###Autonomous high-throughput experimentation platforms facilitating knowledge driven discovery and production of advanced materials
Project ID: 2228bd1069 (You will need this ID for your application)
Research Theme: Advanced Materials
UCL Lead department: Chemical Engineering
Lead Supervisor: Maximilian Besenhard
Project Summary:
Computational tools involving mechanistic models and machine learning have empowered advanced material development for years. The resulting need for high-throughput experimentation to train/calibrate computer models is in line with the significant advances made in robotics, process automation and real-time material characterisation. The integration of these disciplines, however, is lacking despite the unique potential to fully digitalise the discovery and production of new drug molecules, energy materials, catalysts for sustainable processes, functional nanomaterials for biomedical applications, and more. This PhD project combines (i) robotic liquid handling systems with (ii) reactor platforms allowing high-throughput experimentation while (iii) integrated real-time material characterisation feeds information into (iv) artificially intelligent process control platforms deciding on new experiments autonomously. The first project goal is to develop versatile small-scale batch and flow reactors for (ii) meeting the size requirements for their integration into (i). The second project goal is (iii) to facilitate real-time characterisation of liquid reactive phases, e.g., via spectroscopic techniques (+multiplexer systems) and liquid chromatography, as well as of particulate matter, e.g., via laser diffraction and dynamic light scattering measuring size and zeta-potentials and AC-susceptometry determining magnetic properties. Achieving these goals will provide sufficient dynamic characterisations to (iv), fully exploiting computational tools to autonomously optimise material properties and streamline synthetic procedures. This will be showcased, for example, to identify the reaction pathways and kinetics of drug molecule synthesis (needed to develop large scale processes), to develop synthetic protocols yielding noble and transition metal based photocatalytic nanomaterials (tuning size and optical properties/catalytic efficiency remains challenging), to stabilise and functionalise magnetic nanomaterials for MRI contrast agents (colloidal stability and functionalisation remains a bottleneck to reach market maturity). This project is within the remit of UCLs commitment to robotics, digital manufacturing and material science and will be hosted in the new Manufacturing the Futures Lab at UCL East.