Structural Integrity

This PhD project will focus on developing nanoparticle sealants for cracks in cement and concrete, model water transport in the sealed crack and surrounding concrete and chemically tailor the sealant to have desirable chemo-mechanical properties. The first goal is to model water transport through whole structures made of concrete/brick. This is central to understanding deterioration patterns on existing buildings and can be used to predict the impact of climate change on the building fabric and find the vulnerable areas of structures on site.  This PhD project will use a novel FE modeling method to explore water penetration into composite porous facades coupled with laboratory investigation to obtain hydraulic properties from building materials used on site. The ultimate aim is to achieve a full understanding of how buildings at Sellafield weather and explore potential materials science solutions for preservation including nanoparticle cements and biomineral consolidants.