James Clark is widely recognized as internationally leading in his work on green and sustainable chemistry and its application to the development of new bio-based chemicals and materials, and on biorefineries and waste valorization. He has started and led some of the most important green and sustainable chemistry initiatives in the world in education, commercialization, networking and publishing. This includes establishing the world’s largest green chemistry centre for research and education and being first editor of the world’s no 1 journal in the area, Green Chemistry. His activities are worldwide and as well as holding a senior professorship at the University of York he holds Visiting Professorships in universities including Fudan and Sichuan in China. He has received honours and prizes reflecting the breadth of his activities including honorary doctorates from universities in Belgium, Germany, Portugal and Sweden and prizes from the UK, Europe and the USA including the 2021 European award for green and sustainable chemistry. His currently leads the EU BBI “CHAMPION” project on bio-based polymers and his previous research has led to spin-out companies including Addible (bio-plastics and recycling waste plastics) and Starbons (bio-based materials from waste). His invention of the bio-based solvent Cyrene is being commercialized by the Circa Group including a new €60+M manufacturing plant in France. James has published over 600 articles (H-index 93) with recent publications in leading journals including Nature, Nature Communications, Applied Catalysis B, Green Chemistry and Angew Chemie.
Professor Young was educated at the University of Cambridge and became Professor of Polymer Science and Technology in Manchester in 1986. He was the founding Head of the School of Materials in the newly-formed University of Manchester in 2004, which is now the largest university materials department in the UK and the focus of major UK materials research initiatives. He is a Fellow of Royal Society (2013), Royal Academy of Engineering (2006) and Academy of Europe (2015). His main research interest is the relationships between structure and properties in polymers and composites. He has introduced of a number of revolutionary techniques that have given a completely new insight into the micromechanics of deformation in fibres and composites. In particular, he has pioneered the use of Raman spectroscopy for the analysis of deformation processes that take place at the molecular level. Over recent years he has extended this approach to the mechanics of deformation of graphene and other 2D materials in nanocomposites. His contribution in research has been recognised through numerous invitations to give Plenary and Keynote lectures at International Conferences and through the awards of the Griffith Medal (2002), Leslie Holliday Prize (2011), Swinburne Medal and Prize (2012) and Platinum Medal (2019) from the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining.
J. González began his scientific career at the Complutense U. of Madrid in 1992 studying cyclodextrins inclusion complexes. He joined UC3M in 1993 to carry out his PhD thesis on polymer composite materials. He was specialized in characterization of polymers and composites. In 2001, he carried out a research stay with the Polymers + Technologies group at the U. País Vasco and later, for one year, at the Macromolecular Department of Case Western Reserve University studying dissolution processes of polymers. In 2003, he obtained a position as tenured at UC3M and began a new line of research on composite materials seeking new applications in dentistry. In 2022 he gets the Full professor position at the UC3M. Thanks to a stay at the University of California Santa Bárbara in 2005 he was specialized in atomic force microscopy, AFM, being the head of the AFM Laboratory at the UC3M. In 2006 he created the research group "Group of Polymeric Composite Materials and Interphases", with the new line of research, Multifunctional Nanocomposite Materials based on Thermoplastic matrices”. One of its biggest challenges has been to achieve uniform dispersion of nanoparticles within thermoplastic polymers. In order to do this, a new method based on high-energy ball milling was developed, being able to prepare and study new materials with special electrical and antibacterial properties with potential applications in electronics, medicine and food industry. Besides, he has made several basic scientific contributions with high impact. He studied macromolecular dynamics through the use of spectroscopic techniques and he developed nanoscale experimental methods for determining key parameters in the area of materials science, such as the coefficient of thermal expansion. In recent years he has collaborated with the Group of Chemistry of the University of Navarra studying antibacterial nanocomposite materials. At this time, one of his main aims is focused on developing new methods of preparation of nanocomposite materials based on a technique called "Solution Blow Spinning", SBS, which allows preparing polymeric nonwoven nanofiber mats with potential applications in medicine among others. In 2015, J. González joined the Biomaterials Group of the NIST (USA) to increase his knowledge on polymer preparation using SBS and cell adhesion using Single Cell Force Spectroscopy. He collaborates within the framework of a confidentiality agreement with the Foundation of the Health Institute of La Paz on a "Method of application of polymers in the healing process of biological tissues" and also with the Institute of Tropical Health of the U. de Navarra. He is a member of the Royal Spanish Chemical Society and of the Specialized Polymers Group. He has participated in more than 25 national, regional or European research projects, being the IP in 8 of them. His entire scientific career has allowed him to publish 120 articles in SCI journals, several book chapters, 106 communications to congresses and he participates as Editorial Board member of Polymer Composites and Nanocomposites Section of the scientific journal “Polymers” being also guest editor in three special issues.
