Alzheimer's is marked by a loss of brain cells, whereas glioblastoma is responsible for rapid cell growth. The unexpected relationship between the two, known as ‘inverse comorbidity’, suggests that there might be a deeper biological connection we don’t yet understand. If we could work out what that connection is, we might be able to design vital new treatments. 

Now, a 91ֱ�� team are on a mission to discover the answer and make a positive difference, through what they’ve called the NanoNeuroOmics Project. 
 

The challenge they face 

Both Alzheimer's disease and glioblastoma are often quite well-advanced in a person, by the time they’re diagnosed. The current methods we use for this, such as PET or MRI scans, still aren’t very effective at early detection. What we really need are simple blood tests that can spot changes early on. 

In both conditions, the blood-brain barrier (which normally protects our brain), becomes more permeable – meaning it’s possible to detect disease-related molecules in the blood. This could in turn help us to identify people who were more at risk, and to monitor responses to different types of treatment. 

However, it won’t be easy. In current blood tests, when we’re looking for certain proteins – key indicators of disease – they’re often drowned out by a range of other proteins. Developing a way to spot those blood-based ‘biomarkers’ for brain health, which can easily be used in clinical practice, would be a key next step. 

How 91ֱ�� innovation could make a difference 

By merging expertise in nanotechnology, protein analysis, and blood biomarker discovery, the NanoOmics lab are aiming to: 

1. Identify new blood proteins(biomarkers) that could help in the early diagnosis and monitoring of the Alzheimer's and glioblastoma. 
2. To understand more about the link that Alzheimer's and glioblastoma share. 

The NanoOmics lab is looking to identify these unique biomarkers by tracking protein changes in blood and the brain over time, and across different stages of both diseases. They will use nanotechnology to detect these 'protein markers,' employing nanoparticles to isolate them from the multitude of other molecules present in the blood. With their ‘Nanoomics’ technology, these nanoparticles capture disease-related molecules, acting almost like tiny ’fishing nets’. Using this approach, the team can filter out a huge number of other proteins that are currently getting in the way. In turn, by analysing what they’ve captured, our researchers are aiming to identify new biomarkers that are currently undetectable by state-of-the art protein analysis approaches. 

Hope for the future 

To achieve this, Group Leader Dr Marilena Hadjidemetriou and her NanoOmics team have been combining long-term studies in lab models, with validation studies using biofluids obtained from human patients. 

The aim isn’t only to search for new blood biomarkers, but to gain further insight into how neurological conditions work, so that we can connect changes we see in our blood with changes that can happen in our brain. 

Their approach is multidisciplinary, working with experts across both nanotechnology and omics sciences, to improve early disease detection and hopefully develop personalised treatment for future patients. 

NanoNeuroOmics represents a significant step forward in the quest to understand, detect and treat complex neurological diseases. 

About Dr Marilena Hadjidemetriou 

Dr Hadjidemetriou is the NanoOmics Group Leader, and a Lecturer in Nanomedicine in 91ֱ��’s School of Biological Sciences. 

She joined the Nanomedicine Lab at the University of Manchester as a Marie Curie Early-Stage Fellow and full-time PhD student, working on the development of the nanoparticle protein corona as a tool for cancer diagnostics. 

After her PhD, Dr Hadjidemetriou was granted a postdoctoral fellowship by the Medical Research Council, to focus on the discovery of novel biomarkers in Alzheimer’s disease. She was also awarded a 91ֱ�� Molecular Pathology Innovation Centre Pump Priming Grant and the CRUK Pioneer Award, to work on the nanoparticle-enabled discovery of blood biomarkers for a variety of pathologies. 

Now leading the NanoOmics lab Dr Hadjidemetriou is aiming to develop nanotechnology platforms that explore disease pathways and uncover molecular biomarkers. 

Dr Hadjidemetriou’s recent research includes: 

To discuss this research, contact Dr Marilena Hadjidemetriou at marilena.hadjidemetriou@manchester.ac.uk 
 

Paint - an economically and environmentally critical material 

In the UK, over 10,000 people work in the coatings industry, which contributes over £11 billion to the economy, and supports the manufacturing and construction sectors worth around £150 billion. 

Corrosion damage costs the UK 2-3% of its Gross National Product each year (about £60 billion in 2016). Protective coatings like paints help prevent corrosion but are complex to formulate, meaning new product developments is slow. 

With a growing demand for sustainable materials that extend the lifespan of infrastructure like wind turbines, it's crucial to understand how these coatings work to get new, better performing and more sustainable products to market. 

91ֱ��’s corrosion research expertise 

AkzoNobel and The University of Manchester are collaborating to address this through their research. 

Claudio Di Lullo, Manager of AkzoNobel’s Substrate Protection Expertise Centre, explains: “About 12 years ago, we set up a partnership with The University of Manchester because we recognise that corrosion is one of the big challenges we have to face. We make paint, we develop paint. We understand the practical applications and what’s needed to make it perform. 

“What the University brings is the ability to characterise, analyse and understand some of the mechanisms. They can do deeper science that’s an essential part of understanding what’s going on. We get fresh insights that will help us to develop the next generation of paint.” 

Understanding the fundamentals of how paint works

Building on this partnership, 91ֱ�� and AzkoNobel developed ‘Sustainable Coatings by Rational Design’ (SusCoRD), a five-year interdisciplinary EPSRC Prosperity Partnership, that brings together a critical mass of expertise – spanning academic knowledge from the universities of Manchester, Sheffield, and Liverpool capabilities – to understand how paint works.

In an industry-first, the partnership looked to match a detailed scientific understanding of the mechanisms of coatings failure with state-of-the-art machine learning. The aim was to deliver a framework for developing more sustainable protective coatings and nanocomposite materials using digital design. This would help enable industry to replace the current trial-and-error and test new, sustainable materials, accelerating the formulation of new products.

Uniting corrosion science with machine learning

Working across four specific workstreams, the teams drove discoveries across two main areas: 
analysis characterisation of coatings in the substrate, the polymer and interfaces; and digital technology, specifically predictive approaches, modelling and simulation, with the aim to ultimately producing digital twins.

91ֱ�� led on corrosion protection, with Sheffield and Liverpool focusing on polymer interface and machine learning, respectively. Their work focuses on:

1. Predictive Design and Testing: By undertaking a review of AkzoNobel’s historic corrosion test data, researchers were able to find the best formulations for corrosion protection. Applying machine learning models, they were then able predict and optimise these formulations, creating models that could successfully identify new, effective combinations. To support this, complementary tools were developed to automatically interpret electrochemical data, improving accuracy and efficiency. 
2. Polymers and interfaces: The team studied how small molecules like water and solvents interact with polymer surfaces with 91ֱ�� leading on advanced microscopy, to explore how polymers and metals bond. Key results included the discovery that that metal-polymer binding has a much larger influence in measurements than previously thought – a critical insight in the drive to create more high-performance, eco-friendly high solid and water-borne coating systems. 
3. Coatings and substrates: Using a combination of analytical electron microscopy and X-Ray CT, researchers were able to characterise the microstructural evolution in polyester powder coating, revealing different stages in the degradation process. By identifying and mitigating microstructural weak points, finding ways to control microstructure – which previously reduced the efficacy of coatings –, and by understanding the key properties affecting performance, the researchers have advanced insight to inform the way durable coatings are formulated. 
4. Simulation and modelling: . By creating and studying digital models, the team was able to interrogate experimental results and test hypothesis when physical experiments were unable to provide relevant information. These models created ranged from atomic-level analsyis of the polymer/substrate interface, to understanding how a flaw in the coating impacts an electrochemical cell. 

Creating the sustainable paints of the future

The findings of the five-year project can now be used to inform higher-technology readiness level research, which in turn will help unlock ways to making more sustainable paint.

Claudio Di Lullo explains: “At AkzoNobel, we recognise our paint has a carbon footprint contribution and we've set the ambitious target in 2030 of having a 50% reduction in the carbon footprint across the whole value chain.

“The potential impacts of this project, for us as a company are to produce new generation products that perform better and are more sustainable, and for us to do it quicker. Machine learning gives us the angle to accelerate our new product development.”

Professor Stuart Lyon, from The University of Manchester adds: “There are two aspects of sustainability. The manufacture of the paint needs to be sustainable, but also its materials need to be sustainable. And that essentially means making it last longer, so we don’t have to repaint assets like wind turbines, mid-life, which is hugely expensive.

“The work we’ve done so far has involved using all these analytical tools to explore the science behind how paint works and to create opportunities to make paints differently. The next stage is to use that information to develop tools that make paint in different ways, using different materials, which are perhaps more sustainable – which last longer, which create assets that have a much greater lifetime.”

For more information visit the

To discuss this project further, or to explore future collaboration contact Xiaorong Zhou, Professor of Corrosion Science and Engineering or Dr Jane Deakin, SusCoRD project manager.

Related papers: 

• Manipulating transport paths of inhibitor pigments in organic coating by addition of other pigments. 

Prosperity Partnerships 
Prosperity Partnerships are collaborative research programmes funded jointly by businesses and the UK government through the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and other UKRI councils. 
Prosperity Partnerships are an opportunity for businesses and their existing academic partners to co-create and co-deliver a business-led programme of research activity arising from a clear industrial need. 
To explore a Prosperity Partnership with 91ֱ��, contact our Business Engagement team at collaborate@manchester.ac.uk

A leading nanomedicine researcher at The University of Manchester has secured a €1.5m (£1.3m) European Research Council (ERC) Starting Grant to push forward pioneering research on Alzheimer’s disease and glioblastoma.

The five-year project, NanoNeuroOmics, aims to combine breakthroughs in nanotechnology, protein analysis, and blood biomarker discovery to make advances in two key areas.

First, the team led by will explore the use of nanoparticles to enrich and isolate brain-disease specific protein biomarkers in blood. These discoveries could pave the way for simple, reliable blood tests that diagnose Alzheimer’s and glioblastoma in their early stages.

Second, the research will investigate the phenomenon of “inverse comorbidity,” which suggests that having one of these conditions may reduce the risk of developing the other. Dr. Hadjidemetriou and her team will explore this surprising relationship to uncover any deeper biological connection that could lead to new treatment pathways.

Building on her 2021 research, where Dr. Hadjidemetriou developed a nanoparticle-enabled technology to detect early signs of neurodegeneration in blood, this project has the potential to transform how these brain diseases are diagnosed and treated.

Dr. Hadjidemetriou’s previous work involved using nano-sized particles, known as liposomes, to "fish" disease-specific proteins from the blood. This breakthrough enabled her team to discover proteins directly linked to neurodegeneration processes in the brain, among thousands of other blood-circulating molecules. In animal models of Alzheimer’s, this nano-tool successfully captured hundreds of neurodegeneration-associated proteins. Once retrieved from the bloodstream, the molecular signatures on the surface of these proteins were analysed, offering a clearer picture of the disease at a molecular level.

Now, Dr. Hadjidemetriou's team will evolve this expertise to identify highly specific biomarkers by tracking protein changes in both blood and brain over time and across different stages of Alzheimer's and glioblastoma. By working with different nanomaterials, they hope to isolate these key protein markers from the complex mix of molecules in the blood.

The  NanoNeuroOmics project’s multidisciplinary approach brings together experts in nanotechnology and omics sciences to develop methods for detecting and potentially treating these diseases with greater precision. Research will be conducted at The University of Manchester’s , a cutting-edge facility dedicated to advancing nanoscale technologies. The Centre's focus spans multiple fields, including omics, neurology, therapeutics, and materials science.

Dr. Hadjidemetriou’s team is also part of Manchester’s vibrant 2D materials science community, home to the discovery of graphene 20 years ago, continuing the university’s legacy of scientific innovation.

Lithium-ion batteries, which power everything from smartphones and laptops to electric vehicles, store energy through a process known as ion intercalation. This involves lithium ions slipping between layers of graphite - a material traditionally used in battery anodes, when a battery is charged. The more lithium ions that can be inserted and later extracted, the more energy the battery can store and release. While this process is well-known, the microscopic details have remained unclear. The 91ֱ�� team’s discovery sheds new light on these details by focusing on bilayer graphene, the smallest possible battery anode material, consisting of just two atomic layers of carbon.

In their experiments, the researchers replaced the typical graphite anode with bilayer graphene and observed the behaviour of lithium ions during the intercalation process. Surprisingly, they found that lithium ions do not intercalate between the two layers all at once or in a random fashion. Instead, the process unfolds in four distinct stages, with lithium ions arranging themselves in an orderly manner at each stage. Each stage involves the formation of increasingly dense hexagonal lattices of lithium ions.

, who led the research team, commented, "the discovery of 'in-plane staging' was completely unexpected. It revealed a much greater level of cooperation between the lattice of lithium ions and the crystal lattice of graphene than previously thought. This understanding of the intercalation process at the atomic level opens up new avenues for optimising lithium-ion batteries and possibly exploring new materials for enhanced energy storage."

The study also revealed that bilayer graphene, while offering new insights, has a lower lithium storage capacity compared to traditional graphite. This is due to a less effective screening of interactions between positively charged lithium ions, leading to stronger repulsion and causing the ions to remain further apart. While this suggests that bilayer graphene may not offer higher storage capacity than bulk graphite, the discovery of its unique intercalation process is a key step forward. It also hints at the potential use of atomically thin metals to enhance the screening effect and possibly improve storage capacity in the future.

This pioneering research not only deepens our understanding of lithium-ion intercalation but also lays the groundwork for the development of more efficient and sustainable energy storage solutions. As the demand for better batteries continues to grow, the findings in this research could play a key role in shaping the next generation of energy storage technologies.

The (NGI) is a world-leading graphene and 2D material centre, focussed on fundamental research. Based at The University of Manchester, where graphene was first isolated in 2004 by Professors Sir Andre Geim and Sir Kostya Novoselov, it is home to leaders in their field – a community of research specialists delivering transformative discovery. This expertise is matched by £13m leading-edge facilities, such as the largest class 5 and 6 cleanrooms in global academia, which gives the NGI the capabilities to advance underpinning industrial applications in key areas including: composites, functional membranes, energy, membranes for green hydrogen, ultra-high vacuum 2D materials, nanomedicine, 2D based printed electronics, and characterisation.

Upon his visit to India, Foreign Secretary David Lammy met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and both governments committed to developing collaboration between The University of Manchester , the University of Cambridge Graphene Centre and the Indian Institute for Science Bengaluru Centre for Nano Science & Engineering on advanced (two-dimensional) 2D and atomically thin materials and nanotechnology.

The TSI will focus on boosting economic growth in both countries and tackling issues such as telecoms security and semiconductor supply chain resilience. For the University specifically, the collaboration will scope joint research ventures, facilitate student and start-up exchanges, and open access to world-leading laboratories and prototyping facilities.

The University of Manchester is already collaborating with a number of established partners in India, which has resulted in joint PhD programmes with the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur and the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, which include a number of projects on 2D materials. The University is already immersed in the fields of Critical Minerals and Artificial Intelligence highlighted in the TSI, and hosted a UK-India Critical Minerals workshop in November 2023.

Lindy Cameron, British High Commissioner to India, said: “The UK-India Technology Security Initiative will help shape the significant science and technology capabilities of both countries to deliver greater security, growth and wellbeing for our citizens. We are delighted to have The University of Manchester play a key part in this, particularly in our collaboration on advanced materials and critical minerals.”

This year The University of Manchester is celebrating its bicentenary and it recently hosted a gala celebration in India at the Taj Lands End hotel Mumbai, attended by over 200 Indian alumni and representatives from our current and prospective partner organisations in the country. The University has also awarded honorary degrees to eminent Indian academic and industrial leaders including Professor C.N.R Rao and Mr Ratan Tata.

Advanced Materials is one of The University of Manchester’s research beacons, and the institution has a long history of innovation in this space. In 2004, the extraction of graphene from graphite was achieved by two University of Manchester researchers, and with their pioneering work recognised with the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2010.

Entitled ‘91ֱ�� Model: Industry led, academic fed’, the event brought to life how Graphene@91ֱ��’s ecosystem supports partners in leveraging the capabilities of 2D materials – from 2D material research tailored to organisation’s application needs, to accelerating their real-world translation. 

Professor James Baker, CEO of Graphene@91ֱ�� explains: “We offer something unique in UK academia: a comprehensive pipeline for scaling up, supporting industry through technology readiness levels 1 to 7. This is possible due to three key strengths: our world-leading community of research and innovation experts, our state-of-the-art facilities, and our lab-to-market expertise, where we can support industry in developing products with improved performance and reduced environmental impact. 

"Our University is at the forefront of the 2D materials revolution and serves as the UK's principal knowledge partner for the commercialisation of 2D materials. Today's event aimed to showcase our exceptional capabilities to a new industry audience, enabling them to benefit from our unparalleled offerings." 

Over the course of the two days, attendees met academics – including Professor Sir Kostya Novoselov, the Nobel Prize winning scientist who isolated graphene in 2004 with Professor Sir Andre Geim – and application experts leading cutting-edge research from lab to market; toured 91ֱ��’s world-leading facilities, National Graphene Institute (NGI) and the Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre (GEIC); met companies who have already benefited from their partnership with 91ֱ��; and were shown how the University is training a new generation of 2D materials experts.  

They were also invited to the presentation. This annual award, in association with Nobel Laureate Professor Sir Andre Geim, is gifted to help the implementation of commercially-viable business proposals from our students, post-doctoral researchers and recent graduates. 

‘91ֱ�� Model: Industry led, academic fed’ was hosted in the run up to the official 20^th anniversary of the first graphene paper. It recognised the University’s continued role in driving a fast-growing graphene economy.  

The University of Manchester is home to the highest-density graphene and 2D material research and innovation community in the world, comprising more than 350 experts spanning various disciplines, including physics, materials science, chemistry, neuroscience. This community includes academics, engineers and application experts, who bridge the gap between academia and the real-world needs of businesses, and innovation leaders, investment experts, IP advisors, plus operational and specialist technical staff.  

