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Engineering Discipline:
- Mechanical Engineering
Biography:
Dr Winifred (Wini) Obande is an Elizabeth Georgeson Fellow in Sustainable, Multi-functional Composites.
She obtained her engineering degrees (BEng and MRes) from the University of Limerick in Ireland, where she was a researcher in advanced polymer and composite materials through the Irish Composites Centre. She then completed her PhD in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Edinburgh. During her postdoctoral research at the University of Edinburgh, Dr Obande led polymer processing research on two projects: ThermoTide – a Supergen Offshore Renewable Energy Flexifund-awarded project extending the research outputs of her PhD to tidal blade applications, and EEMAC – an industry-funded project exploring energy-efficient manufacturing processes to convert bio-based and recycled feedstocks into valuable processing materials.
She is a co-inventor on a recent patent application for Method for Joining Thermoplastic Articles, and a published author with well-cited research outputs on composite materials and renewable energy research.
Her current research focuses on circular material design and production, with a particular emphasis on low-cost, lightweight composite materials derived from bio-based and recycled feedstocks. She aims to reduce the reliance on virgin resources and minimise waste streams headed for landfills by valorising production and end-of-life composite waste.
Academic Qualifications:
- PhD Mechanical Engineering, The University of Edinburgh – 2021
- MRes Mechanical Engineering, University of Limerick, Ireland – 2017
- BEng Biomedical Engineering, University of Limerick, Ireland – 2012
Research Interests:
- Liquid resin infusion and in situ polymerisation of thermoplastic-matrix composites
- Novel polymer blends and interpenetrating polymer networks for composites
- Sustainable composite materials and scalable processes for fuel cell electric vehicle applications
- Energy-efficient methods for producing high-value processing materials
- Valorisation of production and end-of-life composite waste
I welcome enquiries from talented postgraduate research candidates and postdoctoral researchers from various engineering disciplines looking to work on sustainable composite materials and manufacturing, especially for energy-related applications.
