Impact case study database
- Submitting institution
- University of Portsmouth
- Unit of assessment
- 12 - Engineering
- Summary impact type
- Technological
- Is this case study continued from a case study submitted in 2014?
- No
1. Summary of the impact
University of Portsmouth researchers have developed anomaly detection algorithms which are better at detecting faults, revolutionising two different sectors’ engineering practices. Our algorithms were deployed in three dairies operated by Stork (a supplier of dairy filling machines), where 31 faults were detected early. These faults would have led to chains of escalating damage and cost (breaches of contract, lost product, equipment repair bills) costing GBP15,000,000. These algorithms have also transformed how flight data is analysed for a civil aviation company (Flight Data Services) resulting in the development of a world first product (Express Readout) to detect errors in flight data recorders. This key product led to the company’s acquisition by a multi-billion dollar defence firm for GBP8,000,000 including the purchase of the IP that linked directly to our research.
2. Underpinning research
In multiple industries, data on faults or anomalies is sparse or non-existent, meaning that operators/engineers of machinery are often not aware of faults until they cause damage which is costly to repair. Therefore fault/anomaly detection is a key part of aviation and manufacturing processes. Researching learning algorithms which detect rare or abnormal events from industrial data can prevent equipment damage and save money. The underpinning research into anomaly detection was conducted at the University of Portsmouth in the UoA’s IIR Group (Innovative Industrial Research Group, and until 2017 the Institute of Industrial Research) and was led by Brown, Smart, Ma and Fahimi. University of Portsmouth staff were the sole academic contributors to the referenced publications in Section 3 which were in collaboration with a range of industry co-authors.
Key advances and role of the researchers
The references (R1, 2, 3, 6) show how anomalies can be detected whilst learning from real-world ‘normal’ industrial data. Our key advances from this body of research are:
Detecting Known/Unknown Anomalies: Previous approaches needed examples of anomalies. Our approach uses only normal/healthy data and can therefore detect a wider range of anomalies than was previously possible.
Quantifying Machine Health: Previous approaches used either true/false or a traffic light system to measure machine health. Our approach quantifies machine health in more detail, enabling earlier anomaly detection, leading to higher machine availability.
The publication (R5) demonstrates the system working on multiple dairy fillers.
The patent (R4) demonstrates how to detect sensor anomalies within an aircraft ‘black box’, which is a world first.
Application to Manufacturing
The advances described above were adapted for complex electromechanical machinery for Stork Bottling and Blowmoulding Ltd (Stork); a supplier of dairy filling machines. Stork was introduced to the IIR in 2009, who immediately identified how anomaly detection could benefit the dairies. The previous approach to fault finding involved hand-held vibration monitors and relied on experienced staff spotting problems “by eye” or “by ear”. The anomaly detection algorithms (R1, 2, 3) were adapted during a double KTP (G2, 3) (between 2010 and 2013) to detect anomalies from vibration and current sensors attached to key parts of the fillers. A key innovation was that the anomaly detection algorithms could be trained on synthetic data, meaning they could work on any dairy filler without retraining (R5). Furthermore, the algorithms quantified the level of abnormality, allowing fault detection at the earliest stages, allowing more time to resolve the fault without affecting production (R6). There are three particular advances from our research without which this tool would not have been possible: The use of wavelets (a mathematical tool) applied to signals helped to extract the key fault indicators which are often deeply buried in the signal, amongst noise. Secondly, one class classification techniques where the algorithm can learn only from healthy data (removing the obstacle of there being a lack of unhealthy data on which to train – no other product does this to our knowledge). The third is our novel health score which allows for anomalies to be quantified.
Application to Aviation
In 2006, Flight Data Services approached the University with a view to enhancing airline safety through data science and machine learning. Existing flight safety approaches were threshold based and could only detect severe safety anomalies. KTP1 (G1) and the EPSRC PhD programme (between 2006 and 2011) developed anomaly detection algorithms to detect safety incