People in the department
Dr Noreen Thomas
Senior Lecturer
Postgraduate Programme Director
MA, PhD, FIMMM, C.Eng
Tel: 01509 223334
Fax: 01509 223949
Email: N.L.Thomas @Lboro.ac.uk
Background
Noreen graduated with 1st class honours degree in Materials Science from Newnham College, Cambridge. She also studied for PhD at the Department of Materials at Cambridge University on the subject of non-Fickian (Case II) diffusion in glassy polymers. Noreen then joined ICI and was immediately seconded to Oxford University to carry out post-doctoral research at the Department of Materials on hydration mechanisms of Portland cement. She obtained junior research fellowship at Wolfson College, Oxford. She then moved to Runcorn, Cheshire to work at ICI’s Technical Centre at The Heath and carried out research on bio-inorganic materials, corrosion inhibitors and novel paint coatings. In 1990 Noreen joined the research department of European Vinyls Corporation (now INEOS ChlorVinyls) as a project leader, developing new applications for PVC and providing technical support for customers. She joined the Department of Materials in 2003 as a Lecturer in Polymer Technology and became Senior Lecturer in 2006.
Qualifications
- MA, Materials Science, Cambridge
- PhD, Cambridge
- FIMMM, C.Eng
Current teaching responsibilities
- MMA701 Sports Equipment, Dynamics & Human Factors
- MPC003 Industrial Case Studies
- MPC012 Polymer Engineering – Processing and Manufacture
- MPD002 Industrial Case Studies
- MPD014 Polymer Engineering – Properties and Design
- MPP114 Polymer Science
- MPP116 Industrial Polymers
- MPP331 Polymer Science I
- MPP217 Rheology & Mixing
- MPP233 Science and Technology of PVC
- TTB207 Body Engineering & Automotive Materials
Current administrative responsibilities
- Postgraduate Programmes Director
- Sustainability Research Group Leader
Outline of main research interests
- Biopolymers
- PVC applications - foams, composites, novel additives
- Recycling of polymers - particularly packaging & building products
- PVC sustainability issues
- Polymer nanocomposites
- Biodegradable polymers
- Weathering and degradation of polymers
- Diffusion through polymer films
Recent publications
26 Journal and refereed conference papers have been published in the last 5 years including:
- McLauchlin, A.R. and Thomas, N.L., ''Preparation and Thermal Characterisation of Poly(lactic Acid) Nanocomposites Prepared from Organoclays Based on an Amphoteric Surfactant'', Polymer Degradation and Stability, 94, 2009, pp 868-872.
- Georgiadou, S., Thomas, N.L., Gilbert, M. and Brooks, B.W., ''Nonaqueous Polymerization of Vinyl Chloride: An Environmentally Friendly Process'', Journal of Applied Polymer Science, 112, 2009, pp 2472-2481.
- Lim, B.C., Thomas, N.L. and Sutherland, I., ''Surface Energy Measurements of Coated Titanium Dioxide Pigment'', Progress in Organic Coatings, 62, 2008, pp 123-128.
- Hitt, D.J., Haworth, B., Thomas, N.L. and Algahtani, M.A., ''Melt Compounding of Rigid PVC Formulations with Hydrotalcites'', Plastics, Rubber & Composites Macromolecular Engineering, 37(9/10), 2008, pp 445-452.
Current and recent grants and contracts (with others)
- 2005-2007 CASE Award for New Academics, EPSRC, £74.9K
- 2005-2009 Improving Sustainability of PVC through Novel Materials, Processes and Life Cycle Methodologies, EPSRC, £438.4K
- 2009-2010 Assessing the Environmental Impact of Oxy-Degradable Plastics across their Life Cycle, DEFRA, £29.8k
- 2009-2012 Novel Biopolymers for Packaging Applications, PepsiCo, £51K
- 2011-2013 Advanced Surface Treated, Mineral Fillers for Plastics and Paint, TSB, EPSRC, Viaton Industries, £122.1k
External collaborators
EPSRC, DEFRA, Ineos Chlor Vinyls, Solvay Advanced Functional Fillers, Huntsman Tioxide, The Co-op Group, PepsiCo, A & O FilmPac, Manchester University (CEAS), PQ Corporation
External roles and appointments
- Assessor DTI Technology Programme
- External PhD Examiner (Swansea, Manchester & Brunel)
- External Examiner for the MSc in Advanced Materials Science and Engineering at Imperial College, London.
Full list of publications
Loughborough CIS Portal: Publications list