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Sound pollution, which harms quality of life and health (e.g. hearing loss, hypertension and heart disease), is a subject of public concern and legislation. Research at Loughborough University has led to the design and production of a new generation of sound barrier for a wide range of industrial and business partners, a number of them leaders in their field. These sound barriers provide improved environmental benefit and reduced cost in compliance with EU Regulations. A spin-out company (Sonobex) has been established to test and market these designs and products. Outreach by Sonobex through the media and at the Houses of Commons has led to a contribution to the understanding of science and engineering to both the public and to policy makers.
The impact of building acoustics research by the Acoustics Research Unit at Liverpool has been through knowledge transfer into Standardisation, guidance to industry and take-up by test laboratories. This is evidenced by the active and leading participation of Professor Gibbs and Dr Hopkins on International and European Standards committees, developing measurement and prediction methods for noise in buildings. The research provides the scientific basis of new test codes used by accredited test laboratories and acoustic consultants. It is also feeding into new test procedures developed by R&D teams of Boeing, Seattle, for the control of vibration-induced noise in aircraft.
Research at the Department of Engineering Science has led to step changes in the way industrial membrane filtration plants are designed and operated . Based on some key research results that have successfully tackled membrane fouling problems, the work has triggered rapid uptake of membrane-based technologies that are more energy-efficient than traditional processes. Water companies are among those achieving both economic and the environmental benefits, and the research has played a key role in the membrane bioreactor (MBR) market, which is now growing at over 10% a year, and in the global desalination market which exceeds US$19 billion, according to GMR Data (2012) [13].
The techniques developed by the Warwick Ultrasonics Group focus on non-destructive testing (NDT) and address particular industrial needs as specified by industrial funders. These partners have included over 40 companies in the REF Impact period, ranging from SMEs to large multi- nationals operating in a range of sectors such as the heavy manufacturing, nuclear energy, food, petrochemical, transport, aerospace, power generation, equipment manufacturing and service industries. In particular, our spin-out company, Sonemat, has commercialised high-performance electromagnetic acoustic transducers (EMATs) developed by the research group, which has led to economic benefits for NDT equipment suppliers and their end users. Further industrial impact has arisen from novel NDT methodologies established by the Group.
Applied acoustics in the built environment and its broader uptake is focused on the development and commercial adoption of techniques and technologies resulting from research in applied acoustics, demonstrating the following impact:
Organ of Corti is an experimental instrument by David Prior (Associate Prof. Falmouth University) and Frances Crow that filters the sound around it into new listening experiences. Winner of the `Performing Rights Society (PRS) for Music Foundation's New Music Award' in 2010, Organ of Corti toured England in the summer of 2011. The piece was presented in partnership with nationally recognised regional music festivals reaching an estimated audience of over 400,000 during its tour, both live and via National and International media coverage [Section: 5, Ref:14-23].
Organ of Corti has received recognition from a number of International awards within the disciplines of new music, acoustics and technology [Section: 5, Ref 10-12]. The project has contributed to research within the areas of meta-materials, policy implementation on `soundscape design' and new ways of listening [Section 5, Ref: 5-9]. Organ of Corti has received planning permission for a permanent sound sculpture on the banks of the river Severn in Worcester [Section: 5, Ref: 25].
Impact: Economic benefits have been derived from the MTEM Limited spin-out company, which has been owned since 2007 by Petroleum Geo-Services (PGS). These include a commercial marine application of the MTEM (Multi-Transient ElectroMagnetic) method offshore Tunisia in 2008, successfully discovering hydrocarbons before drilling and the 2012 launch by PGS of a fully-towed commercially-viable marine MTEM system.
Significance and reach: Approximately 180 man-years of employment, with a value of more than $15M, have been provided in Edinburgh over the period January 2008 — December 2012.
Underpinned by: Research into electromagnetic survey methods, undertaken at the University of Edinburgh (1999 onwards), which led directly to the creation of MTEM Limited.
Durham research on hydraulic fracturing was an important part of the UK government's reasoning for lifting the ban on hydraulic fracturing to recover gas and oil from shale, which has an estimated commercial value in the UK of £1500 billion. We demonstrated that hydraulic fractures will not be tall enough to cause contamination of water supplies where there is a sufficient vertical separation (> 600 m) between the shale reservoir and the drinking water aquifer. Durham research has also provided critical data needed by national environment agencies setting regulations, oil and gas companies seeking permission from regulators to drill wells and for local communities that are objecting to hydraulic fracturing.