparation
  • Materials stores - WG18 & Loading Bay


Computer modelling

  • Computer Modelling Centre WG17
    - range of commercial modelling software including Autodesk Moldflow, Abaqus and in-house codes
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