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Cluster Bio-based Polymer Processes and Materials for Green Technologies and Nanomedicine

Cluster Speaker:

Quinn Besford, Anika Kaufmann

What we do...

The Cluster Bio-Applied Polymers focuses on two key research themes;
1) the application of biopolymers sourced from nature in different contexts, including theranostics, synthetic biology, and environmental remediation; and
2) the application of tailored synthetic polymers into direct biological contexts (e.g., theranostics).
Both these themes are encompassed within the framework of Bio-Applied Polymers. The cluster has expertise spanning from the bottom-up with research focusing on the synthesis and structural dynamics of synthetic and biopolymers, and their assembly into larger nano-to macroscopic materials, with functional structural features integrated on each level. The Cluster has a strong team of experts with access to high-end experimental equipment for characterising in situ changes in structure and conformation of polymers, methods for their production, including microfluidics and photopolymerisation, and characterisation by high-resolution microscopy and spectroscopic techniques, with expertise focused on integrating materials directly into application. The goal of the Cluster is to consolidate expertise from different research groups and disciplines, in order to push towards real-world outcome applications for biopolymers, and for synthetic polymers applied into biological contexts.

Groups involved in this cluster are...

Key Equipment

  • Confocal laser scanning microscopy
  • Atomic force microscopy (AFM)
  • Microfluidic systems
  • Spectroscopic ellipsometry
  • Dynamic light scattering (DLS) and Zeta potential devices
  • Rheometers
  • Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrometers
  • Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometers