Vitamin deficiency and insufficiency is an increasing issue for health and immunity, even for countries like the UK, further highlighted by the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. To address this issue, the development of combinational probiotic and prebiotic products worth exploring, for which the understanding of the science related to the processing, compression and stability of probiotics in the presence of prebiotics in such a dosage form is essential.
The primary objectives would be to understand thermo-mechanical behaviour of these combinational systems and to develop a robust design space for design and manufacture such dosage forms, while also ensuring the viability of the probiotics. Specific tasks for this project include but not limited to critical literature review to understand the background, the state-of-the-art and the challenges, to identify the knowledge gap, and to develop and implement a research plan to address the identified knowledge gaps.
The project aims to develop a science-based design space for the co-delivery of combinations of pro- and prebiotics in consumer-desired dosage forms that meet regulatory requirements. To achieve this goal, the following specific objectives are identified for this work package:
1. Develop full understanding of the raw materials and the compression properties of current product chassis
2. Identify the knowledge gap through critical literature analysis, and design the research plan
3. Develop a robust experimental/numerical protocol for producing and analysing the combinational dosage forms, and evaluate it with preliminary prototypes.
4. Define the science and technology of the requirements for generation of desirable attributes of the product as a function of ingredient properties
5. Construct a design space for design and manufacture of combinational probiotic and prebiotic formulations.
This is a 4 year project starting in October 2021.
Supervisor: Professor Charley Wu
This project is funded by iCase and P&G.
More about our formulation and products research.
Entry requirements
We are looking for a highly motivated candidate with a first class or upper second-class BSc or Master’s level degree (or international equivalent) in Engineering or a closely related subject area. The candidate should be a good team player and can engage in interdisciplinary and cross-sectoral collaboration with good oral and written communication skills. Previous experience or some knowledge in powder technology and formulation science are desirable bit not essential as training will be provided.
English language requirements
IELTS 6.5 overall with 6.0 in each band or equivalent.
How to apply
Applications should be made through the Chemical and Process Engineering programme page: https://www.surrey.ac.uk/postgraduate/chemical-and-process-engineering-research-phd#apply
For enquiries, please contact Professor Charley Wu - email [Email Address Removed] or call +44 (0)1483 683506.
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