Declan Carolan

Queen Mary University of London is offering a CSC-funded PhD opportunity in composite manufacturing and aerospace materials. The project, “From Pot to Part: Understanding How Manufacturing Conditions Govern the In-Service Performance of Composite Structures,” addresses how manufacturing choices affect the long-term behaviour of composite components. The researcher will investigate whether the in-service performance of a composite structure can be predicted from the conditions used during manufacture. The work will focus on hidden defect populations generated during processing and how these defects influence durability, damage development and structural failure over time. The project brings together composite manufacturing, mechanics and structural performance analysis with multi-modal imaging techniques, including computed tomography, digital image correlation and microscopy. Acoustic emission and modelling will also be used to identify, characterise and understand damage processes in composite structures. The PhD student will join Declan Carolan’s research group within the aerospace materials research environment at Queen Mary University of London in London. The interdisciplinary project is suited to applicants interested in the connection between manufacturing science, materials characterisation, structural mechanics and aerospace applications. The opportunity is advertised through the CSC-QMUL scholarship programme.