E N G I N E E R I N G & PHYSICAL
SCIENCESNEWS WORLD-LEADINGRESEARCH
INNOVATION&COLLABORATION SUMMER 2011
BEYOND THE NOBEL PRIZE SLOW TRAIN TO CLIMATE CHANGE
MAJOR MILESTONES FOR JODRELL BANK
THE FUTURE OF NUCLEAR RESEARCH
CONTENTS
1 DEAN’S WELCOME
THE NOBEL PRIZE 8 BEYOND
About the Faculty of EPS
What’s next for the Nobel Prize-winning pair?
FUTURE OF NUCLEAR RESEARCH 2 THE
TRAIN TO CLIMATE CHANGE 10 SLOW
The University’s new facility for nuclear research
Putting theories on low-carbon travel to the test
MAN IN AFRICA 4 OUR
THE WAY FOR FUTURE COMPUTER 11 PAVING SCIENTISTS
Professor Paul O’Brien’s longterm relationship with Africa
FOOTPRINT CHEMISTRY PRIZE 6 CARBON Helping businesses calculate their carbon footprint
AIRPORT SCANNING 6 REVOLUTIONISING The maths behind more effective airport scanning
The Faculty is led by the Vice-President and Dean, Professor Colin Bailey, and comprises nine academic Schools and four Research Institutes. The Faculty Leadership Team also includes four Associate Deans who support key areas of activity, including Research, Teaching and Learning, Graduate Education, and External Affairs, and the Head of Faculty Administration, who is responsible for leading the administration across the Faculty.
Addressing the decline in science and engineering students
School of Chemical Engineering and Analytical Science Head of School, Professor Mike Sutcliffe
MILESTONES FOR JODRELL BANK 12 MAJOR
School of Chemistry Head of School, Professor Christopher Whitehead
Jodrell Bank goes from strength to strength with new projects
School of Computer Science Head of School, Professor Norman Paton
COX STAR LECTURE 13BRIAN
School of Earth, Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences Head of School, Professor Hugh Coe
Capturing the imagination of future star gazers
IN SCIENCE FELLOWSHIP 7 WOMEN
DESIGN SHOW 14 MATERIALS
Dr Vicky Coker wins fellowship for outstanding research
Designs from the final year textiles show
FOR EPS PROFESSOR 7 OBE
FOR ARAGO 14 AWARD
Queen’s Birthday Honours for EPS Professor Richard Davies
The sky’s the limit for University spin-out company
School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering Head of School, Professor Andy Gibson School of Materials Head of School, Professor Paul Hogg School of Mathematics Head of School, Professor Peter Duck School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering Head of School, Professor Peter Stansby School of Physics and Astronomy Head of School, Professor Stephen Watts
EPS in
Dalton Nuclear Institute Director, Professor Andrew Sherry
FIGURES 6,885
EPS PEOPLE
10,080
There are students currently studying in the Faculty UK and EU students
3,195 come from
6,873
overseas
We have undergraduate students
1,827 students are on
postgraduate taught courses
1,380 are undertaking postgraduate research
The Faculty has an income of research income of
£202million, with a £95million
Front cover: The new Discovery Centre at Jodrell Bank Observatory
Manchester Interdisciplinary Biocentre Director, Professor Nigel Scrutton Photon Science Institute Director, Professor Richard Winpenny University of Manchester Aerospace Research Institute (UMARI) Director, Professor Philip Withers Associate Dean (Research) Professor Hugh McCann Associate Dean (Teaching and Learning) Professor Tony Brown Associate Dean (Graduate Education) Professor Jim Miles Associate Dean (External Affairs) Professor Colin Hughes Head of Faculty Administration Rachel Brealey
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WELCOME FROM THE DEAN I would like to welcome you to the inaugural issue of the Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences magazine. I hope you find the contents interesting and that the presented articles provide you with an indication of the wide range of work and activities with which we are engaged. The Faculty is one of the largest in the UK, with 10,080 students and 1,950 staff across nine Schools, combining strengths in research and teaching and encompassing all of the physical sciences and engineering disciplines. Students come to study with us from across the world and we welcome just over 3,000 international students to the Faculty every year, providing a diverse and exciting mix of cultures within our leading degree programmes. Whilst the Faculty is very proud of its current achievements, it also has the ambition of becoming known as one of the leading Engineering and Physical Sciences faculties in the world. Our strategic plan lays out the route to achieving this aim, and we believe we have the staff, students and facilities to succeed in our mission. Our three primary goals cover ‘Research’, ‘Higher Learning’ and ‘Social Responsibility’, and we give equal esteem to each. Based on our current performance, I believe we are already well on the way to achieving our strategic aim. Many of our staff are at the forefront of research and discovery, as evidenced by the award of the 2010 Nobel Prize for Physics to Professors Andre Geim and Kostantin Novoselov for their discovery of Graphene, which has now become the basis of a wide range of further research and development around potential applications in materials, chemistry, physics and engineering. As many of you will be aware, Professor Brian Cox has recently been seen in a new series on the BBC exploring the Wonders of the Universe and continues to work to introduce the excitement of science to school children through an interactive lecture series. The Faculty considers the communication and public engagement of science and engineering to be one of its key priorities. Many of our staff across the Faculty are actively engaged in public and school lecture programmes, science week events and Women Into Science, Engineering and Technology (WISET) activities in order to encourage an understanding of the potential of our research and teaching, and to enthuse the next generation of scientists and engineers to think big! We are particularly proud of the inter-disciplinary work that our range of disciplines and skills allow us to undertake. This work
provides a significant contribution to the overall UK research offering and feeds into global issues such as energy, sustainable development, climate change, health care, advanced manufacturing and security. Staff from across the Faculty work closely with business and industry, from small and medium enterprises to large multi-national companies and we are extremely proud of the many successful research and teaching links that exist to support UK plc, the global economy and society worldwide. As you will no doubt have seen, and read in the news recently, we are facing a time of unprecedented change in UK higher education and there is still a level of uncertainty about the future impact of these changes on all universities. It is clear that the higher education sector is facing challenging times, with severe and prolonged UK public funding stringency, increased fees for UK and EU students, changes to the UK immigration policy which is having an undesirable affect on the mobility of quality students, and ever-changing government policy. As a leading university, we are very concerned about the impact of these proposals on students and the sector. However, we are determined to drive the Faculty forward through this period of ambiguity, to continue to improve the student experience, and to ensure that our graduates not only leave us with a high quality degree but that they are well prepared for their future careers in a global market. I hope you enjoy this magazine, which we intend to publish every six months. If there are any specific areas of activity that interest you and you would like to hear more about, we would love to hear from you.
