The Polymer Centre is welcoming delegates to our stand at Macro2010, the IUPAC World Polymer Congress in Glasgow this week.

The 43rd IUPAC World Polymer Congress, ‘Macro2010′, is the latest in the series of the biennial meetings of the IUPAC Polymer Division. The series has been running for several decades and is the largest international multi-symposium conference dedicated to all aspects of polymer science and engineering.

Macro2010 is organised by the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) and hosted by the Pure and Applied Macromolecular Chemistry Group (Macro Group UK), a joint interest group of the RSC and the Society of Chemical Industry (SCI).

Macro2010’s overall focus is on Polymer Science in the Service of Society. Themes include:

• Delivering New Polymers for Service in Society: Advances in Polymer Chemistry
• Molecular to Macroscopic Behaviour of Polymers
• Sustainability: Renewable Resources and Environmentally-Friendly Polymers
• Polymers in Support of Life
• Functional Polymers for Electronics, Energy and Analysis
• Polymer Science in Everyday Life
• Advances in Colloidal and Nanosize Polymer Materials
• Young Polymer Scientists: Contributions, Nurturing and Networking

More details of the conference proceedings are available at the Royal Society of Chemistry’s website.

Macro 2010

This year’s meeting of Recent Appointees in Polymer Science will take place at the University of Leeds on the 1-3 September.

This annual event is designed to enable relatively new starters in both academia and industry to learn more about each others’ technical interests and to develop mutually beneficial networks. This year’s conference is a joint event, also involving Recent Appointees in Materials Science.

For more information including registration details, please download the flyer via the link below. Please note that the closing date for registrations has been extended to July 23.

Flyer (PDF, 285 kB)

The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, BBSRC, has announced its 2010 competition for Industrial CASE Studentships.

Industrial CASE PhDs provide research training in an area of relevance to an industrial partner and are an excellent means of knowledge exchange between the academic and commercial worlds.

BSBRC’s Industrial CASE Studentship Competition will award Doctoral Training Grants (DTGs) for start in October 2011 to support collaborative postgraduate research training leading to a PhD.

Proposals for Industrial CASE studentship funding can be submitted by either the industrial company or an individual academic supervisor (citing an industrial partner). The 2010 competition is open until July 28.

What are the benefits to the company?

• An opportunity to have a high quality PhD student undertaking basic research relevant to company objectives
• The freedom to choose academic partners and opportunities to explore new research collaborations
• Direct supervision of a high quality graduate providing insight into potential company recruits

What is the company required to provide?

• A student placement of between 6 and 18 months
• Development opportunities for the student in wider business-related skills
• An enhancement of just £2,500 pa to the student’s stipend and a contribution of £1,400 to the costs incurred by the academic department

Full details of the competition are on the BBSRC website at the link below. Companies wishing to explore opportunities for biotechnology and biological science-related collaboration with the Polymer are invited to contact our Business Development Consultant, Dr Joe Gaunt.

www.bbsrc.ac.uk/business/training/industrial-case.aspx

Contact Joe Gaunt

Sheffield Hallam University and the University of Sheffield present Nanomaterials in Healthcare: Sheffield’s Universities in Partnership with Yorkshire Business, an opportunity for local and regional businesses, academics and healthcare providers to discover opportunities for innovation in healthcare by the application of nanotechnology. This free to attend event at Sheffield City Hall on Monday 14 June 2010 consists of four short talks followed by time to network. The programme is as follows:

14.00: Registration and Coffee

14.30: “Nanotechnology in Yorkshire: Perspectives and Opportunities”

Prof. Richard Jones and Dr Liam Sutton, University of Sheffield and Nanofactory

14.50: “Nanocomposites for Dental Applications”

Dr Guenter Moebus, University of Sheffield

15.10: “What can vibrational spectroscopy tell us about medical polymers?”

Dr Chris Sammon, Sheffield Hallam University

15.30: “University of Sheffield spin-out company works successfully with Yorkshire universities”

Dr Ian Pykett, Phase Focus Ltd.

15.50-17.00: Networking Snack Buffet

To register, please click here (redirects to University of Sheffield) or contact Rose Nightingale, Secretary at Sheffield’s Polymer Centre, on 0114 222 9537.

In partnership with the Molecular Engineering Translational Research Centre, METRC.

Flyer (PDF, 900kB).

Venue

Nanofactory and Enterprise Europe Network – Yorkshire announce two information sessions to help regional companies and academic groups access financial support for research and development work through the European Commission’s Seventh Framework Programme.

The sessions, to be held at the Advanced Manufacturing Park in Rotherham on the afternoon of April 27, and at Novotel Leeds on the morning of April 28, will each offer:

• Insights into the likely content of the 2011 FP7 call in nanosciences, nanotechnologies, materials and new production technologies (NMP)
• Perspectives on how to influence the content of future calls
• Information on the support available from Nanofactory and EEN in building project consortia and designing winning bids for grant support
• Networking opportunities to grow the links between companies interested in nanotechnology and the academic research base in Yorkshire

For more information on EEN – Yorkshire and Nanofactory, the upcoming events and how to register, please visit the links below.

Nanofactory Events

Enterprise Europe Network – Yorkshire

The University of Sheffield launches its EPSRC-funded £5.7M Knowledge Transfer Account (KTA) on March 26th. More than 150 delegates from business, government, public sector and academia are expected and the Polymer Centre is proud to exhibit, to describe its contribution to knowledge transfer between academia and the polymer industry.

The KTA is designed to ensure that the results and experience from the University’s EPSRC-funded research portfolio are exploited to deliver the maximum economic and societal benefit for the UK. The broad aims of the KTA are:

• to further develop a culture which values and recognises knowledge transfer;
• to provide and support an enhanced capacity and novel mechanisms to identify, develop and realise opportunities;
• to work closely with our partners to maximise the impact of EPSRC-funded research in order to realise economic and societal benefits for UK citzens.

The KTA will offer a number of support mechanisms to promote knowledge transfer, including project funding, secondment support, short-term R&D resource and a product “Designer in Residence” scheme. To find out more about the KTA’s operations, please visit the website below.

Sheffield’s EPSRC KTA

InCrops Enterprise Hub in conjunction with Centre for Sports and Exercise at the University of Essex are holding a half day event for businesses focused on Bio Based Materials in Sport on the afternoon of April 20 at the University of Essex in Colchester.

This event will inform businesses and industries associated with sports and outdoor activities about the range of available bio-based materials (biopolymers, natural fibres, biocomposites, nutraceuticals) and bring together those in the sports supply chain from manufacturers and developers to sports professionals.

The afternoon event will feature presentations and demonstrations of products/materials from companies developing plant-based renewable materials for applications in the sports and leisure industry. These include the use of renewable polymers from Merquinsa – www.merquinsa.com – and Arkema Group – www.arkema.com, as well as bamboo by RAW Bamboo Bikes – www.rawbamboobikes.co.uk, and plant fibres by CelluComp Ltd – www.cellucomp.com.

During the event the attendees will have a unique opportunity to visit the Centre for Sports and Exercise Science at the University of Essex and learn about the facilities for testing sports gear and equipment. The event is designed to encourage networking between different stakeholders and provide the opportunity to discuss the potential  for future developmental and collaborative work.

Who should participate?

Companies developing or manufacturing:

• materials for outdoor and active gear, sport clothing and equipment;
• bio monitoring, bio sensing, remote data transfer devices;
• sports drinks and performance stimulants based on plant ingredients;
• sports injuries management

Opportunity to exhibit or present at the event

There is an opportunity to exhibit or present during the event. The presentations to all delegates will be ‘spotlights’ (around 5 minutes) on a bio-based product or material.

If you wish to register for the event or are interested in taking part please contact Julia O’Rourke, event co-ordinator, at the InCrops Enterprise Hub on  01603 591765. For more information, please see the flyer below.

Flyer (PDF, 1.0MB)

Email Julia O’Rourke

Recent Polymer Centre Member Publications:

How Wide Do You Want the Jar?: The Effect on Diameter for Ease of Opening for Wide-mouth Closures. Yoxall, A.; Langley, J.; Janson, R.; Lewis, R.; Wearn, J.; Hayes, S. A.; Bix, L., Packaging Technology And Science 2010 23 (1). Link

Controlled propulsion in viscous fluids of magnetically actuated colloidal doublets. Tierno, Pietro; Gueell, Oriol; Sagues, Francesc; Golestanian, Ramin; Pagonabarraga, Ignacio, Physical Review E 2010 81 (1): Art. No. 011402 Part 1. Link

A Review of Interphase Formation and Design in Fibre-Reinforced Composites. Jones, F. R., Journal Of Adhesion Science And Technology 2010 24 (1): 171-202 Sp. Iss. Si. Link

Study of interfacial stiffness ratio of a rough surface in contact using a spring model. Gonzalez-Valadez, M.; Baltazar, A.; Dwyer-Joyce, R. S., Wear 2010 268 (3-4): 373-379. Link

Rolling-sliding laboratory tests of friction modifiers in dry and wet wheel-rail contacts. Arias-Cuevas, O.; Li, Z.; Lewis, R.; Gallardo-Hernandez, E. A., Wear 2010 268 (3-4): 543-551. Link

pH-responsive liquid marbles stabilized with poly(2-vinylpyridine) particles. Fujii, S.; Kameyama, S.; Armes, S. P.; Dupin, D.; Suzaki, M.; Nakamura, Y., Soft Matter 2010 6 (3): 635-640. Link

In pursuit of propulsion at the nanoscale. Ebbens, S.J.; Howse, J.R., Soft Matter 2010 6 (4): 726-738. Link

Quantifying hydrogel response using laser light scattering. Swann, J.M.G.; Bras, W.; Howse, J.R.; Topham, P.D.; Ryan, A.J., Soft Matter 2010 6 (4): 743-749. Link

Nonlinear dynamics of a rack-pinion-rack device powered by the Casimir force. Miri, M.; Nekouie, V.; Golestanian, R., Physical Review E 2010 81 (1): Art. No. 016104 Part 2. Link

Rheological Behavior of Acid-Swellable Cationic Copolymer Latexes. Tan, Beng H.; Tam, Kam C.; Dupin, Damien; Armes, Steven P., Langmuir 2010 26 (4): 2736-2744. Link

The optical properties of hybrid organic-inorganic L3 nanocavities. Murshidy, Mohamed M.; Adawi, Ali M.; Fry, Paul W.; Whittaker, David M.; Lidzey, David G., Journal Of The Optical Society Of America B-Optical Physics 2010 27 (2): 215-221. Link

Polymer Synthesis: Facilitating functionality. Rimmer, Steve, Nature Chemistry 2010 2 (3): 164-165. Link

List generated using ISI Web of Knowledge.

The University of Sheffield, along with other universities in the Yorkshire and Humber region, is launching a new round of internships this week (Thursday 11 March 2010) which are set to help local businesses and graduates during the economic downturn.

This scheme will offer financial support to organisations that could benefit from employing a recent graduate in a short-term placement. The University of Sheffield has received funding from the Higher Education Funding Council (HEFCE) for a record 60 internships to be offered from now until September 2010.

The scheme is being promoted to employers over the next few weeks on a first-come, first-serve basis and certain industrial sectors will be targeted.

Funding is available to help organisations with the cost of employing a graduate to work with them on a three-month internship. Graduates would be paid £300 per week over a 12 week period and a £100 per week subsidy is available to organisations that have a suitable project for a graduate to undertake.

Many University of Sheffield graduates who participated in the internship scheme last year, were offered permanent positions with their employers. One of these interns was Lauren Ivory, a 2009 graduate who completed an internship with the Sheffield-based social enterprise, Patient Opinion. She was then offered a position with FutureGov, a consultancy and social innovation incubator that helps to shape the future of government through digital engagement and public service transformation.

Lauren said: “I applied for the graduate internship scheme knowing that I needed vital work experience on my CV. My intern project was to organise and co-create a national conference for Patient Opinion and due to the success of the conference I was recruited by FutureGov. None of this would have been possible without my excellent, well suited and brilliantly run internship. I’d thoroughly recommend it to any graduate.”

Steve Fish, Director of the Careers Service, said: “We are delighted that the University is able to offer this scheme to 60 businesses who will gain from the valuable contributions graduates could bring to their organisations.”

Businesses interested in finding out more information can visit the below link or contact Claire Brooke for more information by emailing gradintern@sheffield.ac.uk or telephoning 0114 22 20900.

Graduate internships

Recent Polymer Centre Member Publications:

Development of a Three Dimensional Multiscale Computational Model of the Human Epidermis. Adra, S.; Sun, T.; MacNeil, S.; Holcombe, M.; Smallwood, R., PLOS ONE 2010 5 (1): Art. No. E8511. Link

Scaling Effects in Notched Composites. Wisnom, M. R.; Hallett, S. R.; Soutis, C., Journal Of Composite Materials 2010 44 (2): 195-210. Link

Intrinsic extracellular matrix properties regulate stem cell differentiation. Reilly, G.C.; Engler, A.J., Journal Of Biomechanics 2010 43 (1): 55-62 Sp. Iss. Si. Link

Characterisation of the dispersion stability of a stimulus responsive core-shell colloidal latex. Reis, B.M.; Armes, S.P.; Fujii, S.; Biggs, S., Colloids And Surfaces A-Physicochemical And Engineering Aspects 2010 353 (2-3): 210-215. Link

Development of an lbuprofen-Releasing Biodegradable PLA/PGA Electrospun Scaffold for Tissue Regeneration. Canton, I.; Mckean, R.; Charnley, M.; Blackwood, K.A.; Fiorica, C.; Ryan, A.J.; MacNeil, S., Biotechnology And Bioengineering 2010 105 (2): 396-408. Link

A General Profile Parameterization of Hydrodynamic Journal Bearings for Efficient Shape Optimization. Pang, Xiaoping; Qin, Ning; Dwyer-Joyce, Rob S.; Chen, Jin; Wang, Jiaxu.  Tribology Transactions 2010 53 (1): 117-126. Link

Development of a calcium-chelating hydrogel for treatment of superficial burns and scalds. Bullock, A. J.; Pickavance, P.; Haddow, D. B.; Rimmer, S.; MacNeil, S., Regenerative Medicine 2010 5 (1): 55-64. Link

Microstructural Analysis of Ultrasonic Welded AA6061 by Electron Backscattered Diffraction. Zhu, Z.; Wynne, B. P.; Ghassemieh, E.; Siddiq, A., Rare Metal Materials And Engineering 2009 38: 147-151 Suppl. 3. Link

Non-Fouling Character of Poly[2-(methacryloyloxy)ethyl Phosphorylcholine]-Modified Gold Surfaces Fabricated by the ‘Grafting to’ Method: Comparison of its Protein Resistance with Poly(ethylene glycol)-Modified Gold Surfaces. Yoshimoto, K.; Hirase, T.; Madsen, J.; Armes, S.P.; Nagasaki, Y., Macromolecular Rapid Communications 2009 30 (24): 2136-2140. Link

List generated using ISI Web of Knowledge.