Latest News

Under current COVID restrictions, we are not providing in person training, and access to the Facility is strictly limited. Our Experimental Officer, Dr Ria Mitchell, is running scans for users. However, there will be numerous online training opportunities becoming available in the coming months, such as introductory courses to various software, and the principles behind computed tomography. Keep an eye on the 'events' page for more details.

  • January 2022: Exciting news! Our first publication containing data generated from the lab is now out: Monoranu, M., Mitchell, R. L., Kerrigan, K., Fairclough, P. A., Ghadbeigi, H., 2022. The effect of particle reinforcements on chip formation and machining induced damage of modified epoxy carbon fibre reinforced polymers (CFRPs), Composites Part A Applied Science and Manufacturing, 154, 106793. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compositesa.2021.106793

  • August 2021: We are currently running scans for Q3 2021. The call for proposals for Q4 (scans run between November and January) will open on 13th September.

  • August 2021: We have taken delivery of our bespoke electrochemical rig from Deben! This is the 3rd rig in our collection for in-situ 4D testing, which will be added to the CT500N and CT5000N TEC that were installed earlier this year.

  • June 2021: We are currently running scans for Q2 - the call for scans during Q3 (August to November 2021) will open on 14th June and will close on 16th July 2021.

  • Lab opening: February 1st 2021. From August - December 2020 we are testing and trialling various samples to optimise the Versa settings. We will open our first call for competitive proposals on December 14th 2020 until Friday 15th January 2021.

  • August - December 2020: The Versa is undergoing rigorous tests on a variety of sample types to ensure it is performing in the best way possible ready for the lab opening in January.

  • We have taken delivery of two of our three Deben in-situ rigs - a CT500N and a CT5000N TEC. These rigs allow us to perform tensile and compression tests at various loads (up to 500N and 5000N respectively). Additionally, the 5000N TEC rig allows us to perform tensile and compression testing at temperatures ranging from -20°C to +160°C. Exciting times ahead - if you want to find out more, please contact us!