Renowned for rapidly advancing Technology Readiness Levels (TRL), this community is centred around two specialist facilities: the £62m academic-led NGI; and the multi-million pound research translation centre, the GEIC.  

The NGI is the hub for groundbreaking 2D material research, featuring 150m² of class five and six cleanrooms. It is home to Nobel Prize-winning Professor Sir Andre Geim, who, along with Professor Sir Kostya Novoselov, isolated graphene in 2004 and who continues to support a leading community of fundamental science researchers. 

The GEIC focuses on accelerating the development of lab-to-market innovations. In just five years, it has supported over 50 spin-outs and launched numerous new technologies, products, and applications in collaboration with industrial partners. These include a groundbreaking hydrogel for vertical farming and a method for extracting lithium from water for battery production. 

Read more about the event at the dedicated page. 

Visit to contact Graphene@91ֱ��’s experts and discover the facilities available. 

High performing but costly 
LEAs - unlike traditional electronics, which are typically manufactured on small and rigid substrates like silicon wafers – are made on much larger, often flexible, substrates. This means electronic components can be integrated into different surfaces and materials. Examples of LEAs include: TV sets; mobile phone and tablet screens that can bend or roll (Samsung's Galaxy Fold and LG's flexible OLED displays are good examples); wearable electronics like smart clothing, fitness trackers, and health monitoring devices; printed solar cells; and interactive displays used in e-readers like the Amazon Kindle, which mimic the appearance of ink on paper. 

LAEs are an emerging field. However, their rapid growth brings challenges like the availability of essential materials, energy-efficient manufacturing, device performance, and product end-of-life solutions. One major challenge in producing LAEs is balancing the users’ desire for functionality with the need to reduce costs. To address this, LAEs are currently combined with silicon chips. However, while this supports functionality, it increases carbon emissions significantly. 

Rethinking manufacturing 
To tackle this issue, Thomas Anthopoulos with his team at The University of Manchester is undertaking fundamental research designed to rethink manufacturing methods. His goal is to look at the fundamental science and develop scalable and energy efficient techniques that can produce LAEs capable of seamlessly integrating with the existing electronics infrastructure, while enabling additional functionalities. 

Addressing manufacturing bottlenecks 
Building on previous research focused on LEAs, Professor Anthopoulos will look to advance LAEs by addressing crucial manufacturing bottlenecks such as the trade-off between high throughput production and high precision patterning. His approach comprises four research thrusts that aim to address these key aspects and include: 

1. Developing new patterning paradigms for scalable and sustainable production of LAEs. 
2. Demonstrating energy-efficient material growth methods. 
3. Exploring eco-friendly materials that are abundant. 
4. Demonstrate advanced LAEs that can interact with the existing electronic infrastructure. 

Maximising impact 
Delivering a paradigm shift in how LAEs with nanometre-size critical features are manufactured, is the core aim of this programme. By addressing the fundamental science, Professor Anthopoulos aims to deliver research that benefit the economy, academia, and society. 

For industry, the outcome of this research has the potential to empower UK companies. For example, the global LAEs market is expected to grow rapidly in the coming years. This prediction, however, relies on the technology being adopted successfully in various emerging areas. Thus, access to innovative technologies can help UK companies remain frontrunners and capture this market, benefiting everyone involved. 

In the academic world, Professor Anthopoulos’s approach will create new knowledge about sustainable electronics, encourage collaboration between different fields, advance sustainable electronics, train junior researchers, and attract top talent to the UK. 

The program will also benefit the public. Sustainable production of LAEs will enable new electronic functions with minimal environmental impact, while easing society’s reliance on polluting silicon chips. These innovative technologies will create new possibilities in personal health, education, entertainment, among other, positively impacting society. 

Professor Anthopoulos explains more about his approach. “I am interested in fundamental research that has potential for practical applications. I very much enjoying approaching a problem from a different viewpoint and pursuing cross-disciplinary research is a key element of it. 91ֱ�� has a rich history, with the isolation of graphene serving as a prime example of how a new perspective can lead to groundbreaking discoveries.” 

“I am also a firm believer in multidisciplinary collaboration; trying to increase the impact of my work by working with people with different expertise while learning new things. 91ֱ�� has a strong reputation in large-area electronics, including flexible and printed electronics, advanced functional materials, and manufacturing. Crucially, we are home to unique facilities like the National Graphene Institute (NGI), the Henry Royce Institute for Advanced Materials, and the Photon Science Institute, all located on campus, and all unique in the UK. Moreover, the university’s extensive partnerships with industry leaders offer additional opportunities for further collaborations, networking, and potential commercialization of promising research findings.

“Last but not least, the university has a global reputation in climate change, sustainability, and energy policy. This makes 91ֱ�� the ideal place for my research, which at its very heart is aimed at making electronics of the future more sustainable and valuable to our society.” 

About Thomas Anthopoulos 
Thomas Anthopoulos is Professor of Emerging Optoelectronics at The University of Manchester. He is recognised as a world-leading expert in the science and technology of large-area optoelectronics with ground-breaking contributions to the advancement of soluble organic and inorganic semiconductors. Recent examples include the development of printable Schottky diodes with record operating frequency (Nature Electronics 2020), rapid and scalable manufacturing methods for radio frequency diodes using light (Nature Communications 2022), and the development of record-efficient printed organic photovoltaics featuring self-assembled molecular interlayers (ACS Energy Letters 2020; Advanced Energy Materials 2022). 

Related papers  

The Photon Science Institute (PSI)
The PSI enables and catalyses world-leading science and innovation using the tools of cutting-edge photonics, spectroscopy, and imaging. Its lead pioneering research in photonic, electronic and quantum materials and devices, advanced instrumentation development, and BioPhotonics and bioanalytical spectroscopy.

To discuss this research further, contact Professor Anthopoulos at thomas.anthopoulos@manchester.ac.uk

To discuss semicoductor research, talk about potential collaboration, or to access facilities . 
 

Electrochemical processes are essential in renewable energy technologies like batteries, fuel cells, and electrolysers. However, their efficiency is often hindered by slow reactions and unwanted side effects. Traditional approaches have focused on new materials, yet significant challenges remain.

The 91ֱ�� team, led by , has taken a novel approach. They have successfully decoupled the inseparable link between charge and electric field within graphene electrodes, enabling unprecedented control over electrochemical processes in this material. The breakthrough challenges previous assumptions and opens new avenues for energy technologies.

Dr Marcelo Lozada-Hidalgo sees this discovery as transformative, “We’ve managed to open up a previously inaccessible parameter space. A way to visualise this is to imagine a field in the countryside with hills and valleys. Classically, for a given system and a given catalyst, an electrochemical process would run through a set path through this field. If the path goes through a high hill or a deep valley – bad luck. Our work shows that, at least for the processes we investigated here, we have access to the whole field. If there is a hill or valley we do not want to go to, we can avoid it.”

The study focuses on proton-related processes fundamental for hydrogen catalysts and electronic devices. Specifically, the team examined two proton processes in graphene:

Proton Transmission: This process is important for developing new hydrogen catalysts and fuel cell membranes.

Proton Adsorption (Hydrogenation): Important for electronic devices like transistors, this process switches graphene’s conductivity on and off.

Traditionally, these processes were coupled in graphene devices, making it challenging to control one without impacting the other. The researchers managed to decouple these processes, finding that electric field effects could significantly accelerate proton transmission while independently driving hydrogenation. This selective acceleration was unexpected and presents a new method to drive electrochemical processes.

Highlighting the broader implication in energy applications, Dr Jincheng Tong, first author of the paper, said “We demonstrate that electric field effects can disentangle and accelerate electrochemical processes in 2D crystals. This could be combined with state-of-the-art catalysts to efficiently drive complex processes like CO2 reduction, which remain enormous societal challenges.”

Dr Yangming Fu, co-first author, pointed to potential applications in computing: “Control of these process gives our graphene devices dual functionality as both memory and logic gate. This paves the way for new computing networks that operate with protons.  This could enable compact, low-energy analogue computing devices.”

Since publication, a review of the paper was included in Nature’s News & Views section, which summarises high-impact research and provides a forum where scientific news is shared with a wide audience spanning a range of disciplines: .

The National Graphene Institute (NGI) is a world-leading graphene and 2D material centre, focussed on fundamental research. Based at The University of Manchester, where graphene was first isolated in 2004 by Professors Sir Andre Geim and Sir Kostya Novoselov, it is home to leaders in their field – a community of research specialists delivering transformative discovery. This expertise is matched by £13m leading-edge facilities, such as the largest class 5 and 6 cleanrooms in global academia, which gives the NGI the capabilities to advance underpinning industrial applications in key areas including: composites, functional membranes, energy, membranes for green hydrogen, ultra-high vacuum 2D materials, nanomedicine, 2D based printed electronics, and characterisation.

The international team, which also included Penn State College of Engineering, Koc University in Turkey and Vienna University of Technology in Austria, has developed a unique interface that localises thermal emissions from two surfaces with different geometric properties, creating a “perfect” thermal emitter. This platform can emit thermal light from specific, contained emission areas with unit emissivity.

, professor of 2D device materials at The University of Manchester, explains, “We have demonstrated a new class of thermal devices using concepts from topology — a branch of mathematics studying properties of geometric objects — and from non-Hermitian photonics, which is a flourishing area of research studying light and its interaction with matter in the presence of losses, optical gain and certain symmetries.”

The team said the work could advance thermal photonic applications to better generate, control and detect thermal emission. One application of this work could be in satellites, said co-author Prof Sahin Ozdemir, professor of engineering science and mechanics at Penn State. Faced with significant exposure to heat and light, satellites equipped with the interface could emit the absorbed radiation with unit emissivity along a specifically designated area designed by researchers to be incredibly narrow and in whatever shape is deemed necessary.   

Getting to this point, though, was not straight forward, according to Ozdemir. He explained part of the issue is to create a perfect thermal absorber-emitter only at the interface while the rest of the structures forming the interface remains ‘cold’, meaning no absorption and no emission.

“Building a perfect absorber-emitter—a black body that flawlessly absorbs all incoming radiation—proved to be a formidable task,” Ozdemir said. However, the team discovered that one can be built at a desired frequency by trapping the light inside an optical cavity, formed by a partially reflecting first mirror and a completely reflecting second mirror: the incoming light partially reflected from the first mirror and the light which gets reflected only after being trapped between the two mirrors exactly cancel each other. With the reflection thus being completely suppressed, the light beam is trapped in the system, gets perfectly absorbed, and emitted in the form of thermal radiation.

To achieve such an interface, the researchers developed a cavity stacked with a thick gold layer that perfectly reflects incoming light and a thin platinum layer that can partially reflect incoming light. The platinum layer also acts as a broadband thermal absorber-emitter. Between the two mirrors is a transparent dielectric called parylene-C.

The researchers can adjust the thickness of the platinum layer as needed to induce the critical coupling condition where the incoming light is trapped in the system and perfectly absorbed, or to move the system away from the critical coupling to sub- or super-critical coupling where perfect absorption and emission cannot take place.

“Only by stitching two platinum layers with thicknesses smaller and larger than the critical thickness over the same dielectric layer, we create a topological interface of two cavities where perfect absorption and emission are confined. Crucial here is that the cavities forming the interface are not at critical coupling condition,” said first author M. Said Ergoktas, a research associate at The University of Manchester 

The development challenges conventional understanding of thermal emission in the field, according to co-author Stefan Rotter, professor of theoretical physics at the Vienna University of Technology, “Traditionally, it has been believed that thermal radiation cannot have topological properties because of its incoherent nature.”

According to Kocabas, their approach to building topological systems for controlling radiation is easily accessible to scientists and engineers.  

“This can be as simple as creating a film divided into two regions with different thicknesses such that one side satisfies sub-critical coupling, and the other is in the super-critical coupling regime, dividing the system into two different topological classes,” Kocabas said.

The realised interface exhibits perfect thermal emissivity, which is protected by the reflection topology and “exhibits robustness against local perturbations and defects,” according to co-author Ali Kecebas, a postdoctoral scholar at Penn State. The team confirmed the system’s topological features and its connection to the well-known non-Hermitian physics and its spectral degeneracies known as exceptional points through experimental and numerical simulations.

“This is just a glimpse of what one can do in thermal domain using topology of non-Hermiticity. One thing that needs further exploration is the observation of the two counterpropagating modes at the interface that our theory and numerical simulations predict,” Kocabas said.

The National Graphene Institute (NGI) is a world-leading graphene and 2D material centre, focussed on fundamental research. Based at The University of Manchester, where graphene was first isolated in 2004 by Professors Sir Andre Geim and Sir Kostya Novoselov, it is home to leaders in their field – a community of research specialists delivering transformative discovery. This expertise is matched by £13m leading-edge facilities, such as the largest class 5 and 6 cleanrooms in global academia, which gives the NGI the capabilities to advance underpinning industrial applications in key areas including: composites, functional membranes, energy, membranes for green hydrogen, ultra-high vacuum 2D materials, nanomedicine, 2D based printed electronics, and characterisation.

The defect, found by researchers from the Universities of Manchester and Cambridge using a thin material called Hexagonal Boron Nitride (hBN), demonstrates spin coherence—a property where an electronic spin can retain quantum information— under ambient conditions. They also found that these spins can be controlled with light.

Up until now, only a few solid-state materials have been able to do this, marking a significant step forward in quantum technologies.

The findings published in , further confirm that the accessible spin coherence at room temperature is longer than the researchers initially imagined it could be.

Carmem M. Gilardoni, co-author of the paper and postdoctoral fellow at the Cavendish Laboratory at the University of Cambridge, where the research was carried out, said: “The results show that once we write a certain quantum state onto the spin of these electrons, this information is stored for ~1 millionth of a second, making this system a very promising platform for quantum applications.

“This may seem short, but the interesting thing is that this system does not require special conditions – it can store the spin quantum state even at room temperature and with no requirement for large magnets.”

Hexagonal Boron Nitride (hBN) is an ultra-thin material made up of stacked one-atom-thick layers, kind of like sheets of paper. These layers are held together by forces between molecules, but sometimes, there are tiny flaws between these layers called ‘atomic defects’, similar to a crystal with molecules trapped inside it. These defects can absorb and emit light that we can see, and they can also act as local traps for electrons. Because of the defects in hBN, scientists can now study how these trapped electrons behave, particularly the spin property, which allows electrons to interact with magnetic fields. They can also control and manipulate the electron spins using light within these defects at room temperature – something that has never been done before.

Dr Hannah Stern, first author of the paper and Royal Society University Research Fellow and Lecturer at The University of Manchester, said: “Working with this system has highlighted to us the power of the fundamental investigation of new materials. As for the hBN system, as a field we can harness excited state dynamics in other new material platforms for use in future quantum technologies.

“Each new promising system will broaden the toolkit of available materials, and every new step in this direction will advance the scalable implementation of quantum technologies.”

Prof Richard Curry added: “Research into materials for quantum technologies is critical to support the UK’s ambitions in this area. This work represents another leading breakthrough from a University of Manchester researcher in the area of materials for quantum technologies, further strengthening the international impact of our work in this field.”

Although there is a lot to investigate before it is mature enough for technological applications, the finding paves the way for future technological applications, particularly in sensing technology.

The scientists are still figuring out how to make these defects even better and more reliable and are currently probing how far they can extend the spin storage time. They are also investigating whether they can optimise the system and material parameters that are important for quantum-technological applications, such as defect stability over time and the quality of the light emitted by this defect.

Fast forward to today, and history repeats itself, this time in quantum computing.

Building on the same pioneering method forged by Ernest Rutherford – "the founder of nuclear physics" – scientists at the University, in collaboration with the University of Melbourne in Australia, have produced an enhanced, ultra-pure form of silicon that allows construction of high-performance qubit devices – a fundamental component required to pave the way towards scalable quantum computers.

The finding, published in the journal Communications Materials - Nature, could define and push forward the future of quantum computing.

Richard Curry, Professor of Advanced Electronic Materials at The University of Manchester, said: “What we’ve been able to do is effectively create a critical ‘brick’ needed to construct a silicon-based quantum computer. It’s a crucial step to making a technology that has the potential to be transformative for humankind - feasible; a technology that could give us the capability to process data at such as scale, that we will be able to find solutions to complex issues such as addressing the impact of climate change and tackling healthcare challenges.  

���� is fitting that this achievement aligns with the 200th anniversary of our University, where 91ֱ�� has been at the forefront of science innovation throughout this time, including Rutherford’s ‘splitting the atom’ discovery in 1917, then in 1948 with ‘The Baby’ - the first ever real-life demonstration of electronic stored-program computing, now with this step towards quantum computing.”

One of the biggest challenges in the development of quantum computers is that qubits – the building blocks of quantum computing - are highly sensitive and require a stable environment to maintain the information they hold. Even tiny changes in their environment, including temperature fluctuations can cause computer errors.

Another issue is their scale, both their physical size and processing power. Ten qubits have the same processing power as 1,024 bits in a normal computer and can potentially occupy much smaller volume. Scientists believe a fully performing quantum computer needs around one million qubits, which provides the capability unfeasible by any classical computer.

Silicon is the underpinning material in classical computing due to its semiconductor properties and the researchers believe it could be the answer to scalable quantum computers. Scientists have spent the last 60 years learning how to engineer silicon to make it perform to the best of its ability, but in quantum computing, it has its challenges.

Natural silicon is made up of three atoms of different mass (called isotopes) – silicon 28, 29 and 30. However the Si-29, making up around 5% of silicon, causes a ‘nuclear flip flopping’ effect causing the qubit to lose information.

In a breakthrough at The University of Manchester, scientists have come up with a way to engineer silicon to remove the silicon 29 and 30 atoms, making it the perfect material to make quantum computers at scale, and with high accuracy.

The result – the world’s purest silicon – provides a pathway to the creation of one million qubits, which may be fabricated to the size of pin head.

