Dr Lee Fielding, Prof M Turner
No more applications being accepted
Competition Funded PhD Project (European/UK Students Only)
About the Project
This project aims to help improve the sustainability of the polymer coatings industry by developing our current understanding of grain rise in waterborne wood coatings.
Grain raising involves the lifting of fibres on a wooden surface as an effect of wetting and is not reversible upon drying, a problem which is more predominant for water-based paints than for solvent-based coatings.
In this project we will develop advanced analytical methods to quantify the severity of grain rise based on coating formulation parameters. Additionally, we will explore the synthesis of new functional molecules and polymers which can be incorporated in future coating formulations to help prevent grain rise.
This project is suited to students with an interest in gaining hands-on experience in interface science, polymer/formulation chemistry and materials characterisation. A broad range of advanced analytical techniques will be used by the student, such as electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy.
This PhD project is sponsored, in part, by AkzoNobel. It is envisaged that the student will spend some time working at the appropriate AkzoNobel laboratory and will thereby gain some experience of industry based research & development.
Funding Notes
Funding covers tuition fees and annual maintenance payments of at least the Research Council minimum (currently £14,553) for eligible UK and EU applicants. EU nationals must have lived in the UK for 3 years prior to the start of the programme to be eligible for a full award (fees and stipend). Other EU nationals may be eligible for a fees-only award.
Applicants should have, or expect to achieve, a First class/2.1 degree in Materials Science, Chemistry or other relevant subject.
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