About the Project
Eligibility: UK/EU/International Students
Award Details: Self-funded candidates
Duration: 3 years Fixed Term (starting September 2016 for UK/EU applicants only - January 2017)
Application deadline: Ongoing
Informal enquiries are essential before application; contact Dr. Morteza Khorami to discuss this opportunity.
Congratulations on taking your first steps toward a Research Degree with Coventry’s Faculty of Engineering, Environment and Computing. As an ambitious and innovative University, we’re investing an initial £100m into our new research strategy, ‘Excellence with Impact’. Through original approaches from world-leading experts, we’re aiming for our research to make a tangible difference to the way we live. As a research student you are an integral part of Coventry’s lively and diverse research community and contribute to our reputation for excellence. With our exceptional facilities and superb support mechanisms you are afforded every opportunity for academic success.
The Project
Cement Composite Board (CCB) is a construction material that can be used for roofing, internal and external walls. In comparison to gypsum plaster board, CCB can show higher quality in terms of weathering, strength, nailing, fire and acoustic resistance, and resistance to wood insects such as termites.
CCBs are usually made out of discrete fibres, cement and additives through Hatcheck process. Although the use of asbestos fibres has been banned in many developed countries since 1990 due to human health hazards (lung cancer and mesothelioma), many developing countries are still using asbestos fibres in production of CCB based on an old technology that was developed in early 1910 through Hatcheck process.
The motivation of this research is to save lives in developing countries and make a step change in manufacturing of CCB to make it more sustainable and cheaper.
The following problems exists in CCB productions:
- The natural and polymeric fibres currently used are expensive so it causes CCB to become more expensive than plaster boards for internal wall or more expensive than many of other external cladding materials.
- The natural and polymeric fibres that comply with the requirements of CCB are produced by only limited number of companies in the world and these companies have monopoly of the technology.
- A new method of production is needed to be developed to help both the developed and developing countries to produce cheap, safe and sustainable CCBs.
About the Centre/Department
The Centre for Low Impact Buildings (http://www.coventry.ac.uk/research/areas-of-research/low-impact-buildings/) is seeking exceptional and motivated scholars who wish to engage with global, policy or industry related research that will demonstrate a measurable sustainable improvement in the performance of the built environment. Our key research themes are: building materials or low carbon technologies including their dynamic performance; new standards of building performance involving owners and occupiers; resilience and adaptation to climate change; or, pervasive data in sensoring and monitoring buildings including human computer interaction. It is our aim to improve the sustainability and performance of the built environment.
Successful Applicants
Successful applicants will have:
- A minimum of a 2:1 first degree in a relevant discipline/subject area with a minimum 60% mark in the Project element or equivalent with a minimum 60% overall module average, or
- A Masters Degree in a relevant subject area will be considered as an equivalent. The Masters must have been attained with overall marks at merit level (60%). In addition, the dissertation or equivalent element in the Masters must also have been attained with a mark at merit level (60%).
- The potential to engage in innovative research and to complete the PhD within a prescribed period of study
- Language proficiency (IELTS overall minimum score of 7.0 with a minimum of 6.5 in each component).
Additionally
- Candidates must have some experience in experimental work and of working in a laboratory. It is desirable that candidates can evidence their commitment to research in the form of publications of some kind (for example journal or conference papers).
- Candidates should have some knowledge of statistics and data analysis. In order to contextualise the research.
Eligibility & Application Procedure
Application Procedure:
Application information can be found in our how to apply section. For more information, before completing the application, please contact Dr. Morteza Khorami [Email Address Removed], cc'ing [Email Address Removed] for an initial informal discussion about the studies.
Eligibility:
All UK/EU/International students are eligible to apply that meet the academic requirements, the eligibility criteria can be found here: http://www.coventry.ac.uk/research/research-students/research-entry-criteria/