Ravi Acharya, a PhD researcher who performed experimental work in the project, explained: "The great advantage of silicon quantum computing is that the same techniques that are used to manufacture the electronic chips — currently within an everyday computer that consist of billions of transistors — can be used to create qubits for silicon-based quantum devices. The ability to create high quality Silicon qubits has in part been limited to date by the purity of the silicon starting material used. The breakthrough purity we show here solves this problem."

The new capability offers a roadmap towards scalable quantum devices with unparalleled performance and capabilities and holds promise of transforming technologies in ways hard to imagine.

Project co-supervisor, Professor David Jamieson, from the University of Melbourne, said: “Our technique opens the path to reliable quantum computers that promise step changes across society, including in artificial intelligence, secure data and communications, vaccine and drug design, and energy use, logistics and manufacturing.

“Now that we can produce extremely pure silicon-28, our next step will be to demonstrate that we can sustain quantum coherence for many qubits simultaneously. A reliable quantum computer with just 30 qubits would exceed the power of today's supercomputers for some applications,”

What is quantum computing and how does it work?

All computers operate using electrons. As well as having a negative charge, electrons have another property known as ‘spin’, which is often compared to a spinning top.

The combined spin of the electrons inside a computer’s memory can create a magnetic field. The direction of this magnetic field can be used to create a code where one direction is called ‘0’ and the other direction is called ‘1’. This then allows us to use a number system that only uses 0 and 1 to give instructions to the computer. Each 0 or 1 is called a bit.

In a quantum computer, rather than the combined effect of the spin of many millions of electrons, we can use the spin of single electrons, moving from working in the ‘classical’ world to the ‘quantum’ world; from using ‘bits’ to ‘qubits’.

While classical computers do one calculation after another, quantum computers can do all the calculations at the same time allowing them to process vast amounts of information and perform very complex calculations at an unrivalled speed.

Superconductivity, the ability of certain materials to conduct electricity with zero resistance, holds profound potential for advancements of quantum technologies. However, achieving superconductivity in the quantum Hall regime, characterised by quantised electrical conductance, has proven to be a mighty challenge.

The research, published this week (24 April 2024) in , details extensive work of the 91ֱ�� team led by Professor Andre Geim, Dr Julien Barrier and Dr Na Xin to achieve superconductivity in the quantum Hall regime. Their initial efforts followed the conventional route where counterpropagating edge states were brought into close proximity of each other. However, this approach proved to be limited.

"Our initial experiments were primarily motivated by the strong persistent interest in proximity superconductivity induced along quantum Hall edge states," explains Dr Barrier, the paper's lead author. "This possibility has led to numerous theoretical predictions regarding the emergence of new particles known as non-abelian anyons."

The team then explored a new strategy inspired by their earlier work demonstrating that boundaries between domains in graphene could be highly conductive. By placing such domain walls between two superconductors, they achieved the desired ultimate proximity between counterpropagating edge states while minimising effects of disorder.

"We were encouraged to observe large supercurrents at relatively ‘balmy’ temperatures up to one Kelvin in every device we fabricated," Dr Barrier recalls.

Further investigation revealed that the proximity superconductivity originated not from the quantum Hall edge states propagating along domain walls, but rather from strictly 1D electronic states existing within the domain walls themselves. These 1D states, proven to exist by the theory group of Professor Vladimir Falko’s at the National Graphene Institute, exhibited a greater ability to hybridise with superconductivity as compared to quantum Hall edge states. The inherent one-dimensional nature of the interior states is believed to be responsible for the observed robust supercurrents at high magnetic fields.

This discovery of single-mode 1D superconductivity shows exciting avenues for further research. “In our devices, electrons propagate in two opposite directions within the same nanoscale space and without scattering", Dr Barrier elaborates. "Such 1D systems are exceptionally rare and hold promise for addressing a wide range of problems in fundamental physics."

The team has already demonstrated the ability to manipulate these electronic states using gate voltage and observe standing electron waves that modulated the superconducting properties.

���� is fascinating to think what this novel system can bring us in the future. The 1D superconductivity presents an alternative path towards realising topological quasiparticles combining the quantum Hall effect and superconductivity,” concludes Dr Xin. "This is just one example of the vast potential our findings holds."

20 years after the advent of the first 2D material graphene, this research by The University of Manchester represents another step forward in the field of superconductivity. The development of this novel 1D superconductor is expected to open doors for advancements in quantum technologies and pave the way for further exploration of new physics, attracting interest from various scientific communities.

The is a world-leading graphene and 2D material centre, focussed on fundamental research. Based at The University of Manchester, by Professors Sir Andre Geim and Sir Kostya Novoselov, it is home to leaders in their field – a community of research specialists delivering transformative discovery. This expertise is matched by £13m leading-edge facilities, such as the largest class 5 and 6 in global academia, which gives the NGI the capabilities to advance underpinning industrial applications in key areas including: composites, functional membranes, energy, membranes for green hydrogen, ultra-high vacuum 2D materials, nanomedicine, 2D based printed electronics, and characterisation.

While existing TEMs can image atomic scale structure and chemistry, the time-consuming nature of the technique means the typical regions of interest (ROI) - areas of the sample selected for further analysis - are very limited. The AutomaTEM will resolve this, improving the ability to find and analyse, reducing time incurred while increasing the ROI. As a result, it will accelerate innovation in materials applications for quantum computing, low power electronics, and new catalysts to support the energy transition, all which are currently held back by the limitations of current technology.

The AutomaTEM development is funded through a £9.5 million project supported by The University of Manchester, The Henry Royce Institute, bp and EPSRC, in collaboration with manufacturer Thermo Fisher Scientific. The 91ֱ�� team, led by Professor Sarah Haigh, will merge TEM’s existing atomic scale elemental and chemical mapping capabilities together with emerging developments in automation and data analysis to create the AutomaTEM; an instrument that can acquire huge data sets of local chemical information in days rather than years.

Prof , Professor of Materials Characterisation at The University of Manchester and Director of the Electron Microscopy Centre (EMC), said: "Understanding atomic detail at the micrometer or millimeter scale is crucial for developing materials for various applications, from catalysis and quantum technologies to nuclear energy and pharmaceuticals.

"This system is not simply another TEM instrument. It will provide new opportunities for atomic scale investigation of materials with less human intervention. For the first time we will be able to enable atomic resolution analysis of hundreds of regions of interest in a matter of hours, providing unprecedented insights into sparse defects and heterogeneous materials." 

Designed with artificial intelligence and automated workflows at its core, the AutomaTEM boasts several cutting-edge features, including:

• Computer control to automatically adjust the sample stage and beam to address specific regions of interest, enabling detailed high-resolution imaging and diffraction-based analysis without continuous operator interaction.
• Machine learning integration to segment lower resolution data and build functional relationships between experimental results, enhancing the identification of novel features. 
• A world-leading Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS) system with exceptional collection efficiency, providing precise compositional analysis.
• A new high-performance electron energy loss spectrometer (EELS) design for chemical analysis of diverse species in complex systems.

Custom built, it is being developed in collaboration with Thermo Fisher Scientific and will arrive in summer 2025. The global laboratory equipment manufacturer has provided Professor Haigh’s team access to the necessary API control, and will supply an energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) system with a world-leading collection efficiency of 4.5 srad.

The AutomaTEM will be housed in The University of Manchester's state-of-the-art (EMC), one of the largest in the UK. The EMC already has 6 transmission electron microscopes (TEMs), 13 scanning electron microscopes (SEMs), and 6 focussed ion beam (FIB) instruments. It supports more than 500 internal users, from 12 different University of Manchester Departments, and welcomes users from institutes across the world, including Cardiff, Durham, Queen Mary and 91ֱ�� Metropolitan universities, University of Cape Town (SA), Ceres Power, Nexperia, Nanoco, bp, Johnson Matthey, Oxford Instruments, and UKAEA.

AutomaTEM will be available to external users for free proof of principle academic projects for up to 30 per cent of its total use during the first three years to help foster collaboration and advance research capabilities.

, Royal Society University Research Fellow at The University of Manchester, who is leading co-investigator on the project, said: "The faster, more accurate analysis capabilities of AutomaTEM represent a significant leap forward in materials science research.

“With the potential to impact various industries, including aerospace, automotive, and semiconductor, the AutomaTEM aims to support the UK’s position at the forefront of materials science innovation.”

Today’s announcement consolidates The University of Manchester’s reputation at the forefront of advanced materials research. Home to highest concentration of materials scientists in UK academia, it hosts several national centres for Advanced Materials research including the Henry Royce Institute - the UK national institute for Advanced Materials Research; the bp-ICAM, a global partnership to enable the effective application of advanced materials for the transition to net zero; the National Centre for X-ray Computational Tomography; and the National Graphene Institute, the world-leading interdisciplinary centre for graphene and 2D materials research.

describe a force-controlled release system that harnesses natural forces to trigger targeted release of molecules, which could significantly advance medical treatment and smart materials.

The discovery, published today in the journal , uses a novel technique using a type of interlocked molecule known as rotaxane. Under the influence of mechanical force - such as that observed at an injured or damaged site - this component triggers the release of functional molecules, like medicines or healing agents, to precisely target the area in need. For example, the site of a tumour.

It also holds promise for self-healing materials that can repair themselves in situ when damaged, prolonging the lifespan of these materials. For example, a scratch on a phone screen.

Traditionally, the controlled release of molecules with force has presented challenges in releasing more than one molecule at once, usually operating through a molecular "tug of war" game where two polymers pull at either side to release a single molecule.

The new approach involves two polymer chains attached to a central ring-like structure that slide along an axle supporting the cargo, effectively releasing multiple cargo molecules in response to force application. The scientists demonstrated the release of up to five molecules simultaneously with the possibility of releasing more, overcoming previous limitations.

The breakthrough marks the first time scientists have been able to demonstrate the ability to release more than one component, making it one of the most efficient release systems to date.

The researchers also show versatility of the model by using different types of molecules, including drug compounds, fluorescent markers, catalyst and monomers, revealing the potential for a wealth of future applications.

Looking ahead, the researchers aim to delve deeper into self-healing applications, exploring whether two different types of molecules can be released at the same time. For example, the integration of monomers and catalysts could enable polymerization at the site of damage, creating an integrated self-healing system within materials.

They will also look to expand the sort of molecules that can be released.

said: "We've barely scratched the surface of what this technology can achieve. The possibilities are limitless, and we're excited to explore further."

They have developed a new catalyst which has been shown to have a wide variety of uses and the potential to streamline optimisation processes in industry and support new scientific discoveries.

Catalysts, often considered the unsung heroes of chemistry, are instrumental in accelerating chemical reactions, and play a crucial role in the creation of most manufactured products. For example, the production of polyethylene, a common plastic used in various everyday items such as bottles and containers or found in cars to convert harmful gases from the engine's exhaust into less harmful substances.

Among these, ruthenium – a platinum group metal – has emerged as an important and commonly used catalyst. However, while a powerful and cost-effective material, highly reactive ruthenium catalysts have long been hindered by their sensitivity to air, posing significant challenges in their application. This means their use has so far been confined to highly trained experts with specialised equipment, limiting the full adoption of ruthenium catalysis across industries.

In new research published in the journal Nature Chemistry, scientists at The University of Manchester working with collaborators at global biopharmaceutical company AstraZeneca unveil a ruthenium catalyst proven to be long-term stable in air while maintaining the high reactivity necessary to facilitate transformative chemical processes.

The discovery allows for simple handling and implementation processes and has shown versatility across a wide array of chemical transformations, making it accessible for non-specialist users to exploit ruthenium catalysis. Collaborative efforts with AstraZeneca demonstrate this new catalyst’s applicability to industry, particularly in developing efficient and sustainable drug discovery and manufacturing processes.

Dr James Douglas, Director of High-Throughput Experimentation who collaborated on the project from AstraZeneca said: “Catalysis is a critical technology for AstraZeneca and the wider biopharmaceutical industry, especially as we look to develop and manufacture the next generation of medicines in a sustainable way. This new catalyst is a great addition to the toolbox and we are beginning to explore and understand its industrial applications.”

The new approach has already led to the discovery of new reactions that have never been reported with ruthenium and with its enhanced versatility and accessibility, the researchers anticipate further advancements and innovations in the field.

McArthur, G., Docherty, J.H., Hareram, M.D. et al. An air- and moisture-stable ruthenium precatalyst for diverse reactivity. Nat. Chem. (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41557-024-01481-5

The University of Manchester has been awarded £30 million funding by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) for four Centres for Doctoral Training as part of the UK Research and Innovation’s (UKRI) £500 million investment in engineering and physical sciences doctoral skills across the UK.

Building on 91ֱ��’s long-standing record of sustained support for doctoral training, the new CDTs will boost UK expertise in critical areas such as advanced materials, AI, and nuclear energy.

The CDTs include:

• EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in 2D Materials of Tomorrow (2DMoT) - with cross-disciplinary research in the science and applications of two-dimensional materials, this CDT will focus on a new class of advanced materials with potential to transform modern technologies, from clean energy to quantum engineering. Led by , Professor of Physics at The University of Manchester.
   
• EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training Developing National Capability for Materials 4.0 - this CDT will bring together students from a range of backgrounds in science and engineering to drive forward the digitalisation of materials research and innovation. Led by , Professor of Applied Mathematics at The University of Manchester and the Henry Royce Institute.
   
• EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Robotics and AI for Net Zero - this CDT will train and develop the next generation of multi-disciplinary robotic systems engineers to help revolutionise lifecycle asset management, in support of the UK’s Net Zero Strategy. Led by , Reader in the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at The University of Manchester.
   
• EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in SATURN (Skills And Training Underpinning a Renaissance in Nuclear) - the primary aim of SATURN is to provide high quality research training in science and engineering, underpinning nuclear fission technology. Led by , Professor of Nuclear Chemistry at The University of Manchester.

91ֱ�� received joint-third most awards across UK academia, and will partner with University of Cambridge, University of Glasgow, Imperial College London, Lancaster University, University of Leeds, University of Liverpool, University of Oxford, University of Sheffield, University of Strathclyde and the National Physical Laboratory to prepare the next generation of researchers, specialists and industry experts across a wide range of sectors and industries.

In addition to leading these four CDTs, The University of Manchester is also collaborating as a partner institution on the following CDTs:

• EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Fusion Power, based at University of York.
• EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Aerosol Science: Harnessing Aerosol Science for Improved Security, Resilience and Global Health, based at University of Bristol.
• EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Compound Semiconductor Manufacturing, based at Cardiff University.

Along with institutional partnerships, all CDTs work with industrial partners, offering opportunities for students to develop their skills and knowledge in real-world environments which will produce a pipeline of highly skilled researchers ready to enter industry and take on sector challenges.

Professor Scott Heath, Associate Dean for Postgraduate and Early Career Researchers at The University of Manchester said of the awards: “We are delighted that the EPSRC have awarded this funding to establish these CDTs and expose new cohorts to the interdisciplinary experience that researching through a CDT encourages. By equipping the next generation of researchers with the expertise and skills necessary to tackle complex issues, we are laying the groundwork for transformative solutions that will shape industries and societies for generations to come.”

Announced by Science, Innovation and Technology Secretary Michelle Donelan, this round of funding is the largest investment in engineering and physical sciences doctoral skills to-date, totalling more than £1 billion. Science and Technology Secretary, Michelle Donelan, said: “As innovators across the world break new ground faster than ever, it is vital that government, business and academia invests in ambitious UK talent, giving them the tools to pioneer new discoveries that benefit all our lives while creating new jobs and growing the economy.

“By targeting critical technologies including artificial intelligence and future telecoms, we are supporting world class universities across the UK to build the skills base we need to unleash the potential of future tech and maintain our country’s reputation as a hub of cutting-edge research and development.”

These CDTs join the already announced . This CDT led by , Senior Lecturer in Machine Learning at The University of Manchester, will train the next generation of AI researchers to develop AI methods designed to accelerate new scientific discoveries – specifically in the fields of astronomy, engineering biology and material science.

The first cohort of AI CDT, SATURN CDT and Developing National Capability for Materials 4.0 CDT students will start in the 2024/2025 academic year, recruitment for which will begin shortly. 2DMoT CDT and RAINZ CDT will have their first cohort in 2025/26.

For more information about the University of Manchester's Centres for Doctoral Training, please visit:

91ֱ�� scientists are driving research into the capabilities of inorganic high-entropy materials (HEMs). HEMs diverge away from the traditional picture of a material – i.e. something stabilised by creating bonds with other atoms – because their structure, somewhat paradoxically, is stabilised by disorder. It is this disorder makes them a potentially disruptive technology for sustainable energy generation including thermoelectric energy generation, batteries for energy storage, chemical catalysis and electrocatalysis.

Engineering new materials with exciting properties

Led by , Head of the Department of Materials, the team of material scientists is engineering high-entropy materials from the bottom up. By adding a ‘cocktail’ of different metal atoms into the lattice, they are devising materials that are that have never been discovered before, and have some very exciting properties.

Through this work, the team have uncovered a range of capabilities in the materials. For example, their aptitude for electrocatalytic water splitting

Because HEMs contain so many different unique sites within the material, the  materials also have great potential as a disruptive technology in chemical catalysis.

Professor David Lewis explains, “It's almost like combinatorial chemistry at the atomic scale. This can be illustrated with a simple calculation. If one starts to imagine the number of unique sites in a high entropy material which contains six or more different elements, including the three nearest neighbour atoms, you’re looking at combinations in the order of 10³³. Compare that to the amount of known ‘vanilla materials’ as I would call them, well there’s only about 10¹² of those – so you can really start to produce almost unimaginable combinations of active sites within a catalyst. We have also shown that this approach can activate different structural features in electrocatalysts that lie dormant in the parent materials, and with it, improvements in efficiency”

In addition to this Professor Lewis’ team were the first to show how these materials could also exhibit quantum confinement at short (10^-9 m) length scales leading to the .

