Mechanisms of electrolyte dipping for thin nitrile gloves

Thin elastomeric gloves are protective equipment and essential in many occupations. Their value in the health and care sector was demonstrated during the recent Covid-19 pandemic. Most thin gloves are made from aqueous polymer dispersions, often called a latex, using a dipping process. A hand-shaped mould is dipped into a saturated calcium nitrate solution, followed

Improving wind and tidal turbines performance

Wind energy supplied approximately 30% of UK electricity in 2025, underscoring its central role in the energy transition. Tidal power, though still at the demonstration stage, has the potential to meet up to 11% of annual UK electricity demand. However, key fluid dynamic challenges continue to limit the performance, scalability, and environmental acceptability of turbine

Experiments on ice melting in nature

Constraining the key controls on ice melting in glaciers and the ocean is essential for climate models. Edoardo Bellincioni is a PhD student, currently working in the Physics of Fluids group at the University of Twente under the supervision of Sander Husiman and Detlef Lohse. During his PhD, Edoardo has been running laboratory experiments to

Water Masses of the Arctic from 40 Years of Hydrographic Observations

The Arctic Ocean has been changing rapidly in a warming climate. To monitor these changes, it is useful to classify the Arctic Ocean into water masses – bodies of water with similar origin and physical and biogeochemical properties.  However, there are significant barriers to Arctic water mass classification: observations of seawater properties are sparse, and

Cleaning surfaces by convective dissolution

Cleaning is a regular and important process in the food, bioprocessing and pharmaceutical sectors, and is essential to remove fouling deposits and avoid contamination or product crossover. Industrial cleaning is often performed in place, by circulating liquids through the processing equipment in order to remove any residual product. These operations incur penalties in terms of

Forecasting volcanic eruptions

Volcanic eruptions threaten more than one in ten people worldwide, with the greatest risk at volcanoes reawakening after long quiescence. In these settings, eruptions are often explosive and nearby communities may be unprepared.  After obtaining his PhD at IEEF, Dr Eric Newland has been working on the NERC-funded project “FEVER: Forecasting Eruptions at Volcanoes after