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CoSEM CDT student receives ORE Catapult prize

James Griffith Headshot

James Griffith

10 May 2023

CoSEM CDT Ph.D. student James Griffith has been awarded the annual Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE) Catapult prize for the ‘Best Taught Mark in the CoSEM CDT Taught Component'.

James Griffith achieved the highest average mark in the 2021 entry CDT cohort for their taught units. James will receive £150 for the prize.

All Ph.D. students in the EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Composites Science, Engineering and Manufacturing (CoSEM CDT) undertake an innovative taught component in their first year. Students undertake taught units between September and June which introduce them to a wide range of multidisciplinary topics, such as design and manufacture, polymer chemistry, nanocomposites, smart materials, structural mechanics and sustainability. Building on this strong foundation in core engineering competencies and having developed a breadth of technical and transferable skills, students then embark on an individual three-month project of their choice, prior to starting their PhD projects.

Celebrating its 10-year anniversary in 2023, ORE Catapult is the UK’s leading Technology Innovation and Research Centre for Offshore Renewable Energy.

James told us: “I'm very grateful to receive the ORE Catapult prize for the best mark in the taught component of the CDT. Coming into the CDT with a chemistry and materials science background, I found some of the more engineering based taught units very challenging, but extremely useful in bringing my general composites knowledge up to a level. Going into the PhD, the taught component has given me a solid foundation that will enable my research into polymer matrix materials for liquid hydrogen storage to be considered from not only a materials science perspective but also from a wider engineering and manufacturing angle. I'm grateful to the CDT directors and unit lecturers for their excellent teaching during the first year and to the CDT21 cohort for going through it with me!”

Dai Lewis, Academic Engagement Manager at ORE Catapult, said: “This award that we are proud to sponsor recognizes exceptional academic achievements in relation to the CoSEM CDT Taught Component. This year’s award is a testament to the hard work and commitment that James has put into his studies, and we are proud to celebrate this achievement with him. We wish James continued success in his academic pursuits and future endeavours.”


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Further information

The CoSEM CDT (established in 2019) has evolved from the highly successful and established ACCIS CDT (2014-2024) to address exciting doctoral training opportunities for multidisciplinary composite materials engineering and manufacture.

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