Professor Colin Bailey Vice-President and Dean Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences 0161 306 9111 colin.bailey@manchester.ac.uk 1
THE FUTURE OF NUCLEAR RESEARCH
Professor Andrew Sherry is Director of the University’s Dalton Nuclear Institute which is establishing a major new nuclear research capability in West Cumbria. The Dalton Cumbrian Facility (DCF) is a £20million joint initiative with the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA), that will allow academics and industrial experts to form long-term strategic partnerships to answer some of the most pressing questions in nuclear research. The DCF will help to address the research challenges across the full nuclear fuel cycle – from reactor technology to radioactive waste management.
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The DCF is in West Cumbria, and Professor Sherry explained: “There are three main reasons for this location, the first of which is its proximity to Sellafield. The work carried out at Sellafield is closely aligned with issues of concern for the NDA, namely nuclear decommissioning, clean-up and radioactive waste management. Sellafield has also been identified as a site for new nuclear build. “Secondly, the University has developed close working links with industrial experts, scientists, and engineers in the region who are tackling these research challenges. The unique co-location of the experimental facilities at DCF and the National Nuclear Laboratory’s Central Laboratory on the Sellafield site, where our students are now working, enables the University to undertake nuclear research in a manner that has not been possible before. The academic research will strengthen industrial programmes, and will also help to develop the next generation of scientists and engineers who will take up careers in the industry. “Finally, the NDA has a policy for socio-economic development within the local area so the DCF will link to local companies and the local workforce. Many of the 40-strong research community at DCF, our academics and students, will also live in the local area.”
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SCI ENCESN EWS Professor Sherry believes the DCF will offer a unique environment for nuclear research. He remarked: “DCF gives the UK a one-of-akind environment in which to work with partners across academia and industry to address some of the key issues associated with nuclear power. “To do this we need to strengthen our research partnerships with other universities and with industry, both in the UK and overseas. Our facilities offer new opportunities for partners to carry out ground-breaking research, which will ensure that Manchester is a leader in the field of nuclear research and development.” Research at DCF will cut across many themes. Professor Sherry added: “We’ll be looking at several key areas of nuclear research, including understanding radiation effects on materials and chemistry; developing and understanding fuel performance; exploring the safe decommissioning and disposal of nuclear plant; and the assessment of new manufacturing technologies for new nuclear build.” PROFESSOR ANDREW SHERRY, DIRECTOR OF THE DCF
DCF gives the UK a one-of-a-kind environment in which to work with partners across academia and industry to address some of the most pressing issues associated with nuclear power.
One of the first priorities for staff at DCF is to establish sustainable research groups in radiation science and nuclear engineering decommissioning. “We already have most of the team, including Professor Simon Pimblott, DCF Research Director, who has joined Manchester from the USA. We’ve also recruited lecturers in chemical engineering and mechanical engineering, and we’re recruiting for a professor in nuclear engineering decommissioning, as well as lecturers in radiation damage and in robotics.” Professor Sherry is acutely aware of the need for increased and continued funding in order to carry out world-class research. “We need to identify and win new research contracts, and we envisage these coming from a range of sources including government, industry, European and international sources.” Education is high on the agenda for DCF, and the Facility and its staff will be working closely with Sellafield to provide its staff with continued professional development. But that’s not enough for this ground-breaking facility. As Professor Sherry explains: “We have to work to teach the next generation the importance of nuclear research. We need to show that nuclear science and engineering is an attractive career path. The industry needs to recruit at least 1,000 graduates each year to replace retiring staff and expand reactor operations, so there are significant career opportunities over the next few years. “The key is to demonstrate the exciting challenges around nuclear research, and to find a way to enthuse young people about new nuclear build and nuclear waste and decommissioning.”
