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Group Members

Leader(s)

Professor Atanas Ivanov Professor Atanas Ivanov
Email Professor Atanas Ivanov Professor of Advanced Engineering Design
Dr Ivanov world-leading expertise in non-traditional manufacturing spans over a decade of innovating and developing new technologies. In 2007 he was registered by GUINNESS BOOK RECORD for drilling the smallest hole in the world ø22µm 10 aspect ratio. From 2008 Dr Ivanov was the only producer of samples for cryogenic sensors from InSb for the European space programme and NASA. In 2009 he designed of the control of the mirrors for HERCHEL and PLANCK satellites and the sampler (ISOSAMPLER) for NASA for their ‘Medusa’ project for Mars and Jupiter missions. Dr Ivanov registered a world patent for using cutting tools as measuring probes as part of his work fr the Basque government in 2010. After joining Brunel he developed the first in the world micro electrochemical drilling machine for the fuel injection systems for BMW (SONPLAS). In 2013 Dr Ivanov built the first µECM milling machine. In the last 10 years Dr Ivanov acquired 15 grants and an income of over £1m as PI only, and an additional income as a collaborator. In 2018 he received an Innovate UK grant for developing a technology for the identification of airplane fasteners. Dr Ivanov is a world-leading specialist in µECM machining technology. In 2019/20 he developed world-leading µECM technology for sharpening glaucoma needles.

Members

Dr Abhishek Lahiri Dr Abhishek Lahiri
Email Dr Abhishek Lahiri Senior Lecturer in Chemical Engineering
Dr. Lahiri joined Brunel University as lecturer in March 2020. He got his PhD from University of Leeds in 2008 after which he went on to do his Postdoc in USA and Japan. From 2011 he joined Clausthal University of Technology in Prof Frank Endres group and worked extensively on electrodeposition in ionic liquids and understanding the battery electrode/electrolyte interface. His work primarily focusses on electrochemical synthesis of functional materials using ionic liquids for energy storage and electrocatalysis. Besides, he focusses on sustainable extraction process for recovery of metal/metal oxides from electronic wastes and lithium ion batteries. In ionic liquids, the electrode/electrolyte interface is considerably different from aqueous electrolytes and therefore controlling and modifying the interface leads to change in functional properties of the materials. His research focusses and utilises the property of interfacial modulation to develop new functional materials and tries to bridge the gap between fundamental aspects of electrochemistry and applied electrochemistry. Questions such as can we design a suitable interface to develop dendrite-free deposits which are essential for developing high energy density Li/Na metal batteries are targeted. Besides, developing batteries for grid energy storage with sustainable materials are being researched. My research focuses on 1. Developing sustainable battery electrodes for Li, Na, Zn and Al batteries 2. Understanding and engineering the battery electrode/electrolyte interface to improve the device performance 3. Developing porous materials for photo/electrocatalysis and understanding the mechanism using both experiment and modelling 4. Battery recycling technology CL2601:Heat and Mass Transfer (Module leader) CL5604:Process Engineering Fundamentals (Module leader) CL2602: Chemical Engineer's Toolbox CL3603: Separation process II (Module leader) CL5650: Chemical engineering research project (Module leader)
Dr Ruth Mackay Dr Ruth Mackay
Email Dr Ruth Mackay Senior Lecturer
Dr. Mackay, a Mechanical Engineer, has a keen interest in the biomedical field. She earned her undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Dundee in 2007. Following that, she pursued her PhD in Micro-electromechanical Systems in 2011, also at the University of Dundee, with funding from a CASE grant provided by the EPSRC in collaboration with IDB Technologies. In 2011, she joined Brunel as a Research Fellow, contributing to a translational MRC grant focused on developing point-of-care devices. Subsequently, in 2015, she assumed the role of a Lecturer at Brunel. Her research centers around organ-on-a-chip technologies, low-cost point-of-care diagnostic devices, and prosthetics. She currently leads the Organ on a Chip Group at Brunel. Additionally, she lectures in the fields of Finite Element Analysis and Medical Device Engineering. Dr. Mackay directs her research efforts towards Organ-on-a-Chip (OOC) technology. Within her research group, she delves into the intricate development of microfluidic devices, explores innovative manufacturing methods, cell scaffold facbrication and electronic control of the systems. At Brunel University London, the OOC group thrives as a multidisciplinary team, uniting toxicologists, engineers, life scientists, and bioinformaticians. Their collective mission revolves around pioneering alternative systems for investigating critical women’s health issues, including cancers, pregnancy outcomes, and sexually transmitted infections. Currently, their focus lies in creating systems that faithfully replicate female organs—vagina, ovaries, placenta, and breast—to unravel the complexities of initiation, progression, diagnosis, and treatment of women’s diseases and disorders. Beyond her OOC pursuits, Dr. Mackay’s research interests extend to low-cost, point-of-care diagnostics, prosthetics, and the fascinating world of soft robotics. Organ on a Chip Low cost diagnostics Microfluidics Prosthetics Soft Robotics ME3622 Mechanical Engineering Structures ME3626 Vehicle Structures and FEA ME5678 Medical Device Engineering ME5692 Group Project (MEng)