Engineering and Physical Sciences

It’s time for tomorrow

The pressing needs, present and future, of some of the world’s most important industries, including engineering and automotive manufacture, are being met by research which ranges from vast improvements in the performance of existing technology to the development of whole new technologies and materials.

World-class research groups in fields such as metrology and precision engineering are working closely with industrial partners and they constantly seek new collaborations. There have been important breakthroughs in machine tool accuracy, the rapid diagnosis of faults in machinery and in the monitoring of emissions. The productivity of the oil industry will benefit from new developments in flow measurement and the future of vehicle manufacture will be shaped by research in areas that range from brake technology to bio-fuels. Meanwhile, environmental considerations are high on every research agenda.

State-of-the-art equipment is available to all researchers, whether they are testing engine performance, carrying out minute measurements of complex surfaces or investigating materials and catalysis in purpose-built labs. Some of the technology is specially developed for the research challenge in hand, such as an electron microscope connected to an ion accelerator, for the purposes of investigating the best choice of materials for reactor components.

Outlined below are the areas within the University where we are carrying out research related to this theme.

Advanced Machining Technology Research Group

Arms and Armour Research Group

Biology

Biomolecular Sciences

Centre for Diagnostic Engineering

Chemistry

Centre for High Performance Intelligent Computing

Centre for Precision Technologies (CPT)

Computer Graphics, Imaging and Vision (CGIV)

Electron Microscopy and Materials Analysis (EMMA)

Energy Emmisions and Environment Research Group