The University is already engaging with the next generation of nuclear scientists. Its EPRSC-funded outreach ‘So you think you know about nuclear power?’ is reaching out to school children in an attempt to excite pupils about science and technology in general, and nuclear science in particular. It has links with the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester, works to ‘teach the teacher’ and attends science fairs. The Dalton Nuclear Institute is looking into ways to engage more positively with the wider population. Since his many media appearances in the wake of the Fukushima incident, Professor Sherry has been keen to engage with the public to communicate issues regarding the use of low carbon nuclear energy. He contributed to an ITN documentary on nuclear power and would like to see more popular science programmes – from ‘Wonders of the Universe’ to ‘Wonders of the Atom’ which he hopes will educate the public about the importance and necessity of nuclear research. Finally, when asked about whether the DCF had been a dream of his, Professor Sherry said: “I came into the nuclear industry in 1987 and witnessed nuclear facilities closing, staffing numbers reducing and funding diminishing. “In 2004 I came to The University of Manchester at the tipping point for nuclear research; government policy was changing towards new nuclear build and the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority was created. To be involved in creating a unique nuclear research facility in the UK is a dream come true, and a hugely positive step towards the UK rebuilding its nuclear research base to provide a strong technical foundation for the nuclear renaissance.” www.manchester.ac.uk/dalton
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OUR MAN IN AFRICA Paul O’Brien, Professor of Inorganic Materials Chemistry, spends around a month a year in Africa. Of the 20-30 papers he publishes each year five or six are with African co-authors. How did his long-term relationship with Africa begin? PROFESSOR O’BRIEN
“FW De Klerk and John Major asked the Royal Society to organise a new programme for democratisation. Somebody from the Royal Society visited UZULU and reported back that it was hopeless and no one could do anything sensible there. They got a bit worried because when prime ministers are involved it’s quite high profile! So they had to scout around for someone else to do the job!” In 1996 Professor O’Brien’s head of department at Imperial College put him forward and off he went. As soon as he arrived it was clear what made his predecessor turn on his heel. “There was a sign at the hotel saying ‘guns must be checked at registration’. He was terrified by this, but it’s a farming area, so lots of the farmers carry shotguns. No more sinister than that.”
At the time the Blair/Brown Government was extremely keen on foreign aid to Africa. The UK was assigned Tanzania and Ghana.
Undaunted by the encounter with firearms, Professor O’Brien stayed on. A happy coincidence with a PhD benchmate gave him some insight into what enormous things could be achieved from apparently nothing. “The guy on the next bench to me was Julio Pedrosa who became Secretary of State for Education in Portugal. When he first returned to Portugal he was foundation professor at the University of Aveiro, which is now the largest and most research-intensive university in Portugal but started off as two huts. I saw that South Africa in ‘96 was way ahead of Portugal in ‘79, so it wasn’t so difficult to envisage how things could change.” So began a commitment to Africa that spans 15 years. His work in South Africa broadened out to Tanzania and Ghana following the G8 meeting in Edinburgh in 2005. “At the time the Blair/Brown Government was extremely keen on foreign aid to Africa. The UK
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was assigned Tanzania and Ghana. I was asked to help because of my work in South Africa.” What began with a fact-finding mission in 2006 is now a thriving programme funded by the Leverhulme Royal Society Africa Awards, with capacity building projects across Ghana and Tanzania grouped around the themes of energy, water and sanitation, agriculture, biodiversity, and health research. The scheme was built entirely on consultation. Rather than developing centres that emulate those of the developed world these programmes identify national and regional priority areas, they establish sustainable research collaborations, while improving PhD programmes and post-doctoral practices to nurture the next generation of talented academics. As well as being involved in setting up the Leverhulme Africa Awards Professor O’Brien, along with academics in each country, was awarded two of the £150,000 grants for projects in Tanzania and Ghana. Funding for the Tanzanian project came first. Based at the University of Dar Es Salaam the grant funds ‘the development of chemicals and useful products in Tanzanian industries’. “One big interest is anacardic acid which comes from cashew nut shells. They’ve tons and tons of it in Africa. It’s a non-oil based product and it’s not used for anything so we’ve been trying to adapt it for use in detergents notably with Professor David Cole-Hamilton in St Andrews who is a great supporter of the Tanzanian project. We’re also looking at other local resources like sisal and silver.” Professor O’Brien is keen to point out that these aren’t grants to do research. “Capacity building means that the output is people and their papers.” Much of the work is about changing attitudes and building confidence, getting African scientists to believe that they can compete internationally. “You do need to be realistic. You cannot set up high-end capital-intensive research.” One of the skills needed to lead projects such as these must be the ability to recognise what’s possible and what isn’t? “You also need pigheadedness! This goes a long way when people are saying ‘that’s never going to work’.”
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A CHEMISTRY GRADUATION CLASS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ZULULAND
This is an outstanding achievement and it is held up as a model of international bilateral cooperation. Lord Sainsbury of Turville, UK Minister of Science and Innovation
The Ghanaian funding for ‘developing internationally competitive research on solar cell materials at KNUST’ was awarded to Professor O’Brien and Dr Johannes Awudza. “We’re about a year in. The great thing now is that kit used to be a problem but a lot of new instruments are small cheap solid state devices that can be driven by a laptop. You can also buy such spectrometers for just a few thousand pounds now. Imagination has become the limit.” Would the work on solar cells have happened in Ghana without this project? “They did have some people working in this area at quite a low level. What this project means is that we can take it to the next level. “We ran a masterclass on personal development in Ghana last week. It was exhausting, 30 degrees and the air con’s not working. But the great thing was at the end I had about 40 questions. You don’t get response like that in the developed world. It’s nice to have a receptive audience. It’s good for the ego too!” In Ghana the work is also supported by a British Council Delphi grant and Professors Peter Budd and Stephen Yeates from Chemistry have enthusiastically helped to develop an MSc programme in Polymer Science at KNUST. John Thomas a UKEIRI fellow in chemistry is also a great supporter of these programmes. “People there are generally hungry for education. Education is still seen as a route to economic development, and this is something we seem to have lost. It’s changed in the two generations since I
PROFESSOR O’BRIEN BEING AWARDED AN HONORARY DEGREE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ZULULAND IN 2006. L TO R PROFESSOR O’BRIEN, PROFESSOR RACHEL GUMBI THEN THE VICE-CHANCELLOR OF UZULU, JACOB ZUMA, NOW PRESIDENT OF SOUTH AFRICA AND DR ISHMAEL NOKO, LUTHERAN WORLD FEDERATION GENERAL SECRETARY
was at grammar school. Education was seen as being a better option than going into a factory or mine. It’s still seen like that in Africa.” How does the work in Africa inform Professor O’Brien’s life and work back here? “Oh, it makes me wonder about British people quite a lot really” he jokes. “Everybody’s got so much money they don't know they’re alive. It gives you that kind of perspective and makes you realise how much we take for granted.”
