Novel and Bio-based Materials

The research theme is established to meet civil engineering and built environment sustainability challenges by the use of novel technologies and management techniques in bio- based construction materials to respond to current sustainability needs/goals, climate change and reduction of carbon footprint. To achieve this, the group’s core strategy is to focus on strong external collaboration, establishing links with industry, higher educational, research centres and the public sectors to conduct research on priority areas addressing industrial and societal challenges, and to fit within the UK and international strategies.

The group is specialising in:

• Civil Engineering and Infrastructure Construction Materials.
• Sustainable Pavement Engineering and Asphalt Technology.
• Cement and Concrete Research, Ceramic Materials, Geopolymer and Asphalt Materials.
• Low Carbon and Bio- Based construction Materials.
• Design, Evaluation and Analysis of Steel, Concrete and Composite Structures.
• Characterisation and repair of structural of timber, Investigation of the behaviour of reinforcement of external and internal reinforcement of structural timber using fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) rods and steel members, Investigation of the behaviour of timber-concrete composite structures.
• Engineering characterisation (laboratory based) of cement and earth-based construction materials (including with bio-fibres, bio-ashes and bacteria-based solutions): electro-chemistry tests, hydro-mechanical tests, hygro-thermal tests.
• Tailor construction solutions to improve energy efficiency performance as a function of environmental conditions (cradle to gate and operational levels) for buildings and structures.
• Testing (on site and lab-based) for implementation of solutions to increase service life of reinforced concrete structures exposed to aggressive environments.
• Computational modelling of service life of structures.
• Bio-based solutions optimisation to boost agro-industry waste incorporation in infrastructure (buildings and structures).
• Experimental investigation of structural materials and members, numerical methods in structural engineering.
• Earthquake Engineering design, novel methods in seismic design of steel structures, probabilistic risk assessment of structures, resilient damage-free structures, performance-based engineering design.
• High strength steel structures, stainless steel structures, aluminium structures, composite steel-concrete and aluminium-concrete structures, prestressed structures.
• Wind energy structures, life cycle assessment and sustainability considerations.
• Structural health monitoring.
• FEA in geotechnics, tunnelling engineering, mining engineering and railway track geo-structures, Laboratory testing of soils, rocks, and railway geo-structures.