Five Materials Scientists awarded prestigious IOM3 prizes

The Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining has awarded five prizes to academics in the Department of Materials.

“I’m delighted to see the outstanding individual contributions of Stella, Robert, Eduardo, Ben and Bill recognised in this year’s IOM3 awards" Professor Peter Haynes, Head of Department

The annual awards recognise the significant contributions and achievements of IOM3 members in Materials Science and Engineering. 

The Insitute of Materials, Minerals and Mining is one of the leading global professional membership bodies for those either studying, working or interested in the science, engineering and technology relating to materials and natural resources.

Professor Peter Haynes, Head of the Department of Materials said: "For the Department to be associated with five winners demonstrates the wider contributions of many staff and students in creating an environment that supports success, particularly for those at an early stage of their careers."

Professor W.E. (Bill) Lee FREng, IOM3 Platinum Medal

The IOM3 Platinum Medal recognises outstanding contributions to materials science, technology, and industry.

Professor Lee is an Emeritus Professor of Materials and Distinguished Research Fellow of the Institute of Security Science and technology (ISST) where he was previously Co-Director from 2017-2020. He was also Head of the Department of Materials at Imperial College London from 2006 to 2010. 

Professor Lee has published over 450 peer-reviewed papers and has been awarded research grants totalling over £60M. He is an expert in ceramics and glass and his research focuses on the relation between processing, properties and microstructures in a broad range of ceramics. 

Commenting on the award, he said: “It is always nice to be recognised by your peers especially in the midst of a pandemic! While I receive the Platinum Award, it is the culmination of much hard work, endeavour and brilliance from researchers in my teams, as well as academic, industry and government colleagues.

I would also highlight the role of the support staff - both technical and administrative - who enable us to use our skills successfully. Thanks to all of you!”

Professor Eduardo Saiz Gutierrez, Verulam Medal & Prize

The Verulam Medal and Prize, awarded by The Council of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IOM3), celebrates distinguished contributions to ceramic including refractories.

Professor Eduardo Saiz Gutierrez is a Chair in Structural Ceramics.

His research interests include the development of new processing techniques for the fabrication of ceramic-based composites, in particular, hierarchical composites with bioinspired architectures, the study of high-temperature interfacial phenomena such as spreading,  the fabrication of graphene-based structures and composites and the development of new materials to support bone tissue engineering.

Dr Stella Pedrazzini, IOM3 Silver Medal

The IOM3 Silver Medal is presented to a member of IOM3 in their early career, in recognition of outstanding contribution to a field of interest within the materials, minerals and mining sector.

Dr Stella Pedrazzini is a Lecturer in the Department of Materials. She was nominated for her industrial collaborative with Siemens and Rolls-Royce PLC on nickel-based superalloys, corrosion and atom probe tomography.

Dr Pedrazzini's research with Siemens led to changes to the alloys used for industrial gas turbines for power generation since the research substantially extended component lifetime. In addition, her work with Rolls-Royce explained some of the corrosion cracking mechanisms. The outcome of this research was incorporated in the formal company strategy to tackle corrosion cracking.

She is also heavily involved in outreach work to promote Materials Science to a younger audience. This includes her role as a STEM ambassador, talks, workshops and experiments designed to get school children, women and other underrepresented groups interested in STEM.

Dr Robert Hoye, Rosenhain Medal and Prize

The Rosenhain Medal & Prize is presented in recognition of distinguished achievement in any branch of materials science, with preference given to nominees in their early career.

Dr Hoye is a Lecturer in the Department of Materials. He leads a research group developing sustainable semiconductors that can cleanly convert energy between light and electricity, which includes photovoltaics and light-emitting diodes.

A key highlight is their development of nontoxic materials that can tolerate imperfections to achieve efficient performance when made using cost-effective methods with low carbon footprint. The group are using these materials as solar cells on top of silicon photovoltaics to boost efficiencies, as well as using the devices indoors to harvest energy to power battery-less autonomous smart devices.

Commenting on the award, Dr Hoye said: “I am greatly honoured to receive this medal, particularly given the high calibre of previous awardees. Success doesn’t happen in isolation, and I am grateful for the tremendous support I’ve received from colleagues in the Department and across College.”

Dr Ben Britton, The Harvey Flower Titanium Prize 

The Harvey Flower Titanium Prize is presented to established researchers and materials engineers in the field who have demonstrated the most constructive contribution to titanium metallurgy or alloy development.

Dr Ben Britton is a Visiting Reader in the Department of Materials and an Associate Professor at the University of British Columbia. His findings have led to many innovative insights, including the discovery of a world-leading predictive capability for dwell fatigue lives of Ti alloy. This research is important both nationally and internationally as ‘cold dwell’ fatigue is the leading cause of titanium aeroengine disc bursts. 

Dr Britton's research into the thermomechanical processing strategy of new bimodal two-phase titanium alloys has also had profound importance in alloy design and has led to close collaboration with the Titanium Metals Corporation (TIMET).

Commenting on the award, he said: “It’s a great pleasure to be recognised for my work on my favourite metal, titanium, and for our collaborations to support our long term goals of making better jet engine materials.”