FOCUS ON... Professor O’Brien was Head of the School of Chemistry until 2009. He is a professorial member of both the Schools of Chemistry and Materials. He is the recipient of distinguished alumni awards from both Liverpool and Cardiff and the Kroll Award of the IOMMM , The Peter Day Award of the RSC for Materials Chemistry. His work in South Africa was recognised by the award of a DSc hon.causa from the University of Zululand. He co-founded Nanoco, a company that manufactures nanoparticles and which floated on AIM in 2009. Earlier this year he was awarded a Colin Humphreys’ Education Award for his extensive outreach work. Professor O’Brien is a trustee of the Royal Society of Chemistry, he has edited 15 books and, at the last count, had published more than 500 scientific papers.
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CARBON FOOTPRINT TOOL WINS TOP CHEMISTRY PRIZE A research team, led by Professor Adisa Azapagic from the School of Chemical Engineering, has won the IChemE ‘outstanding achievement in chemical and process engineering’ prize for its carbon calculator software CCaLC. It has also won the Chemistry Innovation Award for the ‘most successful collaboration’ and has been shortlisted for the GSK Innovation Award, awarded by the Chemical Industries Association. The team from The Sustainable Industrial Systems Group at the University developed the tool in association with several industry partners. Funded by Carbon Trust, EPSRC and NERC, the project’s main aim was to allow quick estimations of greenhouse gas emissions along a whole supply chain, and to facilitate carbon footprint reduction and management. Its approach follows the internationally accepted life cycle methodology as defined by ISO 14044 and PAS2050. The Carbon Calculations over the Life Cycle of Industrial Activities (CCaLC) tool allows organisations to measure their carbon footprint at minimum cost, and is already helping businesses to assess and take action on the environmental impact of their entire supply chains. It has already been downloaded by more than 1,500 organisations across the world. Professor Azapagic said: “CCaLC has been developed by a team of engineers and scientists and I am particularly pleased
that their hard work has been recognised by this prestigious award. “The tool has been developed with the aim of supporting companies in estimating the carbon footprint of their products and technologies to help identify low-carbon solutions. “By being free of charge and easy to use by non-experts, the tool enables companies to be self-reliant in the estimations of carbon footprints, without the need to depend on consultants or release confidential data to a third party. This has a potential to remove some of the major barriers to the uptake of carbon footprinting in industry and contribute towards the greening of supply chains.” The software is also being put to good use within the University. Students who are currently studying modules in Sustainable Development and Industry as well as Process Design are using CCaLC to calculate the carbon footprint of different products and processes. It’s helping them to identify carbon ‘hotspots’ in the life cycle of the products and processes, and they can then use this information to identify opportunities for improvement. The tool is being used by both University-based and distance learning students. Visit www.ccalc.org.uk for a free download. www.ceaf.manchester.ac.uk
REVOLUTIONISING AIRPORT SCANNING Professor Bill Lionheart and colleagues from the School of Mathematics recently won the defence and security category at the Engineer’s Technology and Innovation Awards for their work on the RTT80 airport scanner. The scanner employs 3D technology, and is being hailed as a revolution in airport scanning. The University team, in collaboration with security firm Rapiscan, produced a dual scanning process, which uses the quality of 3D scanning and the speed of X-ray to quickly identify potential security risks in luggage. It’s hoped the technology will speed up airport scanning, reduce the number of security operations and increase efficiency. Current scanner technology uses an image taken PROFESSOR LIONHEART BEING AWARDED THE from a single UNIVERSITY OF MANCHESTER DISTINGUISHED source which ACHIEVEMENT MEDAL FOR RESEARCHER OF THE YEAR 2011 BY PRESIDENT AND VICE CHANCELLOR rotates around PROFESSOR DAME NANCY ROTHWELL the scanned 6
object, meaning that some items are not seen. This process is also slow to operate. The new scanner uses a ring of static sources to capture multiple images, and Professor Lionheart and his team were asked to come up with new geometry to allow these images to be seen in 3D. The team came up with a new reconstruction algorithm, utilising different angles to allow the reconstruction of the 3D image. Professor Lionheart’s work was funded by a grant from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) as well as through Rapiscan. He said: “Mathematicians are not merely academics working alone in their labs, and the work we carry out with industry can help to solve the biggest technology problems. “The scanner technology was immediately applicable, but new mathematical research was required in order to form a 3D image. We devised an algorithm based on multiple surfaces to reconstruct the images in real time, allowing it to be viewed by an operator. “The RTT80 is a great example of British innovation and we are proud to have been part of it. As well as making air travel safer, real time X-ray scanners have enormous potential in other applications.” The system is currently being tested at Manchester Airport and by the US government. The positive response to the scanner has resulted in a $20million order from Manchester Airport. www.maths.manchester.ac.uk
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WOMEN IN SCIENCE FELLOWSHIP Dr Vicky Coker, from the School of Earth, Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences has won the prestigious L’Oreal-UNESCO For Women in Science Fellowship for her outstanding research on the effect of toxic waste on plants and the environment. She is one of only four UK scientists to receive the award this year, which includes a £15,000 fellowship. The fellowships, now in their thirteenth year internationally, promote the importance of ensuring greater participation of women in science by offering awards to outstanding female postdoctoral researchers. The awards are run in partnership with the UK National Commission for UNESCO, the Irish National Commission for UNESCO and the Royal Society. Dr Coker’s research focuses on developing state-of-the-art imaging to map how toxic waste affects plants and the environment. The award will allow her to continue her research to develop a better understanding of how arsenic and uranium interact with the natural environment in order to assist with influencing mitigation techniques for these problematic contaminants. When asked for her reaction to winning Dr Coker said: “I am absolutely delighted to have won the Fellowship. This award
will mean that I will be able to pursue my own independent research interests and I am thrilled. “I am currently developing a career path for myself in research and this Fellowship will provide an opportunity to develop an independent research programme at Manchester, while allowing me to travel to some of the other top scientific facilities in the world. “Historically, science and engineering has been more challenging for women and initiatives like the L'Oreal-UNESCO FWIS Fellowship provides further impetus to keep women working at the cutting edge of scientific research.”