Looking to the Future

Professor Lewis’ team builds high-entropy materials from the atom up, arguing in a recent that this route, in general, presents the best strategy for ensuring entropic stabilisation. This means the team can control the composition of a material, from the composition of the molecular precursors that were put into the pot at the start. Despite the growth of interest in high entropy materials there still remains many challenges in their characterisation and computational simulation of the systems and Professor Lewis’ research will address these questions going forward.

Professor Lewis says: “There are still a number of outstanding challenges, and the nature of these are very interdisciplinary. I have been lucky enough to be able to collaborate with many other academics all at the same institution that share my interest in these problems. To me, therefore, 91ֱ�� is the ideal place to conduct this research.”

---

is the Head of the Department of Materials at The University of Manchester. His other research interests include synthesis of compound semiconductors and inexpensive alternatives to traditional energy generation materials, 2D materials beyond graphene, and quantum dots.

Read recent papers:

To discuss this research or potential partnerships, contact Professor Lewis via david.lewis-4@manchester.ac.uk.

Carefully controlled inhalation of a specific type of – the world’s thinnest, super strong and super flexible material – has no short-term adverse effects on lung or cardiovascular function, the study shows.

The first controlled exposure clinical trial in people was carried out using thin, ultra-pure graphene oxide – a water-compatible form of the material.

Researchers say further work is needed to find out whether higher doses of this graphene oxide material or other forms of graphene would have a different effect.

The team is also keen to establish whether longer exposure to the material, which is thousands of times thinner than a human hair, would carry additional health risks.

There has been a surge of interest in developing graphene – at The University of Manchester in 2004 and which has been hailed as a ‘wonder’ material. Possible applications include electronics, phone screens, clothing, paints and water purification.

Graphene is actively being explored around the world to assist with targeted therapeutics against cancer and other health conditions, and also in the form of implantable devices and sensors. Before medical use, however, all nanomaterials need to be tested for any potential adverse effects.

Researchers from the Universities of Edinburgh and 91ֱ�� recruited 14 volunteers to take part in the study under carefully controlled exposure and clinical monitoring conditions.

The volunteers breathed the material through a face mask for two hours while cycling in a purpose-designed mobile exposure chamber brought to Edinburgh from the National Public Health Institute in the Netherlands.

Effects on lung function, blood pressure, blood clotting and inflammation in the blood were measured – before the exposure and at two-hour intervals. A few weeks later, the volunteers were asked to return to the clinic for repeated controlled exposures to a different size of graphene oxide, or clean air for comparison.

There were no adverse effects on lung function, blood pressure or the majority of other biological parameters looked at.

Researchers noticed a slight suggestion that inhalation of the material may influence the way the blood clots, but they stress this effect was very small.

Dr Mark Miller, of the University of Edinburgh’s Centre for Cardiovascular Science, said: “Nanomaterials such as graphene hold such great promise, but we must ensure they are manufactured in a way that is safe before they can be used more widely in our lives.

“Being able to explore the safety of this unique material in human volunteers is a huge step forward in our understanding of how graphene could affect the body. With careful design we can safely make the most of nanotechnology.”

Professor Kostas Kostarelos, of The University of Manchester and the Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2) in Barcelona, said: “This is the first-ever controlled study involving healthy people to demonstrate that very pure forms of graphene oxide – of a specific size distribution and surface character – can be further developed in a way that would minimise the risk to human health.

���� has taken us more than 10 years to develop the knowledge to carry out this research, from a materials and biological science point of view, but also from the clinical capacity to carry out such controlled studies safely by assembling some of the world’s leading experts in this field.”

Professor Bryan Williams, Chief Scientific and Medical Officer at the British Heart Foundation, said: “The discovery that this type of graphene can be developed safely, with minimal short term side effects, could open the door to the development of new devices, treatment innovations and monitoring techniques.

“We look forward to seeing larger studies over a longer timeframe to better understand how we can safely use nanomaterials like graphene to make leaps in delivering lifesaving drugs to patients.”

The study is published in the journal Nature Nanotechnology: .It was funded by the British Heart Foundation and the UKRI EPSRC.

Long-term energy storage – or energy storage with a duration of at least ten hours – is key to supporting the low-carbon energy transition and security. It will enable electricity generated by renewables to be stored for longer, increasing the efficiency of these environmentally sustainable technologies and reducing dependency baseload imported gas and coal-fired power plants. It will also help drive the multi-billion global market which is, currently, inadequately served with current market-ready technologies.

HalioGEN Power – a spin-out founded by The University of Manchester Professor and, with Research Associates Dr Lewis Le Fevre, Dr Andinet Aynalem, and Dr Athanasios Stergiou – has created a technology that has the potential to store energy and efficiently provide power without using critical raw materials.

HalioGEN Power’s team have achieved this by developing a redox-flow battery technology that does not require the use of membrane. By eliminating the need for a membrane, this technology is one of the world’s first long-term storage solutions to negate the use of lithium. Instead, by manipulating the halogen chemistry, the team has been able to create a two-phase system, where the interface between the two phases acts as a membrane.

Unlike current market-established technologies that use lithium metal and can only store energy efficiently for up to four hours, HalioGEN’s redox-flow batteries can store energy for more than ten hours.

In addition, the HalioGEN Power technology requires just one tank and one pump, instead of two for conventional flow batteries. This not only reduces the capital cost of the system, but also reduces the complexity of the battery design.

The new funding is provided by , The German Federal Agency for Disruptive Innovation, following the successful creation of a lab-based protype by the HalioGEN Power team. The prototype phase took place within the labs, using an initial €1 million investment, also provided by SPRIND.

The €3 million seed funding will now be used to scale and de-risk this protype over the next 18 months, preparing its route for commercial application.

During this 18-month lab-to-market acceleration period, HalioGEN Power will be based in the (GEIC) at The University of Manchester. The GEIC specialises in the commercialisation of new technologies using graphene and other 2D materials. As a GEIC partner, HalioGEN Power will be able to access its world-class facilities and resources, supported by a team of application engineers with broad experience in the development of novel products.

Despite its infancy, HalioGEN Power has already received expressions of interest from various organisations from the UK and Europe, including energy suppliers and energy solution providers, keen to apply its technology and invest in future roll out.

The HalioGEN Power project team will be led by the co-founders, who will each take key roles in the business structure. Dr Lewis Le Fevre will operate as Chief Technology Officer, Dr Andinet Aynalem as Principal Scientist, and Dr Athanasios Stergiou as Senior Scientist, with Professor Robert Dryfe overseeing all activity.

Robert Dryfe, Professor of Physical Chemistry at The University of Manchester and HalioGEN Power’s co-founder explained: “Our goal is to bring to market a new, disruptive energy innovation that helps address global energy transition and security challenges, while also tackling geo-specific issues that threaten the stability of the grid, such as the so-called ‘dark lulls’ in Germany. These lulls see the country go for up to ten days without significant solar and wind energy generation.

“Our redox-flow battery technology creates long-term storage to navigate issues like this in order to maximise the environmental and economic sustainability of renewable energy systems."

 As part of this development stage, SPRIND will provide financial support and mentorship. SPRIND is part of the German Federal Government and has been set up to support innovators from Germany and neighbouring countries, creating a space where they can take risks. 

In addition, HalioGEN Power will receive ongoing support from the (the Agency), a unique collaboration between eight partners from the public, private and academic sectors in Greater 91ֱ�� (GM), tasked with accelerating carbon emission reductions and transitioning the GM city-region to a carbon-neutral economy by 2038 by connecting innovative low-carbon products and services to end-users

The Agency will support HalioGEN Power in the further development of the business, business plan, and products, from Technology Readiness Levels (TRL) 4 to 7, throughout 2024 and 2025, sourcing and introducing potential end user customers and defining a clear route for the technology from prototype to market-ready.

David Schiele, Director of The Energy Innovation Agency said: “The Agency is thrilled to be working with the HalioGEN Power team, and uniquely placed, to help them accelerate development of their innovative battery technology and business throughout 2024 and beyond, by offering access to business development support, and end-users, to support the energy transition with innovative products which make greater use of stored energy from clean renewable energy generation”.

HalioGEN Power is the second spin-out co-created by Professor Robert Dryfe. He also co-founded Molymem, a breakthrough water filtration technology, which has already secured £1 million in investment to scale up its technology.   

The sensor, based on a 2D material called hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN), is significantly more sensitive and accurate than previous designs. It can detect even subtle variations in breath patterns, such as those caused by asthma or sleep apnoea.

"Our sensor is like a highly accurate microphone for your breath," says lead author , a researcher at The University of Manchester. "It can pick up on the tiniest changes in airflow, providing valuable physiological information on an individual, for example related to their cardiac, neurological and pulmonary conditions as well as certain types of illness. "

How it works

The active material in the sensor is made of a hexagonal boron nitride ink, which has been designed by supramolecular chemistry to provide enhanced sensibility to water molecules. The ink is deposited between electrodes in the form of a thin film and then an alternating electric field is applied to the electrodes. When you inhale and exhale, the electrical signal of the film changes based on the local humidity, showing a characteristic “V shape” associated to the full breathing cycle. Changes in the V shape can therefore be attributed to changes in the exhaling-inhaling process, for example due to coughing, fever, runny and stuffy nose.

The new sensor has several advantages over existing technologies. It is more sensitive, meaning it can detect smaller changes in breath. It is also faster, with a response time of just milliseconds. And it is not affected by temperature or other environmental factors, making it more reliable for real-world use. Furthermore, it can be easily integrated onto face masks.

Potential applications

The researchers believe that their sensor has the potential to revolutionise the way we monitor respiratory health, and it could be used to track the effectiveness of respiratory treatments.

"This sensor has the potential to make a real difference in the lives of people with respiratory problems," says Dr. Liming Chen, Postdoc in who has worked on this project. "It could help us to diagnose diseases earlier, track the progression of diseases, and help making personalised treatment plans."

The researchers are now working on extending the technology to achieve high sensitivity and selectivity towards selected biomarkers found in the breath that are associated to diseases, for example respiratory ammonia.

They hope to see their technology in the hands of patients and healthcare providers in the near future.

The National Graphene Institute (NGI) is a world-leading graphene and 2D material centre, focussed on fundamental research. Based at The University of Manchester, where graphene was first isolated in 2004 by Professors Sir Andre Geim and Sir Kostya Novoselov, it is home to leaders in their field – a community of research specialists delivering transformative discovery. This expertise is matched by £13m leading-edge facilities, such as the largest class 5 and 6 cleanrooms in global academia, which gives the NGI the capabilities to advance underpinning industrial applications in key areas including: composites, functional membranes, energy, membranes for green hydrogen, ultra-high vacuum 2D materials, nanomedicine, 2D based printed electronics, and characterisation.

Today, the and The announced the nine recipients of the 2024 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in the UK, including three Laureates and six finalists.

and are named among the three Laureates, who will each receive £100,000 in recognition of their work in Chemical Sciences and Physical Sciences & Engineering, respectively.

Now in its seventh year, the awards are the largest unrestricted prizes available to UK scientists aged 42 or younger. The awards recognise research that is transforming medicine, technology and our understanding of the world.

This year’s Laureates were selected by an independent jury of expert scientists from across the UK.

Professor Anthony Green, a Lecturer in Organic Chemistry from The University of Manchester, has been named the Chemical Sciences Laureate for his discoveries in designing and engineering new enzymes, with valuable catalytic functions previously unknown in nature that address societal needs. Recent examples include the development of biocatalysts to produce COVID-19 therapies to break down plastics, and to use visible light to drive chemical reactions. 

Rahul Nair, Professor of Materials Physics at The University of Manchester, was named Laureate in Physical Sciences & Engineering for developing novel membranes based on two-dimensional (2D) materials that will enable energy-efficient separation and filtration technologies. Using graphene and other 2D materials, his research aims to study the transport of water, organic molecules, and ions at the nanoscale, exploring its potential applications to address societal challenges, including water filtration and other separation technologies.

Internationally recognised by the scientific community, the Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists are instrumental in expanding the engagement and recognition of young scientists and provide the support and encouragement needed to drive scientific innovation for the next generation.

, Founder and Chairman of Access Industries and Head of the Blavatnik Family Foundation, said: “Providing recognition and funding early in a scientist’s career can make the difference between discoveries that remain in the lab and those that make transformative scientific breakthroughs.

“We are proud that the Awards have promoted both UK science and the careers of many brilliant young scientists and we look forward to their additional discoveries in the years ahead.”

, President and CEO of The New York Academy of Sciences and Chair of the Awards’ Scientific Advisory Council, added: “From studying cancer to identifying water in far-off planets, to laying the groundwork for futuristic quantum communications systems, to making enzymes never seen before in a lab or in nature, this year’s Laureates and Finalists are pushing the boundaries of science and working to make the world a better place. Thank you to this year’s jury for sharing their time and expertise in selecting these daring and bold scientists as the winning Laureates and Finalists of the 2024 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in the UK.”

The 2024 Blavatnik Awards in the UK Laureates and Finalists will be honoured at a black-tie gala dinner and award ceremony at Banqueting House in Whitehall, London, on 27 February 2024.

The (GEIC) helps companies progress and launch new technologies, products and processes that exploit the pioneering properties of graphene and other 2D materials.

Mr Khan was given a tour by Professor James Baker, CEO of , and met with application managers and technical specialists engaged in the use of tangible samples and cutting-edge equipment that bring products and applications to life.

He also held informal discussions with Professor John Holden, the University’s Associate Vice President for Special Projects, and the Vice Dean of Research and Innovation.  

To date, the GEIC has delivered more than 350 successful projects for over 200 companies and supported more than 50 spin outs.

Professor James Baker, CEO of Graphene@91ֱ��, said: “The University of Manchester is proud to be known as the home of graphene.  It is where it was first isolated by our researchers in 2004 and is the world’s first breakthrough 2D material.

“Through GEIC, we offer a dedicated translation centre that helps SMEs bridge the gap from lab to market - something that is not replicated anywhere else in UK academia.

“Our two-tier membership model also allows us to work on short feasibility projects, through to a long-term strategic partnership with multiple projects in different application areas.

“It was a pleasure to welcome Mr Khan to the centre to be briefed about some of the innovative work we are involved in, and to talk about our ongoing collaborations with major partners including the UAE and the Department for Business and Trade.”

Afzal Khan MP, said: “The GEIC has a remarkable success rate in delivering new projects.

���� is a truly world class facility supported by experienced and knowledgeable applications engineers and internationally renowned academics, working across a broad range of novel technologies and applications.

“Everyone involved in establishing the centre’s enviable reputation deserves immense credit for what they have achieved.    

“I am grateful to the University’s policy engagement unit, , for arranging an especially informative visit and look forward to returning soon.”

The recent partnership between , the , , and (GGT), supported by the and , has paved the way for the development of our University spinout, Graphene Innovations 91ֱ��’s GIM Concrete in the UAE. The product, enhanced by graphene and made with recycled plastic, promises to revolutionise the construction industry by reducing CO2 emissions and showcasing the circular economy in action. The signing ceremony, attended by key stakeholders including His Excellency Sharif Al Olama, Undersecretary for Energy and Petroleum Affairs, Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure, symbolises a united effort to address climate challenges.

Waleed Al Ali, Chairman of GGT, sees this collaboration as a major milestone, stating, “This is an important step towards using GIM developed technology to build a Graphene-based GIGA Factory in the UAE.”

His Excellency Sharif Al Olama commented on the partnership, stating, “This MOU symbolises how various stakeholders can work together to address the challenges we are facing today when it comes to climate change, this is an excellent example of not only addressing the challenge but rather coming up with a commercially and economically viable solution.”

The CEO of GIM, Dr. Vivek Koncherry, expressed pride in the commercialisation of their graphene-based solutions, stating, “We are proud to see the commercialisation of our award-winning and groundbreaking graphene and AI-based solutions for sustainable applications that have been backed by decades of research undertaken in 91ֱ��, United Kingdon.”

In another initiative, Levidian and Tadweer are collaborating to decarbonise methane emissions in Abu Dhabi. The partnership aims to install Levidian’s LOOP technology at one of Abu Dhabi’s largest landfill sites. This first-of-its-kind pilot project will convert waste methane into hydrogen and carbon-negative graphene, with estimated emissions reduction of around 40%. If successful, the pilot could be scaled up to address emissions from an estimated 1.2 billion cubic meters of landfill gas over the next decade.

John Hartley, CEO of Levidian, highlighted the significance of the project, stating, “The utilisation of Levidian’s LOOP technology will allow Tadweer to clean up emissions while creating a revenue stream from the production of hydrogen and graphene that will ensure that the project pays for itself.”

Eng. Ali Al Dhaheri, Managing Director and CEO of Tadweer, emphasised the importance of the project in the context of a circular economy, saying, “In the lead up to COP28, it’s more important now than ever for Tadweer to become a global model for a circular economy alongside partners such as Levidian, as we create the foundations for a sustainable future.”

These partnerships emphasise the University of Manchester's commitment to fostering innovation and sustainable practices. Professor James Baker, CEO of Graphene@91ֱ��, summed up the sentiment, "We take immense pride in witnessing our partners and spinouts within our graphene eco-system achieve significant milestones, and it's an honour to host their team at our MASDAR building, the Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre (GEIC) in 91ֱ��. These achievements showcase the potency of graphene and 2D materials, propelling sustainable solutions and catalysing innovation and business growth through impactful partnerships. I eagerly anticipate the next stages of development and the successful journey of bringing these transformative products to market in the coming months to create a more sustainable future."

Read more on the individual announcements here: |

The new Centre aims to link up on Advanced Materials with the broader UK innovation eco-system involving multiple universities, catapult centres and the National Health Service. The research programme will get the benefit of participation of leading academics and technologists of the broader eco-system through the partner network of the Henry Royce Institute.

