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Our Research

Supporting the government's Industrial Strategy through materials innovation

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The Royce has the expertise and facilities to contribute to a wide range of research and development. Our initial science program targets nine core themes, each led by a champion and coordinated through a stakeholder network of industrialists and academics. This enables the research focus to evolve and reflect changing national priorities.

The Royce is aligned to the UK government Industrial Strategy and our research has the potential to transform the digital, engineering, energy and health sectors. Many of our research areas are complementary, and Royce Partner institutions work collaboratively, sharing facilities and expertise.

2D Materials

Research to deliver and better understand atomic thickness materials, including graphene, for a range of applications including membranes for filtration and coatings, energy storage and functional composites.

Lead Partner: The University of Manchester

Metal Processing
Advanced Metals Processing

The creation of new alloys with higher performance, better manufacturability, greater flexibility, lower cost, and lower environmental impact. These will be used in materials systems across transport, healthcare, energy, and manufacturing.

Lead Partner: The University of Sheffield

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Biomedical Materials 

Accelerating a new generation of ‘smart’ biomaterials that improve health and wellbeing. This includes two grand challenges of; restoring biological function with minimal invasiveness, and new, low risk, cost efficient therapies.

Lead Partner: The University of Manchester

Chemical Materials
Chemical Materials Design 

The discovery and analysis of new chemical materials by combining high performance computing and materials science. Our research will impact a  wide range of sectors, from nanofabrication to nuclear engineering.

Lead Partner: The University of Liverpool

Energy Storage
Energy Storage 

Research focused on batteries, supercapacitors and thermoelectrics to solve the material challenges involved in the all-solid-state battery. This can transform the safety of lithium-ion batteries and energy density.

Lead Partner: The University of Oxford

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Fusion Reactor
Nuclear Materials

Research into two key areas: nuclear fuels and waste streams in the nuclear fuel cycle; and structural materials for fission and fusion energy. This will drive productivity, lower cost and improve safety in future nuclear programmes.

Lead Partner: The University of Manchester

Materials Modelling

Materials Modelling

Materials modelling is an underpinning capability and research area, jointly led by Partners across the Royce. This interdisciplinary activity brings together materials scientists, data scientists and mathematicians, working to understand and simulate materials behaviour. The Royce works with established modelling centres including the Thomas Young Centre and the Manchester Materials Modelling Centre.