OBE FOR EPS ACADEMIC Professor Richard Davis, from the Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics, has been awarded an OBE in honour of his services to science. Professor Davis has been a member of academic staff at the University since 1978. He is currently project scientist for the iconic Lovell Telescope at Jodrell Bank, taking responsibility for advising on upgrades to ensure it remains at the cutting edge of research. His most recent work has focused on the Planck spacecraft – a space mission to study the Cosmic Microwave Background, the remnant radiation from the Big Bang. Over the course of his career, Professor Davis has published more than 150 papers in scientific journals, a
number which is set to increase rapidly as the results from Planck begin to appear. Professor Davis is now leading the UK's LFI Post-Launch Support phase of the mission. This involves monitoring and analysis of the spacecraft instruments and remote in-flight tuning to optimise their performance. He is the United Kingdom's Principal Investigator for the Low Frequency Instrument (LFI) onboard Planck. For many years Professor Davies has been an enthusiastic teacher of physics in the University's School of Physics and Astronomy, teaching across a wide range of physics and astrophysics, as well as supervising many undergraduate and postgraduate students. He said: “Of course this is a great honour for me personally but I must say that this work has only been made possible through the efforts of a first-rate group of colleagues and friends here at Jodrell Bank. It is a pleasure to work with them. “I would also like to thank the University and the Science and Technology Facilities Council for their continued funding of this research.” Professor Ian Kimber, Professor of Toxicology in the Faculty of Life Sciences, was also honoured with an OBE. 7
INSIDE THIS EDITION...
BEYOND THE NOBEL PRIZE Professors Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2010 for their groundbreaking experiments and discovery of the two-dimensional material graphene. What’s been the impact of winning the prize, and what’s next for the pair?
Graphene, first discovered at The University of Manchester in 2004, is the thinnest and strongest material ever to be found, and is referred to as 2D atomic crystals. The crystals can be seen as individual atomic planes ‘pulled out’ of bulk, 3D crystals. Although only one atom thick graphene is stable under ambient conditions, which allows it to be considered as a viable material in ultrafast electronics making them cheaper to produce, faster, thinner and more flexible. Research into its applications is already underway. Professor Geim says: “Since 2007 – three years after we discovered graphene – everyone was talking about our chances to win a Nobel Prize. Every year there were predictions from the media and other organisations, so it was pretty hard to ignore the rumours. People were even saying that if I lived long enough it would be guaranteed”. It’s not all been plain sailing for the pair. Geim said: “Winning the Nobel Prize puts you in a different category. In an instant you become a trustworthy person. This brings an added obligation to be very careful with any advice. When influential people need advice they immediately come to you, and this alone has increased my workload by around 20%. I’ve also found more relatives and friends than I ever knew existed!” Many organisations are currently working on research, development and applications for graphene, but financial goals are of little interest to Professor Geim. “We’re not involved in commercial developments as a whole. A couple of our students are working with external organisations, and have seen small financial successes. We are not making any money from the research frenzy on graphene as our work was funded by the tax payer through the EPSRC. Commercialisation is not my area of expertise, but we are happy to help.
THE STORY OF A NOBEL PRIZE...
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2002
2004
2007
Geim appointed as Director of Manchester Centre for Mesoscience and Nanotechnology
Graphene discovered
Geim elected as a UK Royal Society Fellow Geim awarded the Mott Prize for the discovery of a new class of materials, particularly graphene
Geim appointed as Langworthy Research Professor, previously held by leading names in Physics including Rutherford, Bragg and Blackett
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GRAPHENE, THE ONE-ATOM-THICK MATERIAL THAT DEMONSTRATES A HUGE RANGE OF UNUSUAL AND UNIQUE PROPERTIES
“I don’t have any issue with others making money from the discovery, but I do wish that more of the current research was happening in the UK. It would seem that UK-based venture capitalists are not interested.” Professor Geim and Professor Novoselov are unique among Nobel Prize winners as they are successfully continuing to publish prestigious research. Their work last year on fluorographene – a new 2D material – was internationally reported as a successor to Teflon.
My modus operandi is not to find something and dig deep; it’s to find something, put a stake in the ground, then run as far away from it as possible. You never know what you will find if you do that.
Fluorographene is a one-molecule thick crystal which is mechanically strong, and was produced by attaching fluorine to each carbon atom of graphene. The work is a large international effort and involved research groups from China, the Netherlands, Poland and Russia. “The award of a Nobel Prize usually puts a big, black full stop at the end of a career. I’m not aware of anyone who has continued to work as normal after a Nobel Prize; in fact most have received it after retirement.” Interest in graphene is still very hot, and new research results are common. Is Professor Geim pleased with this? “It is fantastic that what we started has generated so much interest, but to be
THE ATTENTION AROUND WINNING A NOBEL PRIZE BRINGS AN OBLIGATION TO BE CAREFUL WITH ADVICE AND AN INCREASED WORKLOAD FOR PROFESSOR GEIM
honest I would love to finish working on it now. There have been more than 4,000 publications about it, which means it’s now difficult for anyone to clearly follow its progress; there’s too much competition, and pressure to publish new research quickly. I also feel an immense pressure to work harder than ever. However, it still remains a truly interesting area, and shows no signs of fading.” The Nobel Prize winners have recently found a way to make graphene magnetic, which has increased the potential applications for this wonder material. The results were published this year in Science. They’ve been hailed as a huge breakthrough in the field of spintronics – a group of technologies that exploit the intrinsic spin of the electron. Professor Geim commented: “The holy grail of spintronics is the conversion of electricity into magnetism and vice versa. Graphene offers a new mechanism, thanks to its unique properties”. Graphene has recently been selected as one of six possible projects for a ten-year, ⇔1billion research initiative. Funded by the European Commission, the collaborative flagship Future Emerging Technology (FET) scheme is aimed at a breakthrough for technological innovation and economic exploitation based on graphene and related two-dimensional materials. And what’s next for Professor Geim and his team? “My modus operandi is not to find something and dig deep; it’s to find something, put a stake in the ground, then run as far away from it as possible. You never know what you will find if you do that. “We’re still working hard on graphene, but I hope one day to go back to working on projects like ‘gecko tape’ and levitating frogs.” www.physics.manchester.ac.uk
2008
2009
2010
2011
Geim and Novoselov awarded the Europhysics Prize for discovering graphene
Geim received the Korber European Science Award
Geim and Novoselov awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics
UK Royal Society elects Novoselov as a Fellow
Novoselov named as one of the University’s Researchers of the Year
Geim awarded a Royal Society 2010 Anniversary Research Professorship 9
SLOW TRAIN TO CLIMATE CHANGE You’re deputy director of a climate change research centre. You need to be at the launch of your centre’s expansion to China at the Fudan Tyndall Centre. Stepping off a jumbo jet wouldn’t look good, so Professor Kevin Anderson set off to test his theories on ‘productive’ low-carbon travel with a tennight working trip from Broadbottom to Shanghai… and back! Broadbottom – Warsaw Broadbottom – Shanghai met its first obstacle in Broadbottom – no train! So the journey’s carbon graph started with a blip – a taxi to Stockport to catch the 7.04 to London. I arrived in time to soak up the Fren ch ambience of St Pancras before the Eurostar whisked me off to Gare du Nord and the real thing. A brief plat du jour in a restaurant on a nearby side street and I was alighting the next leg of the journey to Cologne where I catch the night train to War saw. I was sandwiched between two amp le Polish lads on the sleeper, service engineers with an Indian com pany manufacturing machinery for the pharmaceutical indu stry. Returning from Germany where their machines had been installed, they were off to India the following week to upda te their training. Wherever you turn there’s a carbon lesson to be had. Warsaw – Kiev – Moscow hts of a wet Warsaw I set After a morning discovering the delig ral hours’ work before seve off on the leg to Kiev. I managed rtation in Polish but disse a king mar was noting my roommate ds Klimatzy Chnze wor ecutive with a title that included the cons of all the trains ages carri the all “Of – or something very similar. walks into mine” – though he in all the world a climate scientist ll – and I doubt anyone would didn’t look much like Lauren Baca mistake me for Bogart! the Trans-Siberian began its I had fifteen hours in Moscow until Lenin Bibliotheca and had the long saunter East. I stumbled upon ed by the absence of help – s hour few e a peaceful and productiv d and scary encounter with wireless, emails and admin. A protracte handbook left me erian s-Sib a security guard over my vital Tran ng. Beiji to train next the h catc to with only minutes
Moscow – Beijing So this is it – the Trans-Siberian – a collection of hippies seeking utopia in the East, wealthy old-timers on a jaunt to inhale the spices of the Orient, and Agatha Christie junkie s waiting for the first blood-curdling scream. Not sure where the mad Prof on a works trip to save a gram or two of carbon fits in, but I was very happy soaking up the history of travellers wrapp ed up in the worn wood panelling of our old Chinese train. After the seven-stage pogo so far, a single leap from Moscow to Beijing is a welcome relief – no more hauling my personal affects around. I can settle down to reading a few papers and writing one on shipping emissions. Every so often I’d look up to see trees or large empty plains where trees shoul d have been go past, giving way as we headed much further East, first to the tranquil beauty of Lake Baikal then the vast expan se of Mongolia’s steppelands and the Goby desert. Finally, and in stark contrast, the fairytale rock towers and green valleys of China loomed as we threaded our way throu gh tunnels, over bridges and along precipitous ridges towards Beijing.
Beijing - Shanghai the I’m living the dream of the UK’s early railway pioneers on annel multich the turned I’ve y. journe my Beijing-Shanghai leg of light, reading LED my on ed switch bed, the of foot the at TV off the to nt adjace bed, my to placed my phone on the table next s copiou the in e luggag my tucked and tly) vase of flowers (hones space provided. I share the spacious cabin with my three too roomies – all of whom are now sound asleep, probably not y. journe m 1400k a for fare £60 the worried by
Slow and low – the way to go Travelling slowly changes our perceptions of essential travel. It forces us to travel less and to be more selective in what we attend and to endeavour to get more out of those trips we do take. Fewer trips and potentially longer stays – not rocket science, just climate change basics. From a productivity perspective, the 20-day train journey easily trumped the two-day flight. A carefully plann ed train journey not only delivers order of magnitude lower emiss ions, but it also facilitates the process of research in a way that universities and daily life simply can’t match. Add to that the ‘slower’ ethos that such journeys engender and I think there may be early signs of making a meaningful transition to a low-carbon future – or at least a bridging ethos whilst we wait for the panacea of lowcarbon technologies to become the norm.