Dr. Wei Min Huang is currently an Associate Professor at the School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. He has 17 years of experience on shape memory materials (alloy, polymer, composite and hybrid) and technologies. He has published two books (Thin Film Shape Memory Alloys [co-ed., Cambridge University Press, 2009]; Polyurethane Shape Memory Polymer [co-au., CRC, 2011]) and over 100 papers in journals, such as Materials Today, Soft Matter, Journal of Materials Chemistry etc, and has been invited to review manuscripts from over 60 international journals and proposals from American Chemical Society etc. He is currently on the editorial board of four journals.
Research Interests: Shape memory materials and technologies, Smart actuators and devices, Active assembly and disassembly, Surface patterning, Yield surface of materials, Materials selection, etc.
I am Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Portsmouth. I lead the Advanced Polymers and Composites (APC) Research Group. I'm also a Docent (Visiting) Professor of Biobased Composite Materials at the Faculty of Textiles, Engineering and Business at the University of Borås, Sweden.
My expertise include the design and development of sustainable lightweight composite materials, and their testing and characterisation. My research has benefited many industries through the development of a range of new sustainable materials, formulations and manufacturing processes.
I'm published in over 150 international peer-reviewed journals, book chapters and conference proceedings. I've been a guest editor for a number of journals and I'm a member of the editorial board of the Journal of Composites Science, Journal of Research on Engineering Structures & Materials, and the Material Chemistry section of the Journal of Molecules. I also serve as a member of scientific committees and as an evaluator for various research projects.
After the successful publication of the first book I co-authored in 2018, entitled Repair of Polymer Composites: Methodology, Techniques and Challenges, my second co-authored book Sustainable Composites for Lightweight Applications will be published in October 2020 by Woodhead Publishing (Elsevier Ltd).
I'm a Chartered Engineer (CEng), a member of the American Society for Composites (ASC), and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (HEA), the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), and the Institute of Materials, Minerals, and Mining (IOM3) (FIMMM).
Biography
I have over 30 years of teaching and research experience in the field of mechanical engineering, materials and manufacturing. I became a Professor of Mechanical Engineering in February 2019.
In recognition of my work, I was a Visiting Professor with the University of Toronto, Canada in 2017, where I worked in the Faculty of Forestry, undertaking research work in the field of composites and biocomposites. This research collaboration is ongoing.
Before joining the University of Portsmouth in 2008, I was a Lecturer in Mechanical and Marine Engineering at the University of Plymouth. I was also a Lecturer in Mechanical Engineering at Tribhuvan University in Nepal for over five
years. In addition to my academic career, I have many years of experience working with various manufacturing companies.
I've also served as the external panel member for MSC courses and Engineering Doctorate Programmes associated with different universities in the UK. I've been the external examiner for MSc Advanced Materials and Additive Manufacturing (on-campus and online learning) at the University of Derby since September 2016.
