Environmental and Fluid Modelling

Changing the way science visualises porous materials
External cell view - environmental and fluid modelling group

Changing the way science visualises porous materials.

The Environmental and Fluid Modelling Group (EFMG) specialises in the experimental characterisation and modelling of porous materials. The standard approach adopted by the research group uses a combination of high precision instrumental techniques to obtain void structure information spanning the micro (<2 nm) to macro scale (>50 nm), which is then explicitly modelled using the in-house software, PoreXpert, and other modelling tools.

EFMG has contributed major advances in the knowledge of many porous materials including:

  • The study of behaviour of pollutants and nutrients in soil; including the change of soil structuring under clover and its consequences for leaching, and the extent of migration of cable oil through soil.
  • Modelling of high-performance filters for environmental, industrial and medical applications.
  • Modelling of processes involved in the production of high-performance carbonate- based paper coatings.
More recently, the group produced high-impact research quantifying and modelling the effects of radiolytic oxidation on the porous structure of nuclear graphite in the core of the Advanced Gas-Cooled nuclear reactors. Over the past few years, this research has been awarded around £1 million in industrial funding, and it will play an important role in the safety cases for lifetime extension of the fleet of nuclear power plants in the UK.

Staff working in this area: Dr Maurizio Laudone