Research
Research
The School has extensive links with industry, including the newly established Brunel Innovation Centre (BIC) a collaboration between Brunel and TWI (the Welding Institute). This informs the relevance and direction of our research, which is organised in the following broad areas:
Applied Mechanics, which includes biomedical engineering amongst other topics in solids and fluid mechanics; Design & Manufacture, including advanced manufacturing and enterprise engineering, environmentally sensitive design, computer aided design, and human centred design; Energy & Environment, including internal combustion engines, heat transfer and thermal systems, and built environment engineering; Civil Engineering; and Electronic & Computer Engineering, with research in a diversity of areas such as power systems, sensors & instrumentation, wireless networks and communications, media communications and electronic systems.
School Research: Groups, Facilities and Activities Overview
To find out more about the research groups, facilities and activities within the school view the presentation here.
Academic areas covered by School of Engineering & Design
AMEE
Research group
AMEE research group a leading, world class research group in advanced manufacturing technology, enterprise engineering and engineering management, this is truly a place where cutting edge research brings the frontiers of science and technology to postgraduate and undergraduate students. Our members ensure that we can provide an excellent experience in a friendly and supportive environment
Laboratory
The department is equiped with cutting edge laboratories in their research. These include:
- Advanced Manufacturing Technology (AMT) Laboratory
- Enterprise Engineering & Systems Laboratory
- CAD/CAM Laboratory
Brunel Design
Within the Design Subject Area there is extensive research conducted within several research groupings. The following list shows the current active research groups. For more information about research groups in the Design Subject Area, please click on any titles:
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The Human Centred Design Institute (HCDI)
(research brochure)- Augmented Cognition Systems
- Ergonomics and Human Factors
- Human Centred Design Process
- Inclusive Design
- Centre for Design Research
- Perception Enhancement Systems
- Environmentally Sensitive Design
(research brochure) - Design & Manufacture
Civil Eng.
Information on our research can be found in our Research Brochure. We are currently looking to recruit highly motivated students to undertake postgraduate research in the following areas:
Innovative materialsand sustainable construction (contact: Dr Mizi Fan)
Timber and reengineered timber products; Natural fibre composites; Wood cement composites; Materials from recyclates; Advanced composites; Lightweight construction; Innovative construction design.
Geo-engineering and the environment (contact: Dr Philip Collins)
Site investigation; characteristics and stability of engineering soils and sediments; coastal and floodplain environmental change; earthquake impacts; cold environment soil and hydraulic processes; environmental engineering.
Advanced structures (contact: Dr Giulio Alfano)
Analysis of RC beams retrofitted with FRP; cohesive-zone models for the analysis of delamination in composites and crack growth; Non linear analysis of reinforced-concrete structures; silo structures; monitoring bridges.
Fibre-reinforced concrete materials and structures, structural testing and modelling, structural dynamics and earthquake engineering (Contact: Dr Xiangming Zhou)
- Testing and modeling of shrinkage and fracture of concrete and other cement-based materials at early ages
- Advanced concrete technology, such as development of cement-based building products using extrusion technology; modeling of extrusion process of cement-based materials
- Rheology testing and modeling of highly concentrated cement-based materials suitable for extrusion
- Low carbon and low energy construction materials such as geopolymer, magnesium cement-based materials etc.
- Utilization of industrial waste such as GGBS, PFA etc. in construction materials
- Earthquake engineering and performance-based multi-hazards mitigation of high-rise building structures
- Testing and modeling of steel-concrete composite structures
- Testing and modeling of concrete segmental girder bridges
- Testing and modeling of fiber-reinforced concrete structures such as fiber-reinforced concrete ground slabs
Construction management principles and applications (Contact: Dr Nuhu Braimah)
Delay and disruption analysis in construction contracts, planning and programming, project change and claims management.
In addition, through our interdisciplinary links within the School of Engineering & Design, the University and beyond, and particularly the Energy & Environmental Sustainability and Complexity Collaborative Research Networks, we welcome enquiries from students interested in the following areas:
- Sustainability
- Energy systems
- Building services (e.g. climate control, refrigeration control)
- Waste assessment and treatment (water and solids), filtration and recycling
- Fluid dynamics
- Geophysics
- Environmental Change
- Geology and geomorphology (particularly carbonates, intertidal sediments, lakes, hazards)
- Urban Green Space
- Environmental geochemistry
- Radiometric dating
- Gender & Engineering
ECE
Research in ECE is undertaken in 5 well established research centres;
Telecommunications
- Centre for Media Communications Research (CMCR)
(research brochure) - Wireless Networks and Communications Centre (WNCC)
(research brochure)
Systems
Mechanical Eng.
Brunel University Research Archive