Tata Steel has a growing business in composites, graphene, and medical materials. The research programme at the Centre will not only focus on pushing the knowledge boundaries in these materials, but also explore 2D and second-life materials. Establishing recycling technologies for materials will be an integral part of materials development.

T. V. Narendran, CEO & MD, Tata Steel, said: “The establishment of the Centre for Innovation in the UK represents a strategic move for Tata Steel towards harnessing the global technology and innovation ecosystem. The Centre at Royce will enable us to work with world-class scientists and a rich partner network to create sustainable, breakthrough, market-ready applications for the benefit of both the Company and the community. Tata Steel is committed to developing pioneering technologies and solutions for a better tomorrow."

Dr Debashish Bhattacharjee, Vice President, Technology and R&D, Tata Steel, said: “We have set up Centres for Innovation in India in key areas like Mobility, Mining, Mineral Research, and Advanced Materials. The Centre for Innovation in Advanced Materials at Royce is one of the first of Tata Steel’s multiple global satellite R&D and Technology centres planned in key strategic areas. I am enthusiastic about this collaboration which aligns seamlessly with Tata Steel's pursuit of technology leadership and building future ready businesses by exploring opportunities in materials beyond steel.”

Professor Dame Nancy Rothwell, President and Vice-Chancellor of The University of Manchester, said: “We are really pleased that Tata Steel is establishing this Centre for Innovation here in 91ֱ��, truly leveraging our world-class expertise in advanced materials. Importantly, this excellent Centre will combine the capability of the University of Manchester’s leading materials researchers with the commercial expertise of Tata Steel and is set to deliver a very productive innovation-based relationship for both the University and the company.”

Professor David Knowles, Royce CEO, said: “This important Royce collaboration with Tata Steel further underscores the opportunities for advanced materials and manufacturing both in the North West and across the UK – securing the experience and reach of a global player in materials manufacturing to further accelerate the translation of materials-based technologies to address challenges in health, sustainability and net-zero. Critically the Centre leverages on Royce’s national network of Partners to support a project which has a foot in the North West. We are looking forward to this programme building momentum for the region and feeding into a number of national supply chains supporting regional economic growth around the UK.”

This collaboration aims to strengthen the existing robust relationship between the organisations, capitalising on Tata Steel's extensive expertise in technology translation and commercialisation, complemented by Royce's strengths in science and innovation within advanced materials. Additionally, this initiative will also enable the Royce Hub at 91ֱ�� to leverage their key Royce Partners which include the Universities of Cambridge and Sheffield, and Imperial College London under this MoU.

The collaboration will support the development of future engineering talent, as well as drive the development of innovative and sustainable power solutions.

As part of the collaboration, The University of Manchester and Cummins will conduct cutting-edge research with the aim of accelerating product development of the latest generation of air handling technologies, such as e-turbos for fuel cells, together with fuel injection systems for hydrogen-based power solutions.

Academics and their students will explore the future use of hydrogen in power solutions as part of the collaboration, using world class engineering equipment, test cells and laboratories.

Students will also be given the opportunity to apply their learnings to a practical environment and gain valuable industry experience with Cummins. These placements will be open to all students, irrespective of academic discipline, aligning with the variety of roles available at Cummins.

Dr John Clark, Executive Director for Research & Development at Cummins, said: ����’s fantastic to announce our collaboration with The University of Manchester, with the partnership holding tremendous potential for both of us. It will provide students and researchers with the opportunity to work with an established, international manufacturer and actively contribute to the advancement of power solution technology. It will also help to drive the development of sustainable products, supporting our commitment to powering a more prosperous world.”

Dr Louise Bates, Head of Strategic Partnerships at The University of Manchester, added: “This partnership is a great opportunity for our research community to engage with an international company, developing widely-used technologies and groundbreaking solutions to real-world challenges. The University of Manchester is committed to achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, and this partnership presents a very exciting platform for our two organisations to collaborate and address some of the most pressing challenges facing our planet. We look forward to growing our relationship with Cummins and witnessing what we can achieve together.”

The Cummins Engine Components (CEC) site in Huddersfield designs, develops, produces and refurbishes air handling solutions, which are used globally in vehicles and machinery across various markets.  CEC is part of the international engine, power generation and filtration product manufacturer, Cummins, which employs 73,600 worldwide and generated $28.1 billion in revenue last year. This collaboration between Cummins and The University of Manchester, and the development of future air handling solutions for sustainable technologies, will support the manufacturer’s Destination Zero commitment.

• Water is everywhere. It’s essential to all life forms, so is ubiquitous. 
• It also carries enormous energy. 70% of solar radiation that reaches the surface of earth gets absorbed by water. This energy circulates with water around the globe and transfers into other forms of energy. 
• But most of the energy – for example, osmotic energy, stored in water is not exploited yet. Imagine if we could harness energy stored in water? 
• In 91ֱ�� – a city known for its rain – research led by Dr Qian Yang explores the fundamental questions around the structure and behaviour of water at the molecular level. 
• Using nanocapillaries made from graphene she is progressing underpinning research that could lead to the development of a brand-new form of renewable energy that could revolutionise sustainable living. 

The potential of water as a source of energy is vast. Hydroelectric power plants, for example, have been explored in large scale to harvest the kinetic energy of water, yet this technology causes significant changes to the local ecosystem. Which means, we still can’t harness the enormous amount of energy stored in water. As a result, this endless energy resource is largely untapped. 

The water-solid interface is the key to harnessing energy toward more efficient water-energy nexus. This requires better understanding of the interfacial water structures and their interactive properties. So far, this progress has been hampered largely because lack of understanding of water at the nanoscale. As a general rule of thumb, structure determines properties and therefore the best applications. Therefore, our first priority is to figure out the structure of nanoscale water. But how do we do it? 

Nanocapillary confinement: analysing water molecules at atomic level 
The answer is using nanocapillary confinement, a tool first identified by Sir Professor Andre Geim in 2016, and now the focus of Dr Qian Yang’s research. 

Using a 2D material capillary, Dr Yang is able to confine a single layer of water molecules. This enables Dr Yang’s team to start to detect the structure of water, and determine its properties, advancing our understanding of key fundamental questions such as how water molecules arrange themselves and transport, and how it responds to light and behaves under electric fields. This will further enable single molecular detection which is essential for many chemical and biological applications. 

Understanding the unique interaction between water and graphene 
In parallel, she is also exploring the unique interactions between water and graphene at the water-graphene interface. Graphene carries charges; and the charges interact with the ions in water solutions at the interfacial area. This means if you pour water through graphene surface, and attach electrodes alongside, you can generate electricity. Through her research, Dr Yang is determining how to make this process work more efficiently, in order to design the materials that best harvest flow induced electricity – either from rain droplets or water flow in a river. 

Leveraging the 91ֱ��’s expertise, equipment and connections 
While researchers across the world are undertaking similar fundamental analysis, Dr Yang’s research has an advantage. The nanocapillary devices conceptualized by Professor Geim and housed in 91ֱ�� is extremely sophisticated, enabling atomic confinement that’s proving difficult for other institutions to replicate. Alongside, to accelerate discovery Dr Yang has access to: the National Graphene Institute, the biggest academic cleanroom facility in Europe; the expertise of Manchester’s graphene community, the highest-density research and innovation community in the world; and a network of international collaborations. 

Leading discovery 
As a result of this capabilities, her team’s discoveries include capillary condensation under atomic scale confinement. For example, using a van der Waals assembly of two-dimensional crystals to create atomic-scale capillaries – less than four ångströms in height and can accommodate just a monolayer of water – Dr Yang has proven that the century-old Kelvin equation stands, rather than breaks down as expected. Dr Yang shows that this can be attributed to elastic deformation of capillary walls, which suppresses the giant oscillatory behaviour expected from the commensurability between the atomic-scale capillaries and water molecules. This finding provides a basis for an improved understanding of capillary effects at the smallest scale possible, which is important in many real world situations. For instance, for estimating the oil reserve worldwide. Her work also helps us to have better understanding of sandcastles, which are also hold tightly together by capillary force. 

Further to this, she has also explored ionic transport inside two-dimensional nanocapillaries to understand the mass transport and charge transfer process, for potential deionization and water purification applications. Overall, using combined nanocapillary devices with microfluidics system, together with precise electrical measurements, she examines: (i) capillary condensation inside nanocavities and modulated ionic transport; (ii) electricity generation induced by liquid flow through graphene surface; (iii) nanoconfined water structure and their properties. 

The future of energy harvesting 
Dr Yang’s work explores new physics and phenomena arise inside nanocapillaries, aiming at both better fundamental understanding of water at the atomic scale and working principles for designing more efficient energy harvesting devices at scale. 

By taking the research down to the atomic scale, she is progressing global understanding, and often confounding expectations – as in the case with the Kelvin equation. 

Her research will enable technologies in a wide range of fields, including single molecular sensing, medical diagnostics and energy harvesting. 
 

Dr Qian Yang 
is a Royal Society University Research Fellow and Dame Kathleen Ollerenshaw Fellow at the Department of Physics and Astronomy. Her research explores the mass transport in 2D nanocapillaries enabled by van der Waals technology, molecular properties under spatial confinement, nanofluidics and electrokinetic phenomena at the water-graphene interface. She is also the recipient of the Leverhulme Early Career Fellowship in 2019, Royal Society University Research Fellowship and the European Research Council Starting Grant. 

Recent relevant papers 

To discuss this research further contact Dr Qian Yang.

Discover how to access our world-leading research and state-of-the-art equipment. Visit our to find out about the National Graphene Institute and our other world-leading facilities. 
 

The fashion industry is facing several growing social and environmental sustainability issues; from clothing textile waste to the prospect of widespread microfibre pollution (MSF). For the latter, we struggle to even define the problem. Whilst we know that huge amounts of microfibres are entering our ecosystems, we don’t yet know the impact this is having. 

There’s even an issue of public understanding: whilst many associate microfibres with plastics only, microfibers can also be released from natural fibres. These ‘natural fibres’ have usually been coated with another substance to enhance the look and feel of the fabric or add a specific function, such as dyes, softeners or even making them easier to dry. As such, there’s a difference between microfibre – the material that’s been designed – and microfibre, the potential pollutant. 

Consumer and industry questions at the heart of investigations 

Now, a 91ֱ�� team has set out to assess the damage that microfibres are doing to our world, and what might be done to tackle it. Led by , an expert in sustainability in the fashion industry and Executive Board Member of the Sustainable Fashion Consumption Network and , Professor of Catalysis in 91ֱ��’s Chemical Engineering department, with Libby Allen, the team are tackling several key questions. Amongst them, are: 

• What are the current challenges and barriers to microfibre prevention? 
• Could different approaches, like filters, play a role? 
• Could we ‘design out’ waste like microfibres altogether? 
• And where does responsibility lie for this pollution? With the consumer, policy makers, or with the industry? 

This is a problem that is all around us. If you use a tumble-dryer or a washing machine with a filter, you’ll see the ‘lint’ that is collected (the common name for the visible accumulation of textile fibres). Currently you’re advised to put this lint into your household waste – but there are several ways in which these fibres then get released into the environment. Could we instead use the lint as a resource? If not, how should it be disposed of? The team put these consumer questions at the heart of their investigations. 

Material characterisation and social definitions 

91ֱ��’s research focussed on characterising microfibres to track the differences in their size and determine how best to map their impact. The team – supported by fabric created within Department of Materials, and characterised within Chemical Engineering Department – ran a range of tests tracking the whole of the fabric cycle, through creation and pre-treatments, to washing approaches, and then examined the fabrics and MFP under microscopes to look at how much pollution was released with changing variables, what the size and shape of the microfibres were, and where in the process they might be occurring. This information is needed for informed and effective mitigation strategies to tackle microfibre pollution. 

Alongside, by undertaking qualitative research, they explored how microfibre pollution is defined from an industry perspective and what challenges or solutions are associated with it. Through a programme of in-depth expert interviews, they have found insights to drive the conversation with industry forwards. For example: the need for a clear-cut definition on MFP and a key distinction between what is considered as problem and challenge. 

Developing economically viable solutions 

By leading investigations into MFP, the team aims to propose economically viable solutions in partnership with relevant industries. They’re also investigating how different stakeholders could work together to take actions throughout the entire product lifecycle; plus improving communication practices which provide the consumer with the scientific facts and the practical solutions to take action. 

Dr Claudia E Henninger is a Reader in Fashion Marketing Management, and her research interest is in sustainability, the circular economy, and more specifically collaborative consumption, in the context of the fashion industry. Claudia is also an Executive Board Member of the Sustainable Fashion Consumption Network. 

Related papers: 
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•

To discuss this research or potential collaborations with Dr Henninger, email Claudia.Henninger@manchester.ac.uk 

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• Atomically clean interfaces: The new stamp design has enabled the creation of atomically clean interfaces between stacked 2D materials over extended areas, a significant improvement over existing techniques.
• Reduced strain inhomogeneity: The rigidity provided by the new stamp design has been shown to greatly reduce strain inhomogeneity in assembled stacks.
• Scalability: The team has demonstrated clean transfer of mm-scale areas of 2D materials, paving the way for the use of these materials in next-generation electronic devices.

Researchers at the University of Manchester have made a breakthrough in the transfer of 2D crystals, paving the way for their commercialisation in next-generation electronics. This ground-breaking technique, detailed in a recent publication, utilises a fully inorganic stamp to create the cleanest and most uniform 2D material stacks to date.

The team, led by from the , employed the inorganic stamp to precisely 'pick and place' 2D crystals into van der Waals heterostructures of up to 8 individual layers within an ultra-high vacuum environment. This advancement resulted in atomically clean interfaces over extended areas, a significant leap forward compared to existing techniques and a crucial step towards the commercialisation of 2D material-based electronic devices.

Moreover, the rigidity of the new stamp design effectively minimised strain inhomogeneity in assembled stacks. The team observed a remarkable decrease in local variation – over an order of magnitude – at 'twisted' interfaces, when compared to current state-of-the-art assemblies.

The precise stacking of individual 2D materials in defined sequences holds the potential to engineer designer crystals at the atomic level, with novel hybrid properties. While numerous techniques have been developed to transfer individual layers, almost all rely on organic polymer membranes or stamps for mechanical support during the transition from their original substrates to the target ones. Unfortunately, this reliance on organic materials inevitably introduces 2D material surface contamination, even in meticulously controlled cleanroom environments.

In many cases, surface contaminants trapped between 2D material layers will spontaneously segregate into isolated bubbles separated by atomically clean areas. "This segregation has allowed us to explore the unique properties of atomically perfect stacks," explained Professor Gorbachev. "However, the clean areas between contaminant bubbles are generally confined to tens of micrometres for simple stacks, with even smaller areas for more complex structures involving additional layers and interfaces."

He further elaborated, "This ubiquitous transfer-induced contamination, along with the variable strain introduced during the transfer process, has been the primary obstacle hindering the development of industrially viable electronic components based on 2D materials."

The polymeric support used in conventional techniques acts as both a source of nanoscale contamination and an impediment to efforts to eliminate pre-existing and ambient contaminants. For instance, adsorbed contamination becomes more mobile at high temperatures and may be entirely desorbed, but polymers cannot typically withstand temperatures above a few hundred degrees. Additionally, polymers are incompatible with many liquid cleaning agents and tend to outgas under vacuum conditions.

"To overcome these limitations, we devised an alternative hybrid stamp, comprising a flexible silicon nitride membrane for mechanical support and an ultrathin metal layer as a sticky 'glue' for picking up the 2D crystals," explained, second author of the study. "Using the metal layer, we can carefully pick up a single 2D material and then sequentially 'stamp' its atomically flat lower surface onto additional crystals. The van der Waals forces at this perfect interface cause adherence of these crystals, enabling us to construct flawless stacks of up to 8 layers."

After successfully demonstrating the technique using microscopic flakes mechanically exfoliated from crystals using the 'sticky tape' method, the team scaled up the ultraclean transfer process to handle materials grown from the gas phase at larger sizes, achieving clean transfer of mm-scale areas. The ability to work with these 'grown' 2D materials is crucial for their scalability and potential applications in next-generation electronic devices.

Recognising the significance of the breakthrough, The University of Manchester has filed a pending patent application to safeguard both the method and apparatus involved. The research team is now eager to collaborate with industry partners to assess the effectiveness of this method for the wafer-scale transfer of 2D films from growth substrates. They invite expressions of interest from equipment manufacturers, semiconductor foundries and electronic device manufacturers with 2D materials in their product roadmap. For enquiries, please contact contact@uominnovationfactory.com

The National Graphene Institute (NGI) is a world-leading graphene and 2D material centre, focussed on fundamental research. Based at The University of Manchester, where graphene was first isolated in 2004 by Professors Sir Andre Geim and Sir Kostya Novoselov, it is home to leaders in their field – a community of research specialists delivering transformative discovery. This expertise is matched by £13m leading-edge facilities, such as the largest class 5 and 6 cleanrooms in global academia, which gives the NGI the capabilities to advance underpinning industrial applications in seven key areas: composites, functional membranes, energy, membranes for green hydrogen, ultra-high vacuum 2D materials, nanomedicine, and characterisation.

With support from the , the UK’s national centre for research and innovation for advanced materials, the lab gives researchers and industry access to the complete fabrication pipeline from cell culturing to product evaluation.

Funded by a £200,000 grant from the UK Space Agency and assisted by the European Space Agency, a University of Manchester team are currently investigating how to optimise the bioprinting process for conditions experienced in space, such as lack of gravity.

Using the unique capabilities of the BTP, researchers are also collaborating with clinicians and cell biologists to develop 3D models of human cartilage and bone.

Mr Green, who before entering Parliament spent almost two decades working as an engineer in the mass spectrometry industry, began his trip at the - the most advanced nuclear research capability in UK academia - where he was briefed on current projects by Professor Adrian Bull MBE, Chair in Nuclear Energy and Society. 

