The CNIE Inspiration Grants scheme ran from 2015 to 2022. 26 projects were funded.
The aim of the CNIE Inspiration Grants was to encourage collaboration and engagement between UCL researchers, leading researchers across the UK, and industry. The wider aim was to grow the Centre’s engagement and outreach, further validate and promote nature-inspired approaches to engineering, and initiate new research projects tackling key industrial and environmental challenges, by taking inspiration from nature.
Inspiration Grants
2022
Dr Nidhi Kapil, PDRA in Chemical Engineering, with Dr Halan Mohammed as Inspiration Grant Researcher (Award date September 2022)
- Project: Stimuli responsive polymer brushes decorated with gold nanoclusters for stableand scalable antimicrobial surfaces
- Project Partner: Clinical Microbiology and Virology, UCLH NHS Foundation Trust
2021
Simona Migliozzi, PDRA in Chemical Engineering (Award date October 2021)
- Project: Pickering emulsions with nature-inspired structural stability for stimuli-responsive drug delivery
- Project Partner: School of Pharmacy, UCL
Yang Lan, Lecturer at the Department of Chemical Engineering (UCL), with Xiyi Li as Inspiration Grant Researcher (Award date October 2021)
- Project:Carboxysomes-inspired Photocatalytic System for CO2 reduction
- Project Partner: Melville Laboratory for Polymer Synthesis, Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge
Matthew Chin, PDRA in Chemical Engineering
- Project: The immune “mind”: bioelectrical and structural networks in decision-making
2020
Yanan Liu, PDRA in Chemical Engineering
- Project: Nature inspired graphene-based membrane for water treatment
- Project Partner: University of Bath
2019
Eseelle Hendow, PDRA in Cancer Trials Centre
- Project: Investigating How Nature Inspired Hierarchical Structures Influence Cell Behaviour
Ye Yang, PhD Student in Chemical Engineering
- Project: Electrolytes in regulating protein-mimetic amphiphilic nanoparticles
- Project Partner: University of York
Stavroula Balabani, Professor of Fluid Mechanics
- Project: Microswimmer inspired microscale transport in complex fluids
- Project Partner: University of Bristol
Max Besenhardt, PDRA in Chemical Engineering
- Project: Nature inspired green, tunable & scalable synthesis of magmentic nanoparticles
- Project Partner: University of Sheffield
Kaiqiao Wu, PhD Student in Chemical Engineering
- Project: Bubble self-organisation in annular gas-solid fluidised beds: transition from 2D to 3D structures
- Project Partner: Heriot-Watt University and Particulate Solid Research Inc (US)
Jonathan Knowles, Professor of Biomaterials Science at Eastman Dental
- Project: Mussel Inspired Chemistry and bacterially synthesised polymers for Oral Mucosal Adhesion and Drug Delivery
- Project Partner: University of Sheffield
Ryan Wang, Lecturer in Chemical Engineering, and Magda Titirici, Chair in Sustainable Energy Materials (Imperial College London)
- Project: Nature inspired ‘cation channels’ for all solid-state battery
- Project Partner: Imperial College London
2018
Jason Cho, PDRA Student in Chemical Engineering
- Project: Nature-Inspired Water Management in Polymer Electrolyte Membrane (PEM) Fuel
- Project Partner: Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin (D)
Lixu Yang, Teaching Fellow in Chemical Engineering
- Project: Nature-inspired Self-healing Materials from Plastic Waste
- Project Partner: University of Nottingham and BASF
Asterios Gavriilidis, Professor of Chemical Reaction Engineering
- Project: Novel microfluidic chemotaxis screening platform for high-throughput bacterial viability quantification
- Project Title: Queen Mary University London
2017
Silo Meoto, PDRA in Chemical Engineering
- Project: Bioactive aerogels: development of a remineralizing toothpaste material
- Project Partner: Queen Mary University London
Kathrine Holt, Professor in Physical Chemistry
- Project: Growth of iron sulphide through electrochemical control: towards exploitation of nature’s remediator, catalyst and electron transfer mediator
- Project Partner: Loughborough University
Ryan Wang, Lecturer in Chemical Engineering
- Project: Nature inspired ‘synthetic enzyme’ for the oxygen reduction
- Project Partner: Diamond Light Source
Darren Nesbeth, Associate Professor in Synthetic Biology
- Project: An applied, engineered oscillation inspired by the natural oscillatory behaviour of HIV
- Project Partner: University of Aberdeen
Anna Ploszajski, PDRA in Mechanical Engineering
- Project: Nature Inspired 4D printing for biomedical applications
2016
Panagiota Angeli, Professor of Chemical Engineering
- Project: Nature-Inspired Confined Jet-Mixers for Ionic Liquid-Liquid Extraction Applications
- Project Partner: University of Belfast and Queen's University of Belfast
Mark Miodownik, Professor of Materials & Society
- Project: Robust self-healing fabrics for soft robotic applications
Stephen Marshall, Professor of Urban Morphology and Urban Design
- Project: The self-organising built environment: calibrating relationships across scales
- Project Partners: University of Edinburgh, University of Oxford, University of Surrey, Bristol University
2015
Jayesh Bhatt, PDRA in Chemical
- Project: Modelling hierarchical transport network of rocks using multiscale modelling and X-ray tomography
- Project Partner: University of Surrey
Brenda Parker, Associate Professor in Biochemical Engineering
- Project: 3D printing underwater: the regenerative marine fishing nets of salps
- Project Partner: British Antarctic survey
Niall Kent, PDRA in Chemical Engineering
- Project: Bioactive aerogels: preclinical development of a novel bone grafting material
- Project Partner: Queen Mary University London, Institut Staumann AG (CH)
Asterios Gavriilidis, Professor of Chemical Reaction Engineering
- Project: Pulsating flow inspired by blood circulation to improve fluid dynamics in flow
- Project Partner: University of Strathclyde