Centre for Advanced Manufacturing and Materials

About us: our vision

Materials and manufacturing are everywhere, with the latest scientific breakthroughs underpinning almost all aspects of modern society, from energy generation and construction to healthcare and environmental protection. And with the emergence of artificial intelligence, automation, additive manufacturing and other new technologies, the pace of change is only accelerating. The Centre for Advanced Manufacturing and Materials (CAMM) is a focal point for cutting-edge research into how these and other developments in materials and manufacturing science can address some of the greatest challenges of our time.

We aim to:

• Produce research outputs of national and international importance, reinforcing the University’s research reputation.
• Enhance our experimental capabilities, strengthening state-of-the-art facilities for synthesis, characterization and processing of materials at different length scales.
• Create an open, inclusive and collaborative culture where exceptional individual talent can blossom.
• Develop early and mid-career researchers, encourage healthy competition, establish a mentoring programme, and support proposals led by ECRs.
• Foster a collaborative network internally and externally, contributing to a vibrant, dynamic and interdisciplinary research environment.
• Build a strategic thinking behind research and knowledge exchange activities in order to identify bigger opportunities for excellence and further increase the research power of the University.

Our impact on the world

We believe that advances in materials and manufacturing are essential to supporting sustainable growth, while addressing many profound and complex social, economic and ecological challenges. Now, more than ever, as the impacts of climate change are being felt around the world, we must identify new solutions which balance human needs with environmental protection. The research undertaken at the Centre for Advanced Manufacturing and Materials, which ranges from nanomaterials, AI and robotics to carbon capture and the future hydrogen economy, directly supports this.

By focusing on advanced manufacturing and materials, CAMM seeks to contribute to many of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Examples include:

• Our development of synthetic routes for scaled-up synthesis of designer molecules and nanomaterials in medical applications such as theranostics and pharmaceuticals, which supports Good Health and Well-being (SDG3).
• Our active encouragement for more women to enter careers in engineering, including the recent appointment of a female sustainability officer for the Centre, which supports Gender Equality (SDG5).
• Our research on water filtration that can have positive impact in developing countries, which supports Clean Water and Sanitation (SDG6).
• Our work on new processes and materials for developing the hydrogen economy in Kent and the Southeast of England, which supports Affordable and Clean Energy (SDG7).
• Our work with BAE Systems to incorporate AI, machine learning and robotics into process optimisation and human-centred operation, which supports Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure (SDG9).
• Our exploration of the use of carbon-based industrial waste in new building materials, which supports Sustainable Cities and Communities (SDG11).
• Our research to improve the sustainability, resilience and environmental impact of manufacturing processes, services and supply chains, which supports Responsible Consumption and Production (SDG12).

Some of the impacts we have already reported include:

• The development of a novel CO2 mineralisation technology, known as ACT, which diverts industrial solid waste from landfill and converts CO2 gas from the atmosphere into construction materials.
• Work with Cummins Inc., a US-based manufacturer of engines and generators, which increased efficiency of knowledge search, product design and testing by 15%, and cut costs and time to market by 10-15%.
• Research on cost-effective solutions for materials handling and storage, including particulate materials and bulk solids, which has helped BASF, Unilever, Drax Power, Roche Pharma and other companies reduce risk in new powder and bulk solids processes, and troubleshoot existing ones.

Who we are

An interdisciplinary approach

Research into advanced manufacturing and materials aims to solve some of the most complex challenges now facing societies. It is unsurprising therefore that CAMM is highly interdisciplinary, bringing together world-leading experts in a variety of specialisms, including materials synthesis, chemical engineering, civil engineering, mechanical engineering, information and communication, bioengineering, manufacturing processes, automation and mathematics.

Partners

CAMM members collaborate with a broad range of external organisations. We wish to build formal relations with other centres of excellence in materials science, such as the Henry Royce institute, which is the UK National Institute for Advanced Materials and Innovation, and the London centre for nanotechnology, a joint effort between King’s College, UCL and Imperial College, London. We also partner with academic institutions, local authorities and other stakeholders across the Southeast and Kent on hydrogen economy, net zero industry and climate change initiatives. Our private sector partnerships meanwhile encompass major multinationals, such as BAE Systems and Ford, as well as SMEs in this country and around the world, with some of whom we have established knowledge transfer partnership (KTPs).