Professor Kevin Anderson holds a Chair in Energy and Climate Change at the School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering. He is also the Deputy Director of the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research. The Tyndall Centre is a partnership of eight UK universities, bringing together scientists, economists, engineers and social scientists who are working to develop sustainable responses to climate change. This new partnership with the Research Institute for Global Environmental Change (RICE) at Fudan University, Shanghai, one of the big three universities in China, creates new opportunities for collaborative research.
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ENGINEERING& PHYSICAL
SCI ENCESN EWS PAVING THE WAY FOR THE COMPUTING SCIENTISTS OF THE FUTURE A recent report by The Royal Society found that only a small proportion of 16-19 year olds are studying science and mathematics subjects at A-level and beyond. This has resulted in a decline in the number of students going on to study for science and technology-related degrees. Too few science and engineering graduates will mean fewer academic and industry specialists. What does Professor Steve Furber FRS, Professor of Computer Engineering think of this? Although here at Manchester we’re top of the pile when it comes to computer science and engineering, there is a UK-wide shortage of students studying science and engineering at undergraduate level. I think this is a reflection of society’s consumption of technology without a real understanding of what’s required to deliver it. The desire to own and use technology has never been so high, but the desire is simply to use it, so there’s a loss of motivation to study computer science, technology and engineering at school, at degree level and beyond. My role as Chair of The Royal Society’s Computing in Schools Advisory Group is to look at the way computing is taught in schools and to understand why pupil interest isn’t higher. The Group includes support from 24 organisations from across the computing community including learned societies, professional bodies, universities, and industry. It’s motivated by the fall in the numbers of school pupils taking computing and science subjects at school, and therefore the fall in numbers of such graduates. Schools seem to be experiencing difficulty with engaging pupils in computing, science and engineering, and focus solely on the skills required to operate a computer. As the demand for computer science graduates grows, the supply is weakening, and this mismatch is already being felt. Pupils are currently taught how to print documents and office management computing skills, but there’s little in the way of ambitious computing. Personally, I think a move back to teaching computer programming would be a great benefit. In the 1980s the first screen you would see on your computer would be the programming interface, which allowed pupils to perform interesting experiments. PCs are now designed for business not education, but programming a computer is much tougher, and requires a greater level of skill and understanding. Schools have the opportunity to do something challenging, such as teaching pupils to design an algorithm to help a robot navigate
PROFESSOR STEVE FURBER
obstacles; which is much more rewarding that teaching them to use office applications. There is evidence that the small number of schools that are engaged in this sort of work with pupils are making a big difference. The project will report at the end of 2011. www.royalsociety.org/education/policy/computing-in-schools
FOCUS ON... Professor Furber is currently leading a research team to produce a high-performance computer which aims to create working models of human brain functions. Microchips will form the system architecture for the massive computer, and will link together to simulate the highly-complex workings of the brain. The computer, called SpiNNaker, aims to model individual brain functions. Microchips will be linked together to simulate the highlycomplex workings of the brain, whose functionality derives from networks of billions of interacting, highly-connected neurons. The microchips upon which this work critically depends were delivered in May, and have passed their functionality tests with flying colours. They will form the system architecture for SpiNNaker. SpiNNaker could be a vital tool for neuroscientists, psychologists and doctors to help them understand complex brain injuries, diseases and conditions, and identify the most effective therapies. http://apt.cs.man.ac.uk/projects/SpiNNaker/
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The University’s Jodrell Bank Observatory, a world-leader in radio-astronomy research and development and home to the Lovell telescope, has been named as the site for the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) Project Office. The SKA will be the world’s largest and most sensitive radio telescope, and will be used to address fundamental questions about the universe, such as how galaxies were formed and continue to evolve; what happened after the Big Bang; the nature of gravity; and the search for life beyond Earth. The telescope’s array will be built in either Australia or South Africa and will consist of thousands of radio dishes extending 3,000 km from a central core region. Signals from the array’s individual antennas will be combined to form a giant telescope with an effective collecting area of about one square kilometre (1million square metres). Construction is due to start in 2016 with first data expected in 2019. Professor Stephen Watts, Head of the School of Physics and Astronomy at The University of Manchester, said: "Jodrell Bank is an ideal place for scientists and engineers to work together to plan the world's largest radio telescope, alongside world-leading radio astronomy facilities, and the new Discovery Centre. Together these will inspire people of all ages with this ambitious project which should answer truly fundamental questions about the nature of the universe". 12
Artist's impression of the SKA dishes SPDO/TDP/DRAO/Swinburne Astronomy Productions.
MAJOR MILESTONES FOR JODRELL BANK
Professor Richard Schilizzi, Director of the SKA, said: “The move to Jodrell Bank comes at a crucial time as the project grows from a concept to an international megascience project. The new location and facilities will support the significant expansion that is planned.” Jodrell Bank Observatory has also recently opened its new and improved Discovery Centre, which gives the public an insight into the work of the observatory and its research teams, and aims to inspire young scientists.
The move to Jodrell Bank comes at a crucial time as the project grows from a concept to an international megascience project.