(ORCID: 0000-0002-0499-6138) is Senior Researcher and Program Leader of Novel Materials at IMDEA Materials Institute in Madrid, and is leading the Group of High-Performance Polymer Nanocomposites. He is an expert on high-performance fire-retardant polymeric materials and holds the guest Professorship in four Universities. He has published more than 280 academic papers in international academic journals and edited 1 book as Editor in the field of flame-retardant material. In recent years, he has participated in over 30 projects (28 as Principal Investigator or Coordinator) from the European Commission, international public entities, national and industrial sectors. In 2012, he was appointed as Academic Consultant on environmentally friendly fire-retardant materials by United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO. In 2016, he elected the Fellow of Royal Society of Chemistry (FRSC), UK. In 2023, he has been admitted as the Fellow of International Association of Advanced Materials (FIAAM) in Sweden. Currently, he serves as Editor-in-Chief of Frontiers in Polymer and Associated Editor of Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry, on the Editorial Boards of other 6 international academic journals.
His main research interests include:
Federico Carpi is an Associate Professor in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Florence. His main research interest concerns smart material-based biomedical and bioinspired mechatronic devices. From 2013 to 2017 he has served as the first President of the ‘European Society on Electromechanically Active Polymer Transducers and Artificial Muscles’. Since 2019, he is included in the ranking of the top 100,000 most influential scientists according to standardized citation metrics (source: PLoS Biology). He is an Editorial Board member of several journals, and member of the scientific committees of several conferences. His publications include around 80 articles in international journals, 3 edited books and several contributions to books and conferences.
Wenxin Wang is Professor in Skin Research and Wound Healing and a Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) Principle Investigator at the Charles Institute of Dermatology, School of Medicine, University College Dublin (UCD) (Website: www.wenxinwang.group). He won the highly prestigious “SFI Young Scientist Prize in Regenerative Medicine” in 2010 at TERMIS-EU conference, the “SFI Principle Investigator award” in 2011 and the DEBRA Award for Excellent EB Patient Service in 2014, which highlight his work ethic and achievements.
Prof. Wang’s scientific interests are in the areas of biomaterials, stem cell and gene therapy for the treatments of skin wounds, cardiovascular and neural degenerative diseases. His scientific contribution and achievements have been recognized both nationally and internationally including 185 peer-reviewed scientific journal papers (Nat. Commun., Sci. Adv., Angew. Chem., JACS, Chem. Sci. and Nano Letters etc.), 4 book chapters, 11 patents granted, 8 patent applications, 134 conference abstracts and presentations, and 96 invited lectures and keynote presentations. His achievements have met the increased interest in the wider public community with publicity media activities (engaging 49 times in TV Documentary, Videos and Newspapers), for example in ‘The Sunday Times’, ‘The Irish Times’, ‘Science Daily’ and ‘Chemistry World’. He has been awarded significant funding (ca. 10 million Euros) from different sources, e.g. SFI, Health Research Board (HRB), Irish Research Council (IRC), Enterprise Ireland (EI) and European Union (EU-FP7 & EU Horizon 2020) to support his research activities.
Prof. Wang acted as the symposium convener and chair, the member of organizing committees and the member of the conference advisory board for 26 international conferences and has been selected as an expert reviewer and panel member by 22 international research councils and funding bodies. As the founder, Prof Wang has launched 3 companies - Vornia Ltd (www.vornia.com, sold to Ashland - a Fortune500 US company in Jan. 2018, renamed as Ashland Specialties Ireland), Blafar Ltd (www.blafar.com), and Branca Bunus Ltd. Three companies employ 20 people in Dublin, Ireland. Furthermore, He has licensed 5 new technologies to 3 companies: Ashland, Amryt Biopharm and Blafar, and successfully launched and commercialized 5 newly developed technologies onto the market.
Filomena Freitas is an Assistant Professor at the Chemistry Department of NOVA School of Sciences and Technology, NOVA University Lisbon (FCT NOVA), Portugal, and a Senior Researcher at the Biochemical Engineering Group (BIOENG), at UCIBIO, FCT NOVA. She has completed a PhD in Biological Engineering by FCT NOVA in 2004. She has developed research on the development of upstream and downstream processes for the production of value-added microbial products, including polysaccharides and polyhydroxyalkanoates, as well as intellectual property development and technology transfer. Special focus is also given on the biological valorization of agro-industrial wastes/byproducts, aiming at implementing sustainable bioprocesses. She has over 110 papers published in international peer review journals, book chapters and International Patents, which have recently been granted in several countries.