Dr Samuel Wilson-Whitford

Samuel Wilson-Whitford completed his MChem in "Chemistry with Professional Experience" at The University of Warwick (2014). During this time he completed a research Scholarship at Nanyang Technological University (2013) and a master project in 3D printing of soft materials with Prof. dr. ir. Stefan Bon.

Following this, Sam completed a PhD in Chemistry with the Prof. dr. ir. Stefan Bon studying weakly hydrogen bonding moieties for the development of supramolecular polymeric drag reducers for fluid transport. This was followed by a Industry position with Unilever, working on microencapsulation technologies.

In late 2019, Sam joined the group of Prof. James Gilchrist in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at Lehigh University, PA, USA as a research fellow. His research activities at Lehigh covered a wide range of topics from composite materials and coatings, to directed colloid self-assembly and responsive granular systems. 

Following brief stints as a Fellow in Physical Chemistry at the University of Leicester and as an Assistant Professor in Engineering at the University of Warwick, Sam was appointed as a Tenure-Track Fellow at the Aston Institute for Membrane Excellence at Aston University, UK. His current research focuses on fundamental behaviour of micro and nanoplastics at interfaces as well as microrobotic applications of responsive granular materials.

• Micro and nanoplastic fundamentals
• Colloidal dynamics
• Colloidal and Granular microrobotics
• Responsive colloidal and granular systems
• Transport in porous systems
• gels and complex fluids
• Synthetic polymer and colloidal chemistry
• Custom particle development (Consultancy and Scientific Services)

PhD - Polymer and Colloidal Chemistry - University of Warwick - 2019
MChem - Chemistry with Professional Experience - 2014
AFHEA - 2023

2024 - Present: Tenure-Track Research Fellow at Aston Institute for Membrane Excellence
2024 - 2024: Assistant Professor (Research) - School of Engineering, University of Warwick, UK
2022 - 2023: Fellow in Physcial Chemistry - School of Chemistry, University of Leicester, UK
2019 - 2022: Research Fellow - Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Lehigh University, Pennsylvania, USA
2019 - 2019: Research Assistant - Department of Chemistry, University of Warwick, UK

Current

[1] Impact of Microplastic and Nanoplastic adsorption on membrane fluidity, permeability and aging:

Plastic production is one of the core global industries, with plastics entering every major market. However, the durability that makes these materials so useful contributes to long-term irreversible micro and nanoplastic pollution. Currently, global plastic use generates 350 million tons of waste per annum, and is predicted to rise to 1 billion tons by 2060 if social, commercial and industrial habits continue unchanged. This project investigates how micro and nano plastics of difference size, shape and chemistry influence lipid bilayer membranes. The resulting findings will be used to identify which common plastics degrade into the most physically destructive micro and nanoplastics, and this data will be used to inform future polymer manufacture and commercialisation policy via an open access library of microplastic impact.

Independent Research Fellowship at Aston Institute for Membrane Excellence (AIME).

[2] Granular microrobotics:

Responsive and active particulate systems are becoming more interesting due to their potential to be used in water management, chemical remediations and injectable medicines. This is due to their ability to navigated complex or confined environments, possibly completing complex tasks. We use the unmatched production capabilities of the Gilchrist Lab to produce large quantities of magentically responsive "Janus" colloidal and granular particles and deploy them as swarms of microrobots. These swarms show kinematics which are analogus to flowing beds of grains and can me made to navigate porous stuctures or climb obstacles. 

Collaboration with Prof. James Gilchrist at Lehigh University, PA, USA

[3] Investigating synapse formation through surface coatings:

The extracellular matrix (ECM) is a gel-like material which surrounds cells in complex organisms. The ECM is a combination of proteins and polysaccharides and provides physical support, signalling and facilitates cell regulation. The chemical make-up of the ECM is cell-specific and cells will grow and differentiate based on their local ECM environment. In this project, we develop custom ECM mimics which can be used to control the differentiation of stem cells into types of neuron with controlled synaptic development, providing an advanced platform for in vitro studies.

Collaboration with Dr. Dave Jenkins (AIME) and Dr. Mariaelena Repici (HLS)