A £3million refurbishment project was completed in April this year, and coincides with the news that the Observatory has been shortlisted for World Heritage Status. The project was funded by the North West Development Agency, the European Regional Development Fund alongside additional funding from the University. Dr Teresa Anderson, the Centre’s Director, said: “We’re delighted that our new Centre opened bang on schedule and that it will be such a great experience for visitors. We’re really looking forward to welcoming lots of new people to Jodrell Bank in the next few months and years”. www.jodrellbank.manchester.ac.uk
PROFESSOR COX GETS TO GRIPS WITH QUESTIONS FROM THE SCHOOL PUPILS
ENTHUSING THE NEXT GENERATION
In June, University of Manchester physicist Professor Brian Cox delivered the second of his Star Lectures to an audience of Year 9 and 10 science pupils. The Star Lecture Series has been developed by the University to allow teachers and pupils access to exciting curriculum resources delivered by some of its leading academic staff. More than 500 pupils came from schools across the North West and the UK to listen to him talk about the importance of studying science and his passion for it. His lecture also centred around key topics the children will study as part of their GCSEs. Professor Cox’s lecture concentrated on the two pillars of understanding: relativity and quantum physics. He shared with the children his passion for science, and talked about how the size of the problem of understanding the universe had captivated him as a young child. After talking about the current challenges in exploring the universe, and the wonders of our planet and solar system, Professor Cox took questions from the young audience, much to
The breadth of research in Physics at Manchester ensures that students are surrounded by enthusiasm and knowledge from people at the cutting edge of technology, which is fairly unique.
their delight. He discussed issues such as ‘How can the universe expand if there is nothing outside of it?’; How did CERN hold antimatter for a short time?’; ‘How many planets are yet to be discovered?’, and ‘Why did you choose physics?’. He finished by encouraging the school children to think seriously about a career in physics and astronomy, his passion for the subject and studying at The University of Manchester. Julian Skyrme, Head of Student Recruitment and Widening Participation, and his team organised the lecture. Julian said: “Enthusing the next generation about science is a key goal for the University and there is no member of our staff more suitable to do this than Professor Cox”. Professor Cox completed his undergraduate degree at The University of Manchester. He chose to study at Manchester because of its rich history, and active research: “Jodrell Bank was a big draw for me. I began in Astro Physics, so to be at the university that owned the most famous telescope in the world was a big thing. “The staff I met, and the research that was happening at the time, captured my imagination. The breadth of research in Physics at Manchester, and experts here across pretty much every field of Physics, ensure students are surrounded by enthusiasm and knowledge from people at the cutting edge of technology, which is fairly unique.” www.physics.manchester.ac.uk www.manchester.ac.uk/starlectures
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MATERIALS DESIGN SHOW FROM LEFT TO RIGHT, THE WORK OF KATE LLOYD, LUCY HAYES AND AIMEE CLARKE. LUCY’S DRESS IS PART OF A COLLECTION INSPIRED BY NATURAL ORGANIC FORMS AND THE CONCEPT OF METAMORPHOSIS
Final year students of the Textile Design and Design Management, Design Management for Fashion Retail, and Fashion and Textiles Retailing BSc programmes displayed their major project work in the Great Hall of the Sackville Street Building in June. Students on these courses develop an range of skills including textile design, retail design, marketing, e-commerce, management in the retail environment, expertise in ITC and computer-aided design (CAD), communication, knowledge of buyer behaviour and product performance, trend forecasting, and textile technology and science. The work produced covers the spectrum of crossdisciplinary skills necessary for textile and fashion industry professionals.
KATE WEST WON A PRESTIGIOUS AWARD FROM THE BRADFORD TEXTILE SOCIETY FOR HER WOVEN FABRICS FOR INTERIORS
AWARD FOR ARAGO A University spin-out company has won the Existing Performance Improvement prize at the Energy Innovation Awards. Arago, established in 2010 by Professors Ian Cotton and Simon Rowland from the School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, won the award for its electrically insulating transmission tower composite cross-arm. Arago Technology is a joint initiative between EPL Composites Solutions and a team from the National Grid High Voltage Lab at The University of Manchester. Their current research and development focuses on creating an electrically insulating transmission tower cross-arm. The cross-arm allows the up-grading of existing electricity power lines to increase tower voltage without structural change to the towers. The award recognises its improvement of the existing performance of pylon technology. The composite cross-arm is suitable for retrofit to existing transmission towers or as an option for new line build, and can be adapted to suit any tower.
External Relations Faculty of Engineering & Physical Science The University of Manchester B5 Sackville Street Building Manchester M13 9PL United Kingdom
The award tops a successful year for Arago. In 2010 it secured funding from the Innovation Funding Incentive to trial the cross-arm in partnership with the Scottish and Southern Power Energy Distribution, this being in addition to funding already in place from National Grid. It then installed the first of four composite cross-arms in the Scottish Highlands, which have successfully withstood adverse weather conditions including winds of over 100mph Professor Ian Cotton said: “We are extremely pleased with the first installation, and we’re working towards a live installation in Fraserburgh, Scotland in September 2011. This will be the first time the cross-arms have been tested in a live environment using a 400,000 volt test supply. The cross-arms have already demonstrated their effectiveness in snow, ice and windy conditions but the new coastal location will test their performance against salt spray”. Arago Technology has been set-up by The University of Manchester’s Intellectual Property commercialisation company (UMIP) which since 2004 has set up more than 20 spin-out companies which employ several hundred people, and have an annual combined sales turnover of £17million. It has also concluded 150 new licences and assignments. It currently has more than 100 projects in its portfolio at various stages of development, and a number of the spin-out companies have received national and regional enterprise awards. UMIP is wholly owned by The University of Manchester. www.aragotechnology.com www.umip.com
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