Funding

The work of the Centre for Advanced Manufacturing and Materials is supported by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and the EU Interreg Programme, among others. We also offer consultancy services, supporting companies in the power and energy, pharmaceuticals, food, chemicals, minerals plastics and other sectors to improve their processes.

Our research

Pure and applied research

Our research on advanced manufacturing and materials tends to be highly application-orientated. However, far from dismissing so-called blue skies-thinking, CAMM members will also pursue new areas out of sheer curiosity. Indeed, we see a combination of pure and applied research as often critical for making the next scientific breakthrough.

Our research currently falls into the following broad, and often interlinked, themes:

• Environment and Materials Engineering
• Bulk solids handling
• Materials and Chemical Engineering
• Manufacturing Engineering and Automation
• Advanced Imaging Technologies

Environment and Materials Engineering

This theme focuses on the storage, sequestration and conversion of carbon dioxide for treating soil and waste, producing materials that are applicable in the construction industry. A novel CO2 mineralisation technology developed by CAMM members, known as ACT, has led to a spin-out company Carbon8 Systems. ACT is now deployed by several fixed aggregate-manufacturing plants in the UK and, recently, in the world’s first mobile ‘plug-and-play’ device, the ‘CO2ntainer’, which directly removes the greenhouse gas from flue emissions.

Bulk solids handling

Here, we research and analyse powders, bulk solids, and particulate materials, and develop new formulations of powder materials to improve manufacturing efficiency. This work directly supports a range of involved in the processing of powders, particulates and other bulk solids materials, encompassing food and drink, pharmaceuticals, minerals, renewable energy, chemicals, plastics, recycling, metals, household goods, paper, cosmetics, textiles, and rubber. We also offer industry courses run out of the Wolfson Centre for Bulk Solids Handling Technology.

Materials and Chemical Engineering

The Materials and Chemical Engineering theme explores materials from the nanoscale and molecular level to industrial processing, food engineering and manufacturing. CAMM is a world-leader in the synthesis, chemical functionalization and characterization of carbon nanomaterials, including fullerenes, carbon nanotubes, graphene, and related structures. We are currently collaborating with the University of Oxford among others to explore the use of carbon nanomaterials as building blocks of quantum computing, in water filtration, and in nano-imaging.

Manufacturing Engineering and Automation

We have developed advanced manufacturing technologies for diverse industrial applications. Among the many areas covered are: digital and smart manufacturing; collaborative product development with global supply chains; manufacturing information and knowledge management; automation, industrial robotics and artificial intelligence in manufacturing; product lifecycle management; and lean and sustainable manufacturing. This work has led to productive collaborations with BAE Systems and other major companies.

Advanced Imaging Technologies

This theme uses the very latest imaging techniques to provide a better understanding of the structure-function of biological tissues and biomaterials, informing product development for industry, as well as clinical practice for traumatic and pathological conditions. Crucially, we will soon be integrating high-resolution X-ray computed tomography (CT imaging), experimental mechanics, measuring techniques (e.g., Digital Volume Correlation) and AI for advancing the understanding of tissue/biomaterial mechanical properties. This new CT imaging facility will be the only one its kind anywhere in Europe.

Publications/Output

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Teaching and training

CAMM offers training to industry experts via its Wolfson Centre for Bulk Solids Handling Technology. These often take the form of short courses for solving specific problems relating to materials and manufacturing. We also organise mentoring, professional training and technology knowledge transfer (KTP) programmes for academic and research staff from other higher education institutions, as well as for hi-tech companies and start-ups, in the UK and worldwide. Internally, we mentor our PhD students and early career researchers to strengthen their career progression, and provide training on topics such as proposal-writing.

News and events

A full programme of activities has yet to be arranged, however CAMM members run an Open Day for new research students, and will present their research in local pubs as part of the Pint of Science outreach initiative.