Dr Rebecca Higginson

Background:

Dr Rebecca Higginson graduated from The University College Swansea in 1992, winning the British Steel Travel Award for her practical work. She went on to study for her PhD at Birmingham University on the ‘The Effect of Small Second Phase Particles on the Recrystallisation and Grain Growth in Aluminium’ sponsored by Alcan. In 1995, she became a Post Doctoral Research Associate at Sheffield University, working on the thermomechanical processing of stainless steels and aluminium alloys. Whilst at Sheffield, she took a part-time Postgraduate Diploma in Education. In 2001, she became a Lecturer in Metallurgy at Loughborough University, promoted to Senior Lecturer in 2007, Reader in 2015, and became Head of the Department of Materials in July 2020-2023.  She is now the Associate Dean for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (Aug 2025-Present).

Qualifications:

• BEng 1992 Materials Engineering - University College Swansea
• PhD 1995 - Birmingham University
• DipEd 2001 - Sheffield University
• FRMS 2002, CSci 2005, CEng 2005, FIMMM 2006, MInstP 2008
• Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy

Key awards:

• Awarded the IOM3 Cook/Ablett Award 2008
• Awarded the SAGA Best Paper Award 2011
• IoM3 Stokowiec Medal and Prize “in recognition of distinguished work related to the technical, manufacturing, processing, or engineering application of alloy steels, including stainless steels” 2018.

Outline of main research interests:

• Metals for extreme environments in green power generation
• Oxide Scale Formation and Characterisation
• Precipitation effects in steels, stainless steels, and aluminium alloys
• Microscopy, including: SEM, EBSD, TEM
• Laser material deposition
• Energy materials
• Digital Decarbonisation
• Materials for hydrogen technologies

Grants and contracts:

• CDT EnerHy Industrial - Transporting Hydrogen At Scale In A Cost Effective, Efficient And Safe Way, Cadent Gas 2024-2028
• EPSRC CDT in Engineering Hydrogen Net Zero (EnerHy), EPSRC, 2024-2032
• Prediction of Microstructural Evolution during Long Term Thermal Ageing of Type 304 / Type 308 Weldments, EDF, 2019-2023
• Effect of CO2 on the oxidation characteristics of 9Cr steel, EDF, 2015-2020
• Prediction of Microstructural Evolution During Long Term Thermal Ageing of Type 321 - Type 347 Weldments, EDF, 2013 - 2016
• Inter-granular Stress Corrosion Cracking in Nickel Base Alloys, Rolls-Royce, 2015 - 2016
• Colouring of Stainless Steel, Rimex Metals, 2013 - 2020
• WHISKERMIT - Manufacturing and in-service tin whisker mitigation strategies for high value electronics, EPSRC, 2011 - 2013 
• Prediction of Microstructural Evolution during Long Term Thermal Ageing of Austenitic Steels in Both Parent and Weld Metal, EDF, 2010 - 2013

Current teaching responsibilities:

• MPA220 - Introductory Materials Science (RE)
• MPB313 - Materials in Action (RE)
• MPB003 – Materials Literature survey (RE)
• MPC014 - Materials in Service (RE)
• MPD101 – Group Design Project 
• MPP560 - Group Design Project (RE

Current administrative responsibilities:

• Under 18s Coordinator
• Chair EDI Staff Committee
• Chair EDI Student Committee

Please see full link of publications:

• https://publications.lboro.ac.uk/publications/all/collated/mprlh.html

• Higginson, R, Jepson, M, Appleton, M (2025) The use of heat tinting for metallographic study of complex phases in duplex stainless steel, Materials Today Communications, 47, 113167, ISSN: 2352-4928. DOI: 1016/j.mtcomm.2025.113167.
• Gong, Y, Gill, SPA, Yan, S, Higginson, R, Sumner, J, Simms, NJ, Larsson, H, Shin, A, Pearson, JM, Young, D, Atkinson, C, Cocks, ACF, Reed, RC (2023) Assessment of corrosive attack of Fe9Cr1Mo alloys in pressurised CO₂for prediction of breakaway oxidation, Corrosion Science, 222, 111385, ISSN: 0010-938X. DOI: 1016/j.corsci.2023.111385.
• Alliott, G, Higginson, R, Wilcox, G (2023) Producing a thin coloured film on stainless steels – a review. Part 2: non-electrochemical and laser processes, Transactions of the IMF, 101(2), pp.72-78, ISSN: 0020-2967. DOI: 1080/00202967.2022.2154495.
• Coghlan, L, Shin, A, Pearson, J, Jepson, M, Higginson, R(2022) Using a plasma FIB system to characterise the porosity through the oxide scale formed on 9Cr-1Mo steel exposed to CO₂, Journal of Materials Science, 57(37), pp.17849-17869, ISSN: 0022-2461. DOI: 1007/s10853-022-07758-9.
• Alliott, G, Higginson, R, Wilcox, G (2022) Producing a thin coloured film on stainless steels – a review. Part 1: electrochemical processes, Transactions of the IMF, 100(3), pp.128-137, ISSN: 0020-2967. DOI: 1080/00202967.2022.2035499.
• Coghlan, L, Yan, S, Shin, A, Pearson, J, Jepson, M, Higginson, R(2021) The effect of microstructure on the oxidation and carburisation of 9Cr-1Mo steel exposed to CO₂, Corrosion Science, 191, 109720, ISSN: 0010-938X. DOI: 1016/j.corsci.2021.109720.

External collaborators:

• EDF Energy
• Cadent Gas
• Rimex Metals
• Rolls-Royce

External roles and appointments:

• EPSRC Peer Review Panel 2004-present
• Member of the IOM3 Professional Standards Committee
• Member of the IOM3 Accreditation Team
• External Examiner (UG and PGT) Swansea University
• External Examiner PGT The University of Manchester

Previous external roles:

• Member of the Royal Miscroscopical Society Physical Sciences Committee formerly Chair Materials Science Section 2008-2013
• Council Member of Royal Microscopical Society 2013-2015
• Member of the IOM3 Bulk Metal Forming Committee