Biography

Research Project: Design of precision polymers by acoustic levitation for nanoscale gas sensing in medical diagnosis
Supervisors: Joao Cabral (ICL), Alexandra Porter (ICL)

Andru graduated from Imperial College London with a MEng degree in Chemical with Nuclear Engineering. For his master thesis, Andru researched the spreading properties of silicone oil on 1D and 2D multiaxial wrinkled surfaces of PDMS samples. His current research takes place in the Polymers and Microfluidics research group, under the supervision of Prof. Joao Cabral. The aim of Andru’s project is to develop tailored polymeric adsorbers with precise, nanoscale characteristics, and scale-up potential, using novel production methods, like the acoustic levitation one, and multidisciplinary advanced characterisation techniques. His focus will be on studying the influence of the production methods on the “extrinsic” microporosities of the studied polymers, where the demixing pathway design of the multicomponent solution shapes the internal structure of the resulting porous material. The main applications of the polymers will be in VOCs detection and in medical diagnosis.

Joshua Bailey

Being part of the CDT-ACM was an all-round fantastic experience; I not only received great training in a range of advanced characterisation techniques, but I also made strong links with industry and strong bonds with my cohort which have both led to fruitful collaborations.