Charl is enjoying being back in Beijing again. ChinaNano is a great meeting, and an opportunity to showcase research from the group in an invited talk – and also to see many friends, including Prof Kun Liu from Jilin University, Changchun!
Charl is back in China, attending two conferences to speak about the groups work. The first is in Enshi, in a beautiful part of China, close to Chengdu – POPs 2025!
After Enshi, Charl will be heading to Jilin University (JLU) in Changchun and then to ChinaNano 2025 in Beijing. JLU is a close partner of the University of Bristol, and the School of Chemistry, and sent almost 40 students to Bristol for the advanced chemistry summer school!
We are very pleased to have hosted Feiyang Li, a visiting undergraduate student from the Tsinghua Xuetang International Chemistry Exchange Programme. Feiyang joined the Faul Research Group for a two-month research experience, and is now heading back to Beijing!
During his time here, Feiyang worked alongside PhD student Jerry Mintah on porous polyimide materials for CO2 capture and conversion. His contribution to the project and enthusiasm were greatly appreciated!
As he returns to China, we wish him all the best in his future studies, and hope to see him in Bristol soon again!
Continuing from previous work, a paper has just been published Open Access in Communications Materials, entitled “Biocompatible low-voltage electrothermal actuators with biological operational temperature range“. This new study is authored by Adéla Slavíková, Benjamin C. Baker, Marcos Villeda-Hernandez, undergraduate contributors Annabel Coekin and Julia Kwasniewska, collaborators from NHS and Bristol Medical School within the emPOWER project, and Charl Faul.
This study presents a low-voltage (3.6 V) electrothermal actuator, Bio35, that operates at mild hyperthermic temperatures (38.9 °C). Bio35 features facile synthesis, high chemical stability, excellent cyclic actuation performance, and non-cytoxicity. Two systems have been demonstrated: a simple gripper and a sphincter-like valve, showcasing Bio35‘s potential for use in treating conditions like urinary incontinence, where precise, muscle-like actuation is critical for function.
Check the paper for more details!
It was a pleasure to host Professor Yulan Chen from the Collage of Chemistry, Jilin University, to give a research seminar as part of the “Functional Molecules and Materials” research theme. Her group works on polymer mechanochemistry and mechano-responsive polymeric materials.
Prof. Yulan Chen is currently visiting Bristol, accompanying the 40 senior UG students from Julin University participating in our Advanced Experimental Chemistry summer school here in Bristol.
Faul Research Group 