Innovate & Elevate: University Insights for Business Transformation
A public presentation for academics & businesses - all are welcome
Any questions, please contact: ktp@port.ac.uk
To celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the Knowledge Transfer Partnership programme, we are hosting an online forum event each month to showcase how our academic experts can support your business.
Innovation drives the growth of organisations, whether they are industrial enterprises, service providers, social enterprises, charities or public sector organisations. In our Innovate & Elevate forum series, we will explore how companies utilise expert knowledge from the university to advance business performance and de-risk investment for research and development.
Join us for this series of short, valuable online forums designed to harness the dynamic ecosystem of academia and industry collaborations. Learn how the latest technological advancements or management practices can meet your business needs and support your company’s growth.
Sustainable Composite Solutions
Sustainable Natural Plant Fibre Composites for Key Industrial Applications: Moving Towards Circularity & Sustainable Growth
The third instalment of the Innovate & Elevate forum will explore the crucial role of sustainable natural plant fiber-reinforced biobased composites in addressing the growing environmental challenges tied to fossil-based materials. The talk will also highlight the innovative work on lightweight, eco-friendly composites designed for cutting-edge engineering applications, with a special focus on mobility and construction.
The presenters will discuss key performance targets (mechanical, thermal, and environmental) necessary for high-performance applications, alongside strategies for achieving them using advanced testing and characterisation techniques. Additionally, valuable insights from successful projects will be shared, showcasing how natural materials can be effectively integrated into sustainable solutions.
Who should attend
Companies interested in sustainable alternatives to traditional materials, and how innovative nature based solutions can elevate your current industry practices.
How you will benefit
Attendees will gain an insight into the capabilities at the School of Mechanical and Design Engineering and how R+D collaboration can enhance your current business operations.
During the registration process, you will be able to submit questions. There will also be an opportunity to ask questions after the presentation.
Presenters
Hom Dhakal is Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Portsmouth with over 30 years of teaching and research experience in the field of mechanical engineering, materials and manufacturing. He also leads as the Director of the Portsmouth Centre for Advanced Materials and Manufacturing (PCAMM).
His expertise includes the design and development of sustainable lightweight composite materials, and their testing and characterisation. Hom’s research has benefited many industries through the development of a range of new sustainable materials, formulations and manufacturing processes.
Hom’s main research interest is the development of sustainable bio-based lightweight composite materials and hybrid composites, investigating their mechanical, thermal and environmental properties for engineering applications.
As the Director of the Portsmouth Centre for Advanced Materials and Manufacturing (PCAMM), Hom leads on multiple research projects with a particular interest in the development of sustainable lightweight composites and biocomposites. Recent successfully completed projects include Interreg SeaBioComp and Interreg FLOWER.
Hom is a Chartered Engineer (CEng), a member of the American Society for Composites (ASC), and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (HEA), the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), and the Institute of Materials, Minerals, and Mining (IOM3) (FIMMM).
Hom is currently involved with a number of Knowledge Transfer Partnership projects involving packaging design, composition and sustainability.
Antigoni Barouni studied Mechanical & Aeronautical Engineering at the University of Patras (Greece) and obtained her diploma in 2005. In the same University, she joined the Structural Analysis & Active Materials (SAAM) Group and obtained her PhD degree in 2016, with a thesis entitled “Semi-Analytical Wave Propagation Models in Composite Plates of General Laminations for Structural Health Monitoring Applications”. Her research activity is focused on the structural health monitoring of laminated composite structures using wave propagation methods, non-destructive testing/evaluation and development of sustainable bio-based composite materials and structures.
She joined the University of Portsmouth in 2017 having previously worked for 12 years in total as a teaching fellow in the Western Greece University of Applied Sciences (Patras, Greece), the University of Patras (Greece) and the University of Southampton (UK). Currently, she is a Senior Lecturer of Materials and Manufacturing in the School of Electrical and Mechanical Engineering of University of Portsmouth.
Currently, Antigoni’s research is focused on damage identification in composite structures, using wave propagation and various NDT methods – with a particular focus on sustainable, bio-based composites – when impacted under low velocity impact using imaging techniques. Part of her research interests lies on the advancement of bio-based composites and their functionalisation for demanding structural applications, such aerospace and aviation. Also, the performance of adhesive joints under various adhesion parameters is under study with applications in wind energy industry. She has published 30 scientific papers in high esteemed journals and International conferences.
If you have any questions about this event, please contact ktp@port.ac.uk.
Learn more about KTPs at the University of Portsmouth here.
Future events in this series can be found here.
The Zoom link with full joining instructions will be sent to you by email after you register. Please check your inbox and keep the joining instructions safe.
Accessibility and special requirements - We will endeavour to provide particular access requirements on request. If you have any access requirements, e.g hearing loops or specific neurodiversity requirements, please get in touch in advance of the event.