Materials World December 2008

The December issue looks at materials in design. Related features focus on stealth technology in surface warships and the use of composites in aerospace and defence applications.

News has a sepcial section on education and training, examining the Engineering Diploma, apprenticeship schemes and women in science and engineering.

News

Filling the skills gap

Faceless economy: Women are often overlooked for scientific posts because employers fear they will take career breaks

Despite laws to prevent sexual discrimination in the workplace, women still face gender stereotyping. Nowhere is this more evident than in the scientific arena. The team at the UK Resource Centre for Women in Science and Engineering reports

Materials World Magazine, 01 Dec 2008

Skills for business

The UK's Sector Skills Councils (SSCs) represent employers of 85% of the UK’s workforce. Each SSC offers training and qualifications to improve productivity and business performance through skills development and reducing related gaps and shortages.

Materials World Magazine, 01 Dec 2008

Materials in progress in higher education

This summer saw the launch of the National Subject Profile for Higher Education Programmes in Materials in the UK. In the second of a series of articles, the team behind it looks at the teaching and curricula, and how they have developed in response to the pressures of academia and the demands from industry.

Materials World Magazine, 01 Dec 2008

Heated moulds

A system for plastic injection that heats and cools the suface of the mould to enable higher quality injection using less pressure is now available from RocTool, based in Bellignat, France.

Materials World Magazine, 01 Dec 2008

Acoustic absorption in aircraft

Honeycomb-like structures within nickel-based superalloys could reduce the noise emitted from aircraft engines by trapping the sound waves and dissipating them through viscous shear.

Materials World Magazine, 01 Dec 2008

Making UK indigenous minerals matter

The Living with Minerals 3 conference, held in London, UK, on 3 November 2008, was part of an ongoing campaign by the UK National Minerals Forum to highlight some of the difficulties facing the minerals industry in securing a licence to operate.

Materials World Magazine, 01 Dec 2008

Geologists explore nuclear storage

The UK is again considering underground nuclear waste storage. Delegates at an event at the Geological Society in London, UK, on 24 October, heard that site selection should be about meeting a risk target.

Materials World Magazine, 01 Dec 2008

Increasing the glass content in bricks

A brick containing 97% recycled glass has improved energy efficiency compared to clay bricks, claims UK firm Geofusion, based in Worcester. The geobrick is produced from a combination of container glass and cathode ray tube panel glass.

Materials World Magazine, 01 Dec 2008

Reusing waste polymers

Converting mixed waste plastics and rubbers – including tyres, toys, toothbrushes and even carpets – into feedstock aromatic chemicals may be closer to reality. The Polyflow process works with a mixture of co-polymers and extrusions that would otherwise have gone to landfill.

Materials World Magazine, 01 Dec 2008

Adding surface value to composites

Applying surface-enhancing coatings to carbon fibre reinforced polymers (CFRP) using thermal spray techniques is the focus of research at TWI in Great Abington, UK. This could extend the use of these materials in high temperature or corrosive environments.

Materials World Magazine, 01 Nov 2008

Features

Digital oil fields - Ideas for the industry

A technology response to ‘low’ oil prices is presented. The future role of large corporations is discussed.

Materials World Magazine, 01 Dec 2008

Resource nationalism - Issues affecting companies operating abroad

Robert Amsterdam, Principal Lawyer at Amsterdam & Peroff, London, UK, discusses the dangers facing companies operating overseas. Advice is offered for successful operations.

Materials World Magazine, 01 Dec 2008

Keep on learning - CPD

Continuous professional development is not just a requirement for professional qualifications, it can also increase company productivity and benefit your career. The Open University and Smithers Rapra are examples of organisations offering relevant training.

Materials World Magazine, 01 Dec 2008