Polymer centre academics, including Dr. Andrew Parnell, Prof. Patrick Fairclough and Dr. Oleksandr Mykhaylyk, have recently been involved in a collaboration that has helped shed more light on the origin of structural colour in the natural world. Structural colour refers to cases where colour arises from the scattering of light by nanoscale structural elements, as […]

Scientists have developed a new approach for the long-term storage of biological tissue and blood samples making blood transfusions easier. Researchers from the Universities of Sheffield and Warwick have found that using a block copolymer hydrogel, which forms a soft 3D network of nanometer-sized worms in water, prevents damage to red blood cells that have […]

Hydrogels consist of a network of hydrophilic polymer chains held together by cross-links. These cross-links prevent the individual motion of polymer chains leading to the formation of a ‘gel’. Hydrogels closely resemble biological tissues due to their high water content and environmental sensitivities. This makes them attractive for biomedical applications, including tissue engineering and drug […]

Polymer centre academics; Dr Alan Dunbar, Dr Ahmed Iraqi, Dr Alastair Buckley and Prof David Lidzey have reported the manufacture of organic photovoltaic devices from non-halogenated binary solvent blends. This work was carried out in collaboration with Dr Andrew Pearson from the Optoelectronics Group at Cambridge University. Organic photovoltaic devices (OPVs) have seen recent improvements […]

Polymer centre academics, Dr Aileen Crawford and Prof Paul Hatton, have reported the use of a cell seeded porous hydrogel to form cartilage-like tissue. The work was carried out in collaboration with Julio San Roman from CSIC in Madrid. Osteoarthritis, a painful condition affecting over 10 % of the population, arises from the degradation of […]