I propose to use autonomous underwater ocean glider vehicles with a newly developed airborne deployment system to measure ocean turbulence in extreme storms, such as hurricanes, typhoons, and tropical storms. These will be the first vertically resolved measurements of ocean turbulence in extreme storms, and will lead to a new understanding and improved estimates of the ocean mixing that is responsible for setting upper ocean temperatures - a crucial and poorly constrained feedback on storm intensity. By combining the observations with turbulence-resolving large eddy simulations, performed on high performance computational clusters, a new observationally-constrained model of the ocean-storm mixing feedback will be constructed that fills a much needed gap in the coupling of extreme storms to the ocean. This is crucial since extreme storms are increasing in strength and frequency through climate change, and are leading to record damages and loss of life in coastal communities. Such measurements are only now possible, since my research team has played a major role in pioneering the use of microstructure turbulence measurements from autonomous underwater gliders, particularly in stormy conditions. The final outcomes of the project will consist of (i) an airborne deployment system for the study of extreme events using autonomous vehicles, (ii) the first observations of upper ocean turbulence and mixing in extreme storms, (iii) a sequence of turbulence-resolving numerical simulations that, together with the observations, will identify and quantify processes responsible for setting upper ocean heat fluxes and turbulent structure in extreme storms, and (iv) a new parameterisation for ocean mixing in extreme storms that quanties the ocean-storm feedback, and its implementation in the forecasting model of the European Centre for Medium-range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF).

The MAGPLANT project is intended to provide a major breakthrough towards the fabrication and application of bioresorbable Mg-alloy implants, which have the remarkable potential of accelerating bone healing while transferring the body’s mechanical load from the implant to the regenerating bone, as the Mg-alloy progressively degrades, thereby avoiding multiple surgical interventions. Moreover Mg is highly biocompatible as it is abundantly present in bone tissue and exhibits mechanical properties similar to those of bone. Although there is currently much research on biodegradable Mg implants, the fundamental aspect for achieving success is controlling the corrosion rate of Mg-alloys in biological media. Because the main form of corrosion on Mg is localized corrosion, a thorough study consisting of localized electrochemical measurements must be performed. In the literature the biodegradable Mg is persistently being addressed as suffering from homogeneous corrosion, which is incorrect and does not provide the information on the microscopic processes occurring as the alloy degrades in contact with biofluids and cellular structures. In the scope of MAGPLANT the corrosion of Mg-alloys will be investigated by using modern localized electrochemical techniques. Therefore the underlying Mg-alloy corrosion mechanisms will be understood from the macro to the microscale level, considering the biological environments of interest. This project fits well into the key societal challenges for H2020 and will contribute to improve Europe’s research position on bioresorbable implants. Such perspective is well supported by the excellence and strong dedication of the host institution in the target research field, along with the research experience of the candidate.

Aseptic loosening, responsible for about 55.2% of hip arthroplasty revision surgeries globally, is primarily caused by stress shielding. While biomedical titanium (Ti) alloys offer high specific strength, they are bioinert and contribute to stress shielding. Conversely, magnesium (Mg) alloys, with their lower Youngs modulus, reduce stress shielding and offer better biocompatibility, although they suffer from issues of uncontrolled degradation. Therefore, combining Ti and Mg in composites holds promise for improving bone repair by harnessing the benefits of both materials. However, the contact between dissimilar metals (Ti and Mg) in body fluids can cause galvanic corrosion, which accelerates the degradation of Ti-Mg hybrid implants. To address this issue, the HITECH project proposes using a bioactive magnesium oxide (MgO) coating at the Ti-Mg interface. The project aims to advance hybrid implants for hip arthroplasty by achieving four key objectives: (1) Developing a fabrication process that incorporates additive manufacturing, bioactive coatings, acid etching, and capillary-assisted pressure-less infiltration techniques; (2) Controlling galvanic corrosion through surface modification of Ti; (3) Evaluating mechanical behaviors under in vitro corrosion conditions; and (4) Enhancing in vitro biocompatibility by integrating osteoblast-type cells. The project seeks to merge Dr. Duttas extensive material knowledge and experience, combined with the biomedical expertise, diverse backgrounds, and broad collaboration networks of the supervisors, supported by the state-of-the-art infrastructure at Helmholtz Zentrum Hereon. This interdisciplinary research spanning metallurgy, advanced coatings, bio-laboratory work, and modeling will broaden Dr. Duttas expertise and significantly enhance career opportunities. Helmholtz Zentrum Hereon will benefit from the researchers contributions to its research initiatives and industrial applications.

The world is moving towards sustainable economic growth and green technologies; therefore, the high specific strength, easy recyclability and lightweight of Magnesium (Mg) based materials make them potential options to minimize weight, save energy and reduce environmental issues. However, their poor corrosion resistance in aqueous and atmospheric conditions limits their widespread usage in many industrial applications. Enormous effort has been made to protect Mg and its alloys against degradation and improve their service time. Despite that, the questions related to their durability, longevity, biocompatibility, cost and environmental impacts must be resolved. This scientific work aims to develop durable, multifunctional multilayer composite (MMC) coatings to provide long-term corrosion protection to Mg-based materials. Durability and long-term protection will be achieved by using eco-friendly materials and considering interfacial adhesion strength between substrate/composite within the multilayers and their surrounding environments. MMC coatings will be prepared to protect Mg-based materials against corrosion and give a visual response when the coating is damaged to achieve this scientific goal. MMC coating will consist of a self-assembled organic layer, a polymeric composite containing corrosion inhibitor and sensing agents loaded metal-organic frameworks (MOF) using a stimuli-responsive polymeric gatekeeper in a single layer and a top self-cleaning hydrophobic polymeric layer. They will provide adequate long-term corrosion protection of Mg-based structures by the synergistic effect of self-cleaning, passive barrier layers and on-demand release of active corrosion inhibitors from loaded MOF. Corrosion-sensing agents encapsulated MOF will monitor the onset of corrosion upon physical damage to the coatings for large area systems. MMC coatings will ensure minimum cost and environmental impacts consistent with desired properties and help to substitute PFAS.