The Bolton West MP’s final destination on the visit, organised by the University’s policy engagement unit , was the Justice Hub to join a health-themed roundtable discussion with senior academics including Dr Philip Drake, Dr Jennifer Voorhees and Dr Jonathan Hammond.   

Professor Richard Jones, Vice President for Civic Engagement and Innovation at The University of Manchester, said: ���� was a pleasure to welcome Chris and give him an insight into some of the pioneering work we do in partnership with businesses right across Greater 91ֱ��.

“The University of Manchester's cutting-edge research in making a real difference in tackling pressing policy challenges.  That's why it is important for influencers of policy, including MPs across Greater 91ֱ��, to see at first-hand the work being done and to take that evidence back with them to Westminster. 

“This was a particularly timely visit as the Chancellor announced a new investment zone for Greater 91ֱ�� in the recent Autumn Statement which will give further impetus to the work we do on innovation, advanced materials and manufacturing with our partners in the city-region."

Chris Green MP said: ���� was a fascinating morning. The University of Manchester has a thoroughly merited global reputation for research excellence across a vast swathe of subject areas, not least in technology, innovation and health.

“I was deeply impressed by all I saw and heard, particularly in the Bioprinting Technology Platform where the remarkable work going on places Greater 91ֱ�� firmly at the forefront of the medical engineering revolution.

“I look forward to following the many exciting research projects happening across the University, with lots more in development.”          

It was facilitated by both , at 91ֱ��, in his role as Faculty Head of Internationalisation for India and Dr Laura Cohen, Royal Academy of Engineering’s (RAEng) Visiting Professor at Royce who is the former CEO of the British Ceramic Confederation (BCC).

Critical metals such as copper, cobalt, gallium, indium, rare earth, and platinum group metals are the raw materials for low-carbon technologies such as wind mill generators, solar panels, batteries, magnets, and EV vehicles, and are critical in the development of low-carbon industries globally.

The Critical Metals Industry includes mining, smelting, processing, and recycling, in which research and innovation plays an important role. UK and India face similar challenges in terms of building supply chain resilience in critical metals as both countries do not have very good sources of critical metals and minerals. They are largely dependent on a few countries for sourcing in their finished forms. There is recognition in both countries on the importance of building supply chain resilience in this area.

Working Party

The workshop saw discussions on future ways forward. There was particular interest identified from the Indian delegation in battery recycling (critical materials for anode cathode, electrolyte); magnets; novel battery technology; using less critical materials; design for end-of-life; photovoltaics; other sustainable materials, and waste streams from mining.

Exploration of materials is a UK Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office (FCDO) – India priority.

The November workshop follows an earlier  in Spring this year. This earlier meeting had mapped the India landscape to critical minerals strengths, challenges and opportunities for collaboration with the UK.

Mr Sudhendu J. Sinha, Adviser, NITI Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India) who led the Indian delegation said, “Critical minerals is an important area of collaboration. It can possibly have focus on raising sensitivity through carefully crafted Awareness Programs, skill upgradation, technological collaboration, knowledge exchange and experience sharing and finally exploring Investment opportunities in the area of critical minerals between India and the UK. We sincerely hope this engagement to rise to meaningful and impactful levels. “

Joshua Bamford, representing the FCOD and Head of Tech and Innovation at the British High Commission New Delhi said, “The UK and Indian governments recognise the strategic importance of securing a sustainable supply of critical materials as well as the need for innovation and investment in the recycling of critical materials in order to drive forward technological transformation and the transition to net zero.

“This workshop has underscored the huge opportunities of continued collaboration between our governments, universities and industry to drive forward new innovations, share expertise and fast track new solutions to market.

“The UK government looks forward to delivering the next steps of this exciting partnership to deliver tangible benefits to the UK and India.”

Dr. Laura Cohen said, “This was a very positive workshop, which demonstrated the huge potential for both countries to work together to translate these priority themes into tangible projects. A good example was the strong interest from a number of Indian battery recycling companies in initial work with Royce/ 91ֱ�� in exploring titanium recycling for battery casing.  

“Both the UK and India delegates were also keen to use the learning from the Royce  project, recognising the importance of ‘application scientists’ in establishing industry needs and connecting this to academic expertise.”

Prof. Aravind Vijayaraghavan added, ���� was a pleasure to work with FCDO and Royce to host this delegation in 91ֱ��, where a clear and significant potential was evidenced for both countries to work together to promote the circularity of critical materials. We will look forward to translating these engagement into highly impactful projects and long-term collaborations, as well as to explore joint commercial opportunities in both countries.”

The Workshop included interdisciplinary UK delegates from the Universities of Manchester, Brunel and Surrey, the Henry Royce Institute, FCDO, key Indian technology Institutes and laboratories, Innovate UK as well as a number of Indian businesses who have activities associated with rare metals.

The prestigious award ceremony, held in London on November 9, recognised and celebrated outstanding British entrepreneurship, firmly establishing GIM as a leader in sustainability and innovation.

The Innovator of the Year Awards, hosted by The Spectator, have become a hallmark in the UK's business and investment communities, attracting a growing number of entries each year. The award was well deserving of GIM's groundbreaking work in harnessing the power of graphene to drive sustainability and economic viability.

Earlier this month, GIM, alongside Economic Innovator of the Year finalists, was featured in . The episode delved into their expertise in manufacturing and engineering, with GIM's contributions highlighted from 27:30.

Graphene Innovations 91ֱ�� Ltd

GIM design graphene-based compounds and production systems that allow partners to commercialise graphene-enhanced products at scale, unlocking competitive advantage, sustainability, and cost reduction. Notably, GIM's work in developing graphene-enhanced concrete stands out as a game-changer for the construction industry, where concrete production contributes 8% of global CO2 emissions.

GIM Concrete, a pioneering product by the company, is a fusion of graphene, polymers, and additives. What makes it truly innovative is its manufacturing process, which eliminates 88% of CO2 emissions by abstain from the use of cement. Not only does it address environmental concerns, but GIM Concrete also boasts 4 times the compression strength of traditional concrete, is 30% lighter, and cures in a mere 2 to 4 hours, compared to the 28 days required for traditional concrete.

The company has also developed a sustainable waste upcycling platform, utilising graphene as an additive to transform ground waste tires and plastics. This approach allows for the creation of high-quality, durable products through traditional manufacturing processes, optimising both performance and sustainability.

Graphene Innovations 91ֱ�� Ltd was founded by Dr Vivek Koncherry, an alumnus, with their research and development centre located in The University of Manchester’s (GEIC). 

Vivek expressed his delight saying: “We are honoured to receive the Excellence in Sustainability award and grateful for the supportive environment in 91ֱ��'s graphene ecosystem and the focus of The University of Manchester on this core area of social responsibility. This recognition exemplifies the collaborative efforts and transformative potential of graphene-based solutions. Personally, my time as a senior research fellow at The University of Manchester, combined with recognising the fundamental role of sustainability in the University’s ethos, inspired me to working with graphene and the GEIC.

"From first proposing a graphene suitcase idea to recycling car tires into graphene floor mats, the journey has been very transformative with exciting future developments now taking place. With this recognition, GIM eagerly anticipates continuing its innovative journey, contributing to a sustainable future, and inspiring others to leverage the graphene ecosystem for positive impact."

What is graphene, and its link to 91ֱ��?

If you've ever used a pencil, you've unwittingly engaged with graphene. Discovered in 2004 by 91ֱ��-based researchers, Professor Andre Geim and Professor Kostya Novoselov, graphene is a one-atom-thick, two-dimensional crystal. Their pioneering work in isolating graphene from graphite earned them the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2010. Today, 91ֱ�� known as the home of graphene, remains a hub for graphene research and applications, and GIM stands as a shining example of the city's continued contribution to groundbreaking technological advancements.

Proton transport is a key step in many renewable energy technologies, such as hydrogen fuel cells and solar water splitting, and it was also previously shown to be permeable to protons by 91ֱ�� scientists.

A new study published in has shown that light can be used to accelerate proton transport through graphene. Graphene is a single layer of carbon atoms that is an excellent conductor of both electricity and heat. However, it was previously thought that graphene was impermeable to protons.

The researchers found that when graphene is illuminated with light, the electrons in the graphene become excited. These excited electrons then interact with protons, accelerating their transport through the material.

This discovery could have a significant impact on the development of new renewable energy technologies. For example, it could lead to the development of more efficient hydrogen fuel cells and solar water-splitting devices.

"Understanding the connection between electronic and ion transport properties in electrode-electrolyte interfaces at the molecular scale could enable new strategies to accelerate processes central to many renewable energy technologies, including hydrogen generation and utilisation," said lead researcher Dr. Marcelo Lozada-Hidalgo.

Graphene, a single layer of carbon atoms is an excellent electronic conductor and, unexpectedly, was also found to be permeable to protons. However, its proton and electronic properties were believed to be completely unrelated. Now, the team measured both graphene’s proton transport and electronic properties under illumination and found that exciting electrons in graphene with light accelerates proton transport.

The smoking gun evidence of this connection was the observation of a phenomenon known as ‘Pauli blocking’ in proton transport. This is an unusual electronic property of graphene, never observed in proton transport. In essence, it is possible to raise the energy of electrons in graphene to such an extent that graphene no longer absorbs light – hence the ‘blocking’. The researchers demonstrate that the same blocking takes place in light-driven proton transport by raising the energy of electrons in graphene. This unexpected observation demonstrates that graphene’s electronic properties are important to its proton permeation properties.

Dr. Shiqi Huang co-first author of the work said, “We were surprised that the photo response of our proton conducting devices could be explained by the Pauli blocking mechanism, which so far had only been seen in electronic measurements. This provides insight into how protons, electrons and photons interact in atomically thin interfaces”.

“In our devices, graphene is being effectively bombarded with protons, which pierce its electronic cloud. We were surprised to see that photo-excited electrons could control this flow of protons”, commented Dr. Eoin Griffin co-first author.

Advanced materials is one of The University of Manchester’s research beacons - examples of pioneering discoveries, interdisciplinary collaboration and cross-sector partnerships tackling some of the planet's biggest questions. 

The centre, led Dr Mauricio A Álvarez, will train the next generation of AI researchers to develop AI methods designed to accelerate new scientific discoveries – specifically in the fields of astronomy, engineering biology and material science.

The University will be working in partnership with The University of Cambridge, and is one of 12 Centres for Doctoral Training (CDTs) in Artificial Intelligence (AI) based at 16 universities, announced by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) today (31 October).

The investment by UKRI aims to ensure that the UK continues to have the skills needed to seize the potential of the AI era, and to nurture the British tech talent that will push the AI revolution forwards. 

£117 million in total has been awarded to the 12 CDTs and builds on the previous UKRI investment of £100 million in 2018.

Doctoral students at The University of Manchester will be provided with a foundation in Machine Learning and AI and an in-depth understanding of the implications of its application to solve real-world problems.

The programme will also cover the areas of responsible AI and equality, diversity and inclusion.

Dr Mauricio A Álvarez, Senior Lecturer in Machine Learning at The University of Manchester, said: "We are delighted to be awarded funding for this new AI CDT. 91ֱ�� is investing heavily in AI research and translation, and the CDT will complement other significant efforts in research through our AI Fundamentals Centre at the University and innovation via the Turing Innovation Catalyst. Our partnership with Cambridge will also enable us to educate experts capable of generalising and translating nationally to stimulate the development and adoption of AI technology in high-potential, lower AI-maturity sectors.

“Modern science depends on a variety of complex systems, both in terms of the facilities that we use and the processes that we model. AI has the potential to help us understand these systems better, as well as to make them more efficient.

“The AI methods we will develop will apply to a wide range of challenges in complex systems, from transport systems to sports teams. We are partnering with a diverse pool of industry collaborators to address these challenges jointly."

Dr Julia Handl, Professor in Decision Sciences at The University of Manchester, said: “This CDT is a fantastic opportunity to bring together researchers from a wide spectrum of disciplines, from across all three of Manchester’s Faculties, to ensure we can develop innovative solutions that are appropriate to the complexity and uncertainty of real-world systems. The involvement of the Faculty of Humanities is crucial in ensuring such systems are effective and inclusive in supporting human decision makers, and in delivering the centre’s cross-cutting theme of increasing business productivity, supported by collaboration with the Productivity Institute, the Masood Enterprise Centre and a range of industry partners.”

UKRI Chief Executive, Professor Dame Ottoline Leyser, said: “The UK is in a strong position to harness the power of AI to transform many aspects of our lives for the better. Crucial to this endeavour is nurturing the talented people and teams we need to apply AI to a broad spectrum of challenges, from healthy aging to sustainable agriculture, ensuring its responsible and trustworthy adoption. UKRI is investing £117 million in Centres for Doctoral Training to develop the talented researchers and innovators we need for success.”

Dr Kedar Pandya, Executive Director, Cross-Council Programmes at UKRI, said: “This £117 million investment, will involve multiple business and institutional partners for the Centres of Doctoral Training. These include well-known brands such as IBM, Astra Zeneca, and Google, as well as small to medium sized enterprises that are innovating in the AI field. A further £110 million has been leveraged from all partners in the form of cash or in-kind contributions such as use of facilities, resources or expertise.”

The first cohort of UKRI AI CDT students will start in the 2024/2025 academic year, recruitment for which will begin shortly.

The University of Manchester’s Dr Beatriz Mingo – RAEng Engineers Trust Young Engineer of the Year 2022 – will collaborate with Dr Isabel Sousa from CICERO-Aveiro Institute of Materials – the best ranked materials science research unit in Portugal (Portuguese Science Foundation) – to develop a technology that has the potential to serve as the foundation for the next generation of biomedical implants with enhanced properties. 

Biodegradable materials for orthopaedic implants, such as screws, nails, or staples are of increasing clinical interest due to their ability to dissolve naturally after the bone has healed. This removes the need for additional surgical interventions to remove the implant, and the risk of further complication that this can cause. 

Magnesium, with its bone-like density and biocompatibility, is considered the ideal material. However, its rate of degradation is extremely high and currently does not last the complete bone healing period.  

The new project, funded by the Royal Society and starting this September, Dr Mingo and Dr Sousa aim to create a solution by developing a smart multilayer coating for magnesium substrates, in which each layer offers a specific functionality.  

The ceramic layer increases the implant life, matching the rate of biodegradation to that of the bone healing time; while the organic top-coat loaded with encapsulated antibiotics, simultaneously releases antibiotic molecules in-situ where infections are most likely to occur.  

Dr Beatriz Mingo, Senior Lecturer and Royal Academy of Engineering Fellow at The University of Manchester, explains: “Our proposed technology has the potential to provide a foundation that transforms the future use of biomedical implants, creating an application that both optimises the healing process through the release of antibiotics, while eradicating the need for follow up surgeries – an additional risk of infection – to remove the implants. This will positively impact society by providing shorter treatment times for patients while relieving the financial burden of the NHS.” 

The research grant is part of Royal Society initiative to stimulate international collaborations with leading scientists.  As part of the grant, Dr Mingo’s group members will visit the Univeristy of Aveiro to develop biodegradable gelatine capsules containing antibiotic agents and Dr Sousa will visit 91ֱ�� to incorporate these particles into coatings formed on magnesium based components. 

Dr Beatriz Mingo is a materials  scientist at The University of Manchester, whose research focuses on environmentally friendly surface treatments for light alloys.  

In addition to this project announced today, she is also developing high-performance smart materials that can release corrosion inhibitors in response to the change in pH that accompanies the start of the corrosion process. Her research could extend the lifetime of lightweight components used in transport, which will help to create energy-efficient vehicles and support sustainable consumption of resources.  

is one of The University of Manchester’s - examples of pioneering discoveries, interdisciplinary collaboration and cross-sector partnerships that are tackling some of the biggest challenges facing the planet. #ResearchBeacons 

When Gerdau sought an ideal location to work on disruptive ideas and solutions with the foremost experts in the field, the choice was clear—91ֱ��, a city renowned as the "home of graphene" and a historical hotbed of innovation since the industrial revolution. Gerdau's strategic plan laid the foundation for this momentous collaboration, with a vision to diversify revenue streams through new businesses and products complementary to their core steel chain. Among these value-adding components, graphene stood out as a material with transformative potential.

Joining hands with the GEIC in early 2019, Gerdau became an early adopter in the commercialisation journey of graphene and Gerdau Graphene emerged as the group's first advanced materials business, operating independently with its own governance and resources to foster rapid and autonomous growth. The collaboration, underscored by Gerdau's strategic decision to deploy its Research and Development team to the GEIC, not only fuelled technical innovation but also expedited their prototyping processes. The knowledge and resources from the GEIC played a pivotal role in this advancement, and the company witnessed a significant share of revenues.

James Baker, CEO of Graphene@91ֱ�� and Professor of Practice, said:

"Having Gerdau as a partner to the GEIC has been rewarding for all concerned – this is a company that has a strong heritage and also continues to pioneer through Gerdau Graphene. Gerdau’s work to functionalise graphene has created a supply of material that is industry-ready and is tuned to optimise performance in the specific application requested by the customer, and we are delighted that the partnership has been part of this journey.

The unique advantage of being located here in 91ֱ��, has enabled Gerdau to tap into the cutting-edge knowledge and resources available at the GEIC and the broader University, expediting our prototyping processes and creating an entirely new portfolio of graphene-enhanced additives and materials, opening up new markets and commercialisation opportunities."

The collaboration has allowed Gerdau to  extend applications of graphene to products within Gerdau's broader "ecosystem," reaching beyond the steel industry. The initial commercial applications were implemented in maintenance paints for the 16 Brazilian factories, packaging for construction nails, and mineral additives for projects involving key customers and partners in the state of Minas Gerais, located in the southeastern region of the country.

Alexandre Corrêa, Executive Director of Gerdau Graphene,  also shared his satisfaction for the ongoing partnership: "Our partnership with the GEIC marked our starting point in this journey into specialty chemicals and the development of novel additives with graphene. Our first research into material dispersion and our first application development into industrial paints were all started at the GEIC. From these projects we expanded into a vast network of over 6 laboratories in the UK and Brazil and strategic partnerships with clients and graphene suppliers having 91ֱ�� and the GEIC as a critical hub for our technical development. This network has turned graphene into a reality here in Latin America, leading to the development of several novel family of Additives and Masterbatches which we are currently selling in the region."

Gerdau Graphene has positioned itself as the first solution provider and developer of industrial scale additives focused on the incorporation of graphene in the Americas, bringing a unique blend of products and services to the market. This strategic move enables the company to make significant contributions to the development of graphene-enhanced products including polymers, paints and coatings, mineral additives, chemical additives, lubricants, and masterbatches. The incorporation of graphene in their products gives Gerdau Graphene a competitive edge, ensuring unmatched performance gains and benefits compared to conventional additives, in addition to generating a significant impact on sustainability,

The five-year partnership between Gerdau and GEIC facilitated rapid progress in the development of new graphene applications, showcasing the potential of collaborative efforts in driving technological innovation. Through their collective pursuit of disruptive ideas and inventive solutions, both companies have contributed significantly to the advancement of the graphene industry. As they continue to work in tandem, members of the GEIC are scheduled to visit Gerdau's facilities in Brazil in November, further solidifying their enduring partnership and underlining their commitment to developing graphene applications.

Advanced materials is one of The University of Manchester’s research beacons - examples of pioneering discoveries, interdisciplinary collaboration and cross-sector partnerships tackling some of the planet's biggest questions. #ResearchBeacons

Bioprinting involves using specialised 3D printers to print living cells creating new skin, bone, tissue or organs for transplantation.

The technique has the potential to revolutionise medicine, and specifically in the realm of space travel, bioprinting could have a significant impact.

Astronauts on extended space missions have an increased health risk due to the absence of gravity and exposure to radiation. This makes them susceptible to diseases such as osteoporosis caused by loss of bone density and can cause injuries, such as fractures, which currently can’t be treated in space.

By harnessing bioprinting capabilities in space, researchers aim to protect the health of space explorers.

Currently, bioprinting machines rely on Earth’s gravity to function effectively. The new research by The University of Manchester, funded by a £200,000 grant from the UK Space Agency and supported by the European Space Agency, seeks to understand how to optimise the bioprinting process for conditions experienced in space, such as lack of gravity.

Dr Marco Domingos, Senior Lecturer in Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering at The University of Manchester, said: “This project marks a significant leap forward in bioprinting technology and by addressing the challenges posed by microgravity, we are paving the way for remarkable advancements in medicine and space exploration.”

Libby Moxon, Exploration Science Officer for Lunar and Microgravity, added: “The University of Manchester’s pioneering project investigating a novel approach for bioprinting in space will help strengthen the UK’s leadership in the areas of fluid mechanics, soft matter physics and biomaterials, and could help protect the health of astronauts exploring space around the Earth, Moon and beyond.

“We’re backing technology and capabilities that support ambitious space exploration missions to benefit the global space community, and we look forward to following this bioprinting research as it evolves.”

Eventually, the team, including Dr Domingos, Prof Anne Juel and Dr Igor Chernyavsky, will take their findings to a bioprinting station being developed on board the International Space Station, which will allow researchers to print models in space and study the effects of radiation and microgravity.

Dr Domingos said: “The first challenge is figuring out how to print anything where there is no gravity. There are few facilities in the UK that are suitable to study the bioprinting process within an environment that matches that of space – they are either too small, or the time in which microgravity conditions are applies are too short. Hence, it is important to print in space to advance our knowledge in this field.

“By combining the principles of physics with bioprinting at The University of Manchester, we hope to come up with a solution before taking it to the International Space Station for testing.”

The project will take place over two years at the Bioprinting Technology Platform based at the Henry Royce Institute on The University of Manchester’s campus.

It hopes to develop beyond the challenge of microgravity to address further challenges of preserving, transporting and processing cells in space.

A decade ago, scientists at The University of Manchester demonstrated that graphene is permeable to protons, nuclei of hydrogen atoms. The unexpected result started a debate in the community because theory predicted that it would take billions of years for a proton to permeate through graphene’s dense crystalline structure. This had led to suggestions that protons permeate not through the crystal lattice itself, but through the pinholes in its structure.

Now, writing in , a collaboration between the University of Warwick, led by Prof Patrick Unwin, and The University of Manchester, led by Dr Marcelo Lozada-Hidalgo and Prof Andre Geim, report ultra-high spatial resolution measurements of proton transport through graphene and prove that perfect graphene crystals are permeable to protons. Unexpectedly, protons are strongly accelerated around nanoscale wrinkles and ripples in the crystal.

The discovery has the potential to accelerate the hydrogen economy. Expensive catalysts and membranes, sometimes with significant environmental footprint, currently used to generate and utilise hydrogen could be replaced with more sustainable 2D crystals, reducing carbon emissions, and contributing to Net Zero through the generation of green hydrogen.

The team used a technique known as to measure minute proton currents collected from nanometre-sized areas. This allowed the researchers to visualise the spatial distribution of proton currents through graphene membranes. If proton transport took place through holes as some scientists speculated, the currents would be concentrated in a few isolated spots. No such isolated spots were found, which ruled out the presence of holes in the graphene membranes.

Drs Segun Wahab and Enrico Daviddi, leading authors of the paper, commented: “We were surprised to see absolutely no defects in the graphene crystals. Our results provide microscopic proof that graphene is intrinsically permeable to protons.”

Unexpectedly, the proton currents were found to be accelerated around nanometre-sized wrinkles in the crystals. The scientists found that this arises because the wrinkles effectively ‘stretch’ the graphene lattice, thus providing a larger space for protons to permeate through the pristine crystal lattice. This observation now reconciles the experiment and theory.

Dr Lozada-Hidalgo said: “We are effectively stretching an atomic scale mesh and observing a higher current through the stretched interatomic spaces in this mesh – mind-boggling.”

Prof Unwin commented: “These results showcase SECCM, developed in our lab, as a powerful technique to obtain microscopic insights into electrochemical interfaces, which opens up exciting possibilities for the design of next-generation membranes and separators involving protons.”

The authors are excited about the potential of this discovery to enable new hydrogen-based technologies.

Dr Lozada-Hidalgo said, "Exploiting the catalytic activity of ripples and wrinkles in 2D crystals is a fundamentally new way to accelerate ion transport and chemical reactions. This could lead to the development of low-cost catalysts for hydrogen-related technologies."

Advanced materials is one of The University of Manchester’s research beacons - examples of pioneering discoveries, interdisciplinary collaboration and cross-sector partnerships tackling some of the planet's biggest questions. 

The UK disposes of one million tonnes of textiles every year, 300,000 tonnes of which end up in landfill or incineration. Some figures suggest 10% of global CO2 emissions come from the fashion industry. 

The football sector is a huge contributor to this - approximately 2.45 million Liverpool and 1.95 million 91ֱ�� United sports shirts were sold worldwide in 2021 alone. 

The new project, KIT:BAG by RÆBURN, will work with local sportswear suppliers and the local community transform surplus football shirts into unique reusable tote bags, while educating them of the environmental impacts of textile waste and how we can extend the life of our garments. 

It aims to provide a fun, responsible way to keep kits in circulation while shining a light on the large-scale problem in the industry. 

Lindsay Pressdee, Senior Lecturer in Sustainable Fashion Marketing & Branding Communication at The University of Manchester, said: “Developing meaningful sustainable business models and consumer behaviours remains a key issue within the fashion sector and raises serious environmental concerns.  

“This project focuses on the overlooked area of sportswear; how we can extend the life of these polyester garments and avoid them going into landfill or incineration, through the key principle of community education. 

“The initiative aligns with The University of Manchester's objectives of promoting sustainability and social responsibility and by collaborating with Raeburn Design, which follows the REMADE sustainable ethos, we have an excellent opportunity to raise awareness and address this issue.” 

Christopher Raeburn, Creative Director at RÆBURN, added: “As our business has evolved, we’ve tried, tested and proven our “Remade, Reduced, Recycled” motif can be scaled and translated into other industries outside of fashion, such as architecture, furniture design, film and cultural placemaking. 

“KIT:BAG by RAEBURN marks our newest venture: bringing circular design solutions to the sports industry. We’re excited to have the University of Manchester on board as our research partner for this project. Together, we’ve set out a roadmap and a masterplan, now we’re inviting industry leaders to join us on this journey.” 

While many solutions are emerging to tackle the problem of sustainable fashion, the size of the problem relating to official sportswear remains unknown.  

As research partners, academics from the Department of Materials at The University of Manchester will focus on advancing current knowledge and generating new knowledge in this area. The researchers, including Lindsay Pressdee, Dr Amy Benstead,  Dr Jo Conlon and student intern Lena Bartoszewicz, will look at post-consumer waste, diverting it from landfill and repurposing it into a new usable product - a key part of the circular design model. 

Lindsay added: “The waste of sportwear is a hidden problem – we know that football teams can have on average three kits per season, but we do not know how many people have in their homes, shoved in their wardrobes, or put away in their lofts.  

“The problem requires a multifaceted approach and any change requires collaboration with consumers, sports clubs, garment recycling schemes, sports brands and producers. 

���� is difficult to distinguish who is responsible, so we must consider both the sustainable production and consumption of products – a key principle of which is education.” 

KIT:BAG by RÆBURN will launch on Thursday, 27 July with a party at The Lab E20 – Raeburn’s creative workspace in London. This will be followed by a community event for children and families on Saturday, 29 July.  

The team plan to extend this to 91ֱ��, where they will invite the local community to various workshops and have a go at making their own reusable bags.

Despite being made entirely of layers of carbon atoms arranged in a honeycomb pattern, natural graphite is not as simple as one may think. The manner in which these atomic layers stack on top of one another can result in different types of graphite, characterised by different stacking order of consecutive atomic planes.   The majority of naturally appearing graphite has hexagonal stacking, making it one of the most “ordinary” materials on Earth. The structure of graphite crystal is a repetitive pattern. This pattern gets disrupted at the surface of the crystal and leads to what's called 'surface states', which are like waves that slowly fade away as you go deeper into the crystal. But how surface states can be tuned in graphite, was not well understood yet.

Van der Waals technology and twistronics (stacking two 2D crystals at a twist angle to tune the properties of the resulting structure to a great extent, because of moiré pattern formed at their interface) are the two leading fields in 2D materials research. Now, the team of NGI researchers, led by Prof. Artem Mishchenko, employs moiré pattern to tune the surface states of graphite, reminiscent of a kaleidoscope with everchanging pictures as one rotates the lens, revealing the extraordinary new physics behind graphite.

In particular, Prof. Mishchenko expanded twistronics technique to three-dimensional graphite and found that moiré potential does not just modify the surface states of graphite, but also affects the electronic spectrum of the entire bulk of graphite crystal. Much like the well-known story of The Princess and The Pea, the princess felt the pea right through the twenty mattresses and the twenty eider-down beds. In the case of graphite, the moiré potential at an aligned interface could penetrate through more than 40 atomic graphitic layers.

This research, published in the latest issue of , studied the effects of moiré patterns in bulk hexagonal graphite generated by crystallographic alignment with hexagonal boron nitride. The most fascinating result is the observation of a 2.5-dimensional mixing of the surface and bulk states in graphite, which manifests itself in a new type of fractal quantum Hall effect – a 2.5D Hofstadter’s butterfly.

Prof. Artem Mishchenko at The University of Manchester, who has already discovered the said: “Graphite gave rise to the celebrated graphene, but people normally are not interested in this ‘old’ material. And now, even with our accumulated knowledge on graphite of different stacking and alignment orders in the past years, we still found graphite a very attractive system – so much yet to be explored”. Ciaran Mullan, one of the leading authors of the paper, added: “Our work opens up new possibilities for controlling electronic properties by twistronics not only in 2D but also in 3D materials”.

Prof. Vladimir Fal’ko, Director of the National Graphene Institute and theoretical physicist at the Department of Physics and Astronomy, added: “The unusual 2.5D quantum Hall effect in graphite arises as the interplay between two quantum physics textbook phenomena – Landau quantisation in strong magnetic fields and quantum confinement, leading to yet another new type of quantum effect”.

The same team is now carrying on with the graphite research to gain a better understanding of this surprisingly interesting material.

Image credit: Prof. Jun Yin (co-author of the paper) 

Advanced materials is one of The University of Manchester’s research beacons - examples of pioneering discoveries, interdisciplinary collaboration and cross-sector partnerships tackling some of the planet's biggest questions. #ResearchBeacons

Erratic weather is a major source of concern for ship owners installing modern sails to reduce carbon emissions. However, new research from The University of Manchester highlights operational strategies that can reduce shipping emissions by up to a quarter, strengthening confidence in sails as a decarbonisation tool.

It is estimated that the international shipping sector contributes to 2–3% of global carbon emissions annually and its target to cut carbon by 50% relative to 2008 levels by 2050 falls short of the cuts required in the Paris Climate Agreement, meaning the shipping sector requires urgent global action.

The research, published in the journal , calculated carbon emissions from more than 1000 ship departures setting sail from three main shipping routes. The results found that combining modern sail technology with efficient routing systems could provide greater assurances of carbon savings by using the technique that reduces uncertainty from unpredictable weather patterns.

Dr James Mason, previously a postdoctoral researcher and now a visiting academic at the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research at The University of Manchester, said: “Current measures to reduce carbon emissions include fitting retrofit technologies, such as wind propulsion technology, where modern sails produce direct energy from the wind to reduce the power consumed by a ship's engine. Weather routing is also used as an efficient routing system to allow a ship to deviate from standard shipping routes to search for new routes with more favourable winds.

“Current academic methods assume a perfect foresight of future weather rather than accounting for unpredictable winds that are happening in real-time. This can detrimentally reduce the carbon savings from weather routing and could present a real challenge for the shipping sector when trying to meet its climate reduction goals.”

Dr Alejandro Gallego Schmid, a Senior Lecturer at the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, added: “This research provides an insight into which routes are most sensitive to changing weather forecasts when using wind propulsion and assesses a strategy that could help to mitigate the detrimental impact that unpredictable weather conditions can have.”

The strategy mirrors existing routing methods in the sector by updating weather and wind every 12 hours to allow ships to adjust their routes based on the most accurate weather forecast available.

To test the strategy, the study simulated 1080 ship departures across eastbound and westbound journeys in the North Sea, South Atlantic Ocean and North Atlantic Ocean, which have voyage times of up to 12 days.

The research found that the method successfully reduced the uncertainty from unpredictable weather and showed that sails and efficient routing can provide annual carbon savings of up to 25%.

However, while the method reduces the uncertainty from unpredictable weather, it does not remove it entirely. Wind propulsion and efficient routing can provide maximum carbon savings of up to 29% in ideal conditions and weather uncertainty reduces these savings by 10-20%. Further research is needed to understand how ships can achieve these maximum savings in practice.

Reducing shipping emissions by up to a quarter by using wind propulsion with efficient routing could provide profound benefits to the sector. The research offers a clearer understanding of the potential carbon savings achievable through wind propulsion decarbonisation strategies, without which, objectives in the Paris Climate Agreement may become out of sight.

The Mayor of Greater 91ֱ��, Andy Burnham, inaugurated the conference, which sees more than 30 companies exhibiting their revolutionary graphene technologies. More than 200 experts from academia and industry will also deliver lectures at the conference. 

“We’re proud to welcome businesses and researchers from across the world to Greater 91ֱ�� for Graphene 2023”, said the mayor of Greater 91ֱ��, Andy Burnham. “Our city-region has been the driving force behind cultural and scientific innovations for over 200 years, and it’s fitting that we host the world’s 2D materials community as we approach 20 years since graphene was first discovered. I hope delegates get a sense of the exciting work happening right here in Greater 91ֱ�� to commercialise advanced materials.” 

The conference is held in the newly opened , the new home of Engineering and Materials at the University. Unrivalled in scale as a hub of engineering and materials expertise here in the UK, it combines 91ֱ��'s industrial heritage with new, purpose-built facilities, ideal for discovery and solving some of the world's most pressing issues. Delegates are also be offered tours of the and the , the flagship facilities for graphene and 2D materials research and development.  

Professor Vladimir Falko, the Director of the NGI, said, “91ֱ��’s National Graphene Institute and Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre stay at the forefront of graphene and 2D materials research and commercialisation, and we are glad that a major pan-European graphene conference is coming to the UK, despite all the uncertainties created by Brexit.” 

Professor Aravind Vijayaraghavan, the lead local organiser added, “We are placing special emphasis on attracting industrial and academic partnerships from around the world to invest and collaborate with the University, and this conference is the ideal opportunity for us to showcase our world-leading facilities and expertise in advanced materials and manufacturing which is key to a green, equitable and healthy future for us all.” 

The conference takes place at the University of Manchester on 27-30 June 2023. The conference marks 20 years since the first isolation of graphene at the University, by Professor Sir Andre Geim and Professor Sir Kostya Novoselov, who were awarded the 2010 Nobel Prize in Physics “for ground-breaking experiments regarding the two-dimensional material graphene”. 

 is one of The University of Manchester’s  - examples of pioneering discoveries, interdisciplinary collaboration and cross-sector partnerships that are tackling some of the biggest questions facing the planet. #ResearchBeacons.

Pictured above: Water-graphene quantum friction (Credits: Lucy Reading-Ikkanda / Simons Foundation) 

Advanced materials is one of The University of Manchester’s research beacons - examples of pioneering discoveries, interdisciplinary collaboration and cross-sector partnerships tackling some of the planet's biggest questions. #ResearchBeacons

Professor Allan Matthews, The University of Manchester Professor of Surface Engineering and Tribology in the , and affiliated to the , has been elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society for his substantial contribution to the advancement of science.

The Royal Society said that Prof Matthews' ground-breaking research into surface engineering has been “agenda-setting, prolific and pivotal since the 1980s".

He joins eighty outstanding researchers, innovators and communicators from around the world who have been elected as the newest Fellows of the Royal Society, the UK’s national academy of sciences and the oldest science academy in continuous existence.

Allan join the ranks of Stephen Hawking, Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin, Albert Einstein, Lise Meitner, Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar and Dorothy Hodgkin.

Professor Philip Withers, Chief Scientist, Henry Royce Institute said:

"I am delighted that Allan has been elected a Fellow.  His work on the development and fundamental understanding of advanced coatings, particularly for materials and components operating under demanding environments is world leading academically as well as being of great industrial impact.

"Coatings are a key focus area for the Henry Royce Institute and Allan is moving the selection of appropriate coatings from a post-production sticking plaster art-form to a systematic and digitised process that is integral to the whole product design process."

Sir Adrian Smith, President of the Royal Society said: 

“I am delighted to welcome our newest cohort of Fellows.

"These individuals have pushed forward the boundaries of their respective fields and had a beneficial influence on the world beyond.

“This year’s intake have already achieved incredible things, and I have no doubt that they will continue to do so. I look forward to meeting them and following their contributions in future.”

Professor Allan Matthews is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering. He is Professor of Surface Engineering and Tribology in the Department of Materials and Director of the EPSRC NetworkPlus in Digitalised Surface Manufacturing. Until June 2020, he served a four-year term as Director of the BP International Centre for Advanced Materials (ICAM). He spent his early career in the UK aerospace industry with Hawker Siddeley Dynamics, then British Aerospace Dynamics Group, before returning to academia and completing a PhD at the University of Salford in advanced plasma-based coating processes for the deposition of ceramic coatings for industrial applications.

, specifically part of the Net Zero Innovation Portfolio (NZIP), also involves five world-leading industrial partners in the area of engineering for sustainable development: , , , and .

The RECYCLE project (REthinking low Carbon hYdrogen production by Chemical Looping rEforming) will construct and test a fully integrated innovative hydrogen production pilot unit at The University of Manchester. 

The technology is based on chemical looping reforming using fixed bed reactors which allow modular units and cost-effective solutions for hydrogen production using different feedstocks, with inherent carbon dioxide capture and separation at high purity. 

The final demonstration is planned for the second half of 2024 in the pilot area of the at The University of Manchester.

The UK is leading the industrial revolution to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. In the recently published , the UK government is expecting to have two gigawatts of low-carbon hydrogen production capacity in operation or construction by 2025 and 10 gigawatts in 2030, subject to affordability and value for money. In this context, the RECYCLE project in 91ֱ�� represents an opportunity to to show continued innovation in the development of resilient and cost effective solutions for a low carbon future.

Dr Vincenzo Spallina, Senior Lecturer at The University of Manchester and Principal Investigator of the RECYCLE project, said: “The carried out during Phase 1 demonstrated great potential for low carbon hydrogen in the UK market and it has huge implications for several industrial stakeholders. This project will demonstrate its feasibility at a pre-commercial scale to increase awareness of the next steps towards commercial implementation.  

“The demonstration plant will be installed in the James Chadwick Building where we are currently renovating the existing pilot hall area to establish the for Research and Innovation on sustainable process technologies. Our students will have the fantastic opportunity to see the next-generation hydrogen plant in operation as a unique teaching and learning experience. “

Professor Alice Larkin, Head of the School of Engineering at The University of Manchester, added: “Our University is committed to achieving zero carbon emissions by 2038 as part of its and supported by activity through our  Advanced Materials and Energy research beacons. This collaborative project will boost the prestige of our academic community to secure clean and sustainable development through Science and Innovation in close partnerships with industries."

Silvian Baltac, Associate Partner and Industrial Decarbonisation lead at Element Energy, an ERM Group company, said: “We are delighted to continue supporting the University of Manchester and the RECYCLE Consortium with the Phase II of the project. Element Energy, a leading low-carbon consultancy, will help develop the go-to-market strategy for the RECYCLE technology, as well as support the Consortium with strategic communications and engagement, ensuring learnings from the project are disseminated with industry, academia, and the wider energy sector.”

Mark Wickham, CEO of HELICAL ENERGY, commented: “Our business is fully committed to achieving zero carbon emissions by 2038, by helping to develop and build neutral and negative carbon emissions technologies. This exciting collaborative project with the University of Manchester and industry partners will broaden our knowledge and experience in translational energy and build upon the work we are currently doing with other universities on carbon capture and hydrogen from biogenic fuels. RECYCLE is a fantastic innovative project that will make a significant contribution to carbon neutrality."

Les Newman, Engineering & Consulting Managing Director at Kent, said: “We are delighted to be part of this cutting-edge project.  It is aligned with Kent’s purpose to be a catalyst for energy transition and an exciting addition to our blue hydrogen project portfolio.  We look forward to working with the University of Manchester and the consortium partners to advance the progress of this novel low-carbon hydrogen and carbon capture technology."

Suzanne Ellis, Innovation Director for Catalyst Technologies at Johnson Matthey, said: “Johnson Matthey works with partners around the world to apply our expertise in synthesis gas, process technology and catalysis to enable a transition to a net zero future. We are delighted to be part of this consortium led by University of Manchester, exploring the potential for this promising next generation technology to be moved through to industrial impact, whilst also inspiring the next generation of scientists and engineers.”

Hugues Foucault, CO₂ Capture R&D manager from TotalEnergies, said: “TotalEnergies  is supporting R&D in the Chemical Looping Combustion technology and it is involved in the Phase 2 of the RECYCLE project to technically and economically assess this process of blue hydrogen production with inherent carbon dioxide capture."

Minister for Energy Efficiency and Green Finance Lord Callanan said: “Hydrogen, known as the super fuel of the future, is critical to delivering UK energy security and clean, sustainable growth. 

“I’m delighted that we have awarded funding to The University of Manchester so that they can build and test their first-of-a-kind hydrogen technology. This will generate opportunities for UK businesses to export their expertise around the world whilst supporting our ambition to have amongst the cheapest energy in Europe.”

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero provides dedicated leadership focused on delivering security of energy supply, ensuring properly functioning markets, greater energy efficiency and seizing the opportunities of net zero to lead the world in new green industries.

The funding from the Low Carbon Hydrogen Supply 2 programme comes from the  department’s  £1 billion , which provides funding for low-carbon technologies and systems and aims to decrease the costs of decarbonisation helping enable the UK to end its contribution to climate change.

, founded by University of Manchester alumnus, , has recovered commercial grade lithium carbonate and graphite from black mass; a solid black powder containing a complex mixture of metals and impurities recovered from the recycling of end-of-life lithium-ion batteries.

Conducted in partnership with globally renowned precious metal recovery specialists, , and with access to Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre's (GEIC) world-leading capabilities and the support of its expert facilities team, the test work on 1 kg of black mass validates the Watercycle’s ground-breaking technology. It underpins the major contribution that deep tech university spin outs are playing in championing the UK’s ambitions for the energy transition and the attainment of a circular economy.

WaterCycle Technologies Ltd. are a Tier 2 partner of the GEIC, the University’s world-class, multi-million-pound engineering centre which provides industry-led development in graphene applications, bringing real-world products to market.

Watercycle CEO Dr Seb Leaper said, “To most people it is not obvious that one of the main barriers to achieving Net Zero is the availability of critical minerals like lithium. But we must ensure that the means of accessing these minerals is environmentally responsible. This requires sustainable primary production and efficient recycling technology, which is what we are creating at Watercycle. We are proud to be a University of Manchester spinout and are proud to be working with two fantastic northern companies in RSBruce and Weardale Lithium who are making the UK’s domestic lithium supply chain possible.” 

This breakthrough marks the first step forward in commercialising Watercycle’s technology.

James Baker, CEO of Graphene@91ֱ��, said: “The Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre provides partners within the rapid development and scale-up of R&D, the support to bring real world products to market. In particular, the gives companies like Watercycle Technologies the opportunity to bring innovation and research into the tough world of commercialisation, and to amplify prototypes through the conduction of leading edge benchtop experiments.

“By supporting partners in this way, we can also support 91ֱ��’s regional and national competitiveness, in turn attracting world-class businesses and high-quality jobs to the companies we’re helping to commercialise.”

in collaboration with RSBruce, demonstrating the significant opportunity to recover value-added products from Black Mass processing using Watercycle’s system and both companies are now in the process of finalising a developed pilot plan.

Corresponding to this phenomenal achievement, the team have found success in producing lithium carbonate from another source, establishing a step further to supporting UK’s ambitions to produce a domestic supply of lithium to power the domestic energy transition, and the UK Government’s goals of achieving net zero.

At its laboratory in the GEIC, the company applied its proprietary Direct Lithium Extraction & Crystallisation process (DLEC™) to successfully produce lithium carbonate crystals from brines, extracted from Weardale Lithium Limited’s existing geothermal boreholes at Eastgate, in County Durham. 

.

"The history of membrane development spans more than 100 years and has led to a revolution in industrial separation processes," says Professor Rahul Raveendran Nair, Carlsberg/Royal Academy of Engineering Research Chair and study team leader. "In recent years, there has been some effort towards making membranes that mimic biological structures, particularly their ‘intelligent’ characteristics."

Now, in research published today in , scientists explain how they have developed intelligent membranes that can alter their properties depending on the environment and remember how permeable they were before. This means the membranes can adapt to different conditions in their environment and, more importantly, memorise their state, a feature which can be exploited in many different applications.

 A phenomenon known as hysteresis is the most common expression of memory or intelligence in a material. It refers to the situation where a system's current properties are dependent and related to its previous state. Hysteresis is commonly observed in magnetic materials. For example, a magnet may have more than one possible magnetic moment in each magnetic field depending on the field the magnet was subjected to in the past. Hysteresis is rarely seen, however, in molecular transport through artificial membranes.

"Coming up with simple and effective clean water solutions is one of our greatest global challenges. This study shows that fundamental molecular level insights and nanoscale materials offer great potential for the development of 'smart' membranes for water purification and other applications," said Professor Angelos Michaelides of the University of Cambridge.

In this work, the 91ֱ�� team in collaboration with scientists from University of Cambridge, Xiamen University, Dalian University of Technology, University of York, and National University of Singapore has developed intelligent membranes based on MoS₂ (a two-dimensional material called molybdenum disulphide) that can remember how permeable they were before. The researchers have shown that the way ions and water infiltrate the membranes can be regulated by controlling the external pH.

The membranes mimic the function of biological cell membranes and display hysteretic ion and water transport behaviour in response to the pH, which means they remember what pH they were exposed to before. “The memory effects we have seen are unique to these membranes and have never been observed before in any inorganic membranes,” said co-first author Dr Amritroop Achari of the University of Manchester.

The researchers demonstrated that the biomimetic effect could be used to improve autonomous wound infection sensing. To do this, they placed the membranes in artificial wound exudate, which simulates the liquid produced by wounds, and subjected them to changes in pH. The membranes only allowed permeation of the wound exudate at pH levels relevant to an infected wound, thus allowing them to be used as sensors for infection detection. The researchers say the new membranes can also be used in a host of other pH-dependent applications, from nanofiltration to mimicking the function of neuronal cells.

Co-author Professor Kostya Novoselov, Langworthy Professor in the School of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Manchester and a professor at the Centre for Advanced 2D Materials, National University of Singapore said, “The uniqueness in this membrane is that its hysteretic pH response can be seen as a memory function, which opens a lot of interesting avenues for the creation of smart membranes and other structures. Research in this direction can play a pivotal role in the design of intelligent technologies for tomorrow.”

Pictured above: Artist's view of intelligent membranes with memory effects, courtesy R.Nair

Advanced materials is one of The University of Manchester’s research beacons - examples of pioneering discoveries, interdisciplinary collaboration and cross-sector partnerships tackling some of the planet's biggest questions. #ResearchBeacons

Materials that strongly change their resistivity under magnetic fields are highly sought for various applications and, for example, every car and every computer contain many tiny magnetic sensors. Such materials are rare, and most metals and semiconductors change their electrical resistivity only by a tiny fraction of a percent at room temperature and in practically viable magnetic fields (typically, by less than a millionth of 1 %). To observe a strong magnetoresistance response, researchers usually cool materials to liquid-helium temperatures so that electrons inside scatter less and can follow cyclotron trajectories.  

Now a research team led by Professor Sir Andre Geim has found that good old graphene that seemed to be studied in every detail over the last two decade exhibits a remarkably strong response, reaching above 100% in magnetic fields of standard permanent magnets (of about 1,000 Gauss). This is a record magnetoresistivity among all the known materials.

Speaking about this latest graphene discovery, Sir Andre Geim said: “People working on graphene like myself always felt that this gold mine of physics should have been exhausted long ago. The material continuously proves us wrong finding yet another incarnation. Today I have to admit again that graphene is dead, long live graphene.”

To achieve this, the researchers used high-quality graphene and tuned it to its intrinsic, virgin state where there were only charge carriers excited by temperature. This created a plasma of fast-moving “Dirac fermions” that exhibited a surprisingly high mobility despite frequent scattering. Both high mobility and neutrality of this Dirac plasma are crucial components for the reported giant magnetoresistance.

“Over the last 10 years, electronic quality of graphene devices has improved dramatically, and everyone seems to focus on finding new phenomena at low, liquid-helium temperatures, ignoring what happens under ambient conditions. This is perhaps not so surprising because the cooler your sample the more interesting its behaviour usually becomes. We decided to turn the heat up and unexpectedly a whole wealth of unexpected phenomena turned up”, says Dr Alexey Berdyugin, the corresponding authors of the paper.

In addition to the record magnetoresistivity, the researchers have also found that, at elevated temperatures, neutral graphene becomes a so-called “strange metal”. This is the name given to materials where electron scattering becomes ultimately fast, being determined only by the Heisenberg uncertainty principle. The behaviour of strange metals is poorly understood and remains a mystery currently under investigation worldwide.

The 91ֱ�� work adds some more mystery to the field by showing that graphene exhibits a giant linear magnetoresistance in fields above a few Tesla, which is weakly temperature dependent. This high-field magnetoresistance is again record-breaking.

The phenomenon of linear magnetoresistance has remained an enigma for more than a century since it was first observed. The current 91ֱ�� work provides important clues about origins of the strange metal behaviour and of the linear magnetoresistance. Perhaps, the mysteries can now be finally solved thanks to graphene as it represents a clean, well-characterised and relatively simple electronic system.

“Undoped high-quality graphene at room temperature offers an opportunity to explore an entirely new regime that in principle could be discovered even a decade ago but somehow was overlooked by everyone. We plan to study this strange-metal regime and, surely, more of interesting results, phenomena and applications will follow”, adds Dr Leonid Ponomarenko, from Lancaster University and one of the leading Nature paper authors.

UK-based Graphene Innovations 91ֱ�� Ltd (GIM), founded by University graduate Dr Vivek Koncherry, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with to create a new company in the UAE.

This exciting UK-UAE partnership - which highlights potential opportunity for UK innovators to access global investment and international markets and supply chains - will be one of the most ambitious projects to date to commercialise graphene as it fast-tracks cutting-edge R&D into large-scale manufacture – an investment vision worth a total of $1billion.

This new venture will develop and produce premium, environmentally-friendly products using advanced 2D materials, including breakthrough graphene-enhanced concrete that does not need cement or water and can be made using recycled materials.

Dr Vivek Koncherry, CEO of Graphene Innovations 91ֱ��, based in 91ֱ��’s (GEIC), said: "We are proud to be associated with Quazar so that we can assemble a powerful world-class team to provide us the opportunity to massively deploy our graphene-based technologies.”

Waleed Al Ali, CEO of Quazar, who will be active in helping bring the new company to successful, large-scale commercialisation, said: "The new graphene company will take a global lead in making environmentally friendly concrete and other products. We are glad that Quazar can play an active role in helping fulfil the UAE's His Highness Sheikh Saeed Bin Hamdan Bin Mohamed Al Nahyan's support for the UAE Vision 2030”.

James Baker, CEO of Graphene@91ֱ��, added: “This agreement with our GEIC partner Graphene Innovations 91ֱ�� and Quazar is a seminal moment for the commercialisation of graphene as it demonstrates huge confidence in the potential for this advanced material to help lead our transition into a net zero world.

���� is also a very proud moment for the Graphene@91ֱ�� community as it confirms that our innovation ecosystem is providing exactly the right platform to nurture pioneering R&D into graphene and other 2D materials that is world-class.

“91ֱ�� is known as the ‘home of graphene’ – but increasingly, it’s also being recognised as the home to its commercialisation potential. We are therefore able to form international partnerships, such as those in the UAE, based on this reputation; and from this position of strength we can place our city-region and the UK more generally into graphene’s global economy.

“As Greater 91ֱ�� further develops its innovation and manufacturing potential – all underpinned with the University’s leadership in advanced materials - this city-regional will have great opportunities with access to international supply chains, foreign investment and global markets.”       

As part of this ambition a new ‘Sustainable Materials Translational Research Centre’ is set to be created by the multi-million pound Greater 91ֱ�� Innovation Accelerator programme. The new centre is a partnership with the University’s, the, the High Value Manufacturing Catapult, and Rochdale Development Agency, and aims to connect local businesses to national opportunities, all underpinned with outstanding materials research.

The scheme is linked  to the zone and a said “… The University of Manchester's expertise in material science” could potentially support a northern economic powerhouse.

Furthermore, the graphene innovation ecosystem at The University of Manchester has recently been cited as an exemplar in attracting inward investment into the local regional economy – and therefore helping to boost the UK’s ‘levelling up’ agenda. The spotlight comes in a report entitled,   published by universities think-tank the Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI).

A strategic partnerships that is highlighted is the ambitious agreement between the University and Abu Dhabi-based Khalifa University of Science and Technology which aims to deliver a funding boost for graphene innovation to develop new sustainable technologies. Attracting international funding to the North-West is also helping the UK government level-up R&D spending across the nation.