| EPSRC Reference: |
EP/J015687/1 |
| Title: |
SPACE: Sustainable Production of Aerogels from Cellulose |
| Principal Investigator: |
Hewakandamby, Dr BN |
| Other Investigators: |
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| Researcher Co-Investigators: |
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| Project Partners: |
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| Department: |
Div of Process and Environmental Eng |
| Organisation: |
University of Nottingham |
| Scheme: |
Standard Research |
| Starts: |
01 September 2012 |
Ends: |
31 August 2016 |
Value (£): |
620,901
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| EPSRC Research Topic Classifications: |
| Design of Process systems |
Particle Technology |
| Reactor Engineering |
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| EPSRC Industrial Sector Classifications: |
| Manufacturing |
Chemicals |
| Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology |
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| Related Grants: |
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| Panel History: |
| Panel Date | Panel Name | Outcome |
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03 Feb 2012
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Engineering Prioritisation Meeting - 3 Feb 2012
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Announced
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Summary on Grant Application Form |
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SPACE will develop the fundamental science required to underpin the development of continuous production processes for turning the most abundant natural material, cellulose, into high value nanostructured materials with well defined pore structures and pore functionality. It is based on my recent discovery that aerogels can be prepared by assembling cellulose nanowhiskers at low energy and without the use of toxic solvents or precursors. Cellulose nanowhiskers are monocrystalline rod-like nanoparticles made from plant material by a two-day multi-step acid hydrolysis batch process. Their self-assembly and surface modification is also performed in multi-step batch processes. SPACE will convert existing batch processes for nanoparticle production, surface modification and self-assembly into scalable continuous processes, through the development of a fundamental scientific understanding of different continuous nanomaterial processing techniques. This, in turn, will open up small and large scale production of multi-functional porous materials with a wide range of potential applications, including insulation, gas and liquid adsorption and separations, organic catalysis and sensing while increasing product quality, improving consistency, and greatly lowering the economic and environmental cost. The demonstrators will be designed to produce around 220 g of nanomaterials per hour (~5 kg per day).
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Key Findings |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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Potential use in non-academic contexts |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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Impacts |
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| Description |
This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk |
| Summary |
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| Date Materialised |
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Sectors submitted by the Researcher |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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| Project URL: |
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| Further Information: |
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| Organisation Website: |
http://www.nottingham.ac.uk |