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The glass industry uses theoretical modelling to control, improve, and reduce the cost of designing and manufacturing novel glass products. Market-leaders [text removed for publication], Schott AG and Pilkington have developed modelling software which is underpinned by equations stemming from research at the University of Oxford.
[text removed for publication]. The same modelling approach is used in software developed by Schott which is now used in all of its modelling of drawing processes to reduce both development costs and the incidence of faults. Pilkington have implemented research performed at the University of Oxford to decrease the risk associated with manufacturing processes.
Research at the Institute of International Research in Glass (IIRG), into the combination of water-jet cutting and print for glass has been influential in the offering of insights and new working methods for the international community of artists and designers within and beyond the creative glass community, which in turn has resulted in the production of innovative artworks, public commissions and exhibitions. Innovations in technique have influenced the commissioning and interpretation of artworks for the cultural sector.
This case study describes the impact of physics research, carried out in the Department of Mathematics and Physics (DMAP), on the small business and social enterprise Ten Green Bottles through the development of specific commercial applications, transfers of technology, and the development of new products. Fundamental research on the atomistic origin of the structural and optical properties of recycled and synthetic coloured glass has provided an opportunity for Ten Green Bottles to gain an economic advantage. The collaboration between DMAP and Ten Green Bottles benefits the enterprise's workforce, whose educational ambitions have been extended through the interaction with DMAP research, and also benefits the local community, whose understanding of physics research has been enhanced through their interaction with Ten Green Bottles.
Projects within the Silicates Research Unit have expanded the aesthetic and technical boundaries of ceramic materials and have had a significant impact on sustainable practices and materials within contemporary design. In response to increasingly stringent sustainable construction legislation, an AHRC Grant (£163,000) funded Binns and Bremner's development of a unique process for converting low-value mineral waste into high-value architectural products, avoiding reliance on non-replenishable materials.
Testing by the Environment Agency National Testing Laboratory has verified their innovative material meets British Standards for architectural materials (UK patent application, currently pending publication). It has also confirmed that the incorporation of Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) lead bearing glass (designated by the Environment Agency as hazardous waste) in the new material results in the lead content being safely encapsulated, offering a solution to the global problem of hazardous CRT waste glass recycling - allowing CRT glass to be re-classified as a safe raw material.
The Great East Window of York Minster, featuring the Apocalypse in 77 scenes designed by John Thornton of Coventry, 1405-8, is the largest expanse of medieval glass in Britain and one of the world's great masterpieces of monumental painting. Uniquely for any conservation project of the kind, research by four art historians at the University of York has underpinned, shaped and enabled both its conservation and its interpretation. Their research guided the conservation method statement, central to the success of the £10.5 million Heritage Lottery Fund grant that is paying for the conservation work as part of the York Minster Revealed project. The research also continues to inform daily work on every panel through the East Window Advisory Group, of which the York art historians are members. Unprecedented in stained glass conservation, this partnership between scholars and conservators has established a new benchmark for best practice, recognized by national institutions. The York art historians' research has also enabled the display and interpretation of the window to the public, as a central feature of the tourist experience and economy in York, and in other media, including newspapers, television and the worldwide web.
The work of the MTP research group can evidence significant impact upon the field of applied arts practice, industry, public audiences and education through material and process related innovations leading to formal and conceptual advances and their application in social contexts. Exemplary work by Cummings has brought the technique of glass casting into the main stream of studio glass practice; Heeney has reformed industrial working practices concerning traditional cutting boxes and soda-firing for use in architectural scale work; Brennand-Wood has reformed cultural perceptions of ornament through the reinterpretation of textile ornament in the context of cultural and political commentary.
NovaBone® (NovaBone Products LLC) is a synthetic bone graft. It is a Bioglass® (a specific composition of bioactive glass) powder that orthopaedic surgeons use to regenerate (heal) bone defects (holes in bone). Research by Larry Hench, Julia Polak and their student Ioannis Xynos, that was published in 2001, showed that the dissolution products of the glass particles stimulated bone cells to produce new bone. This gave NovaBone a competitive edge over all other synthetic bone grafts at the time. Due to the data, NovaBone coined the term Osteostimulation, which describes this property. The Federal Drug Agency in the USA (FDA) allowed the claim, which led to a 20% increase in sales for NovaBone.
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) released a new toothpaste in 2011, Sensodyne Repair and Protect and in the first 16 weeks attracted a 2.7% (£10M) market share. The active ingredient is Bioglass (NovaMin®). The fundamental research was carried out in the Department beginning with the work of Larry Hench and Julian Jones in 1999. They reported the effect of glass particle size on active ion release. 57% of people suffer from hypersensitivity (tooth pain) caused by fluid flow into exposed tubules in dentin that lead to nerve endings. When teeth are brushed with toothpaste containing NovaMin®, the particles bind to the dentine, where they dissolve and produce mineral with similar composition to enamel, which occludes the tubules. GSK developed a new toothpaste based on this research — Sensodyne Repair and Protect. Sensodyne delivered remarkable growth of 14% driven largely by the successful rollout of Sensodyne Repair and Protect.
Outstanding both for its quality and quantity, the medieval stained glass of Norfolk represents a major aspect of world heritage. It also supplies a rich resource for artists, museum curators, teachers and local study groups. Under the direction of Carole Rawcliffe, and utilising the academic expertise of David King, a leading authority on medieval glazing, the Norfolk Medieval Stained Glass Project secured funding of £266,888 from the Leverhulme Trust to promote a wider awareness and appreciation of the treasures in our midst and to ensure their (previously threatened) long-term future. Between 2005 and 2010, the project catalogued the surviving glass and documented what had been destroyed. Impact was broadcast via an innovative website and by published materials and exhibitions intended to deliver findings of interdisciplinary significance to an international constituency of museums, historians, teachers, tourists and other members of the general public.
Dental hypersensitivity is a major problem for over half the population in the developed world. Researchers at the Dental Institute of King's College London (KCL) have developed a system to use bioactive glass powders to clean, seal and desensitize teeth, thus alleviating dental pain. As a result, a spinout company — OSspray — was formed in 2004 to develop and commercialise the system for dentists and hygienist to spray-clean teeth. Over £4.5 million of funding has been raised to date from institutional and venture capital investors and three product lines have been launched in the past 24 months. The products developed by the KCL/OSspray team have treated over 700,000 patients across the EU, USA and Asia. The knowledge gained by the KCL-based founders of OSspray has been used to train students in Innovation Technology.
Since the mid-1990s, the Materials and Structures Research Group has been conducting research into materials-joining processes, including metal-ceramic joining for high-temperature applications. The group's research on metal-ceramic interfacial relationships and metal-ceramic joining subsequently assisted Cambridge-based C4 Carbides to optimise metal-to-diamond brazing and develop cutting tools with improved quality and longer lifetimes. Since 2010 the company has also [text removed for publication]
This continuing collaboration has helped C4 Carbides secure a TSB smart award and begin its strategic shift from niche SME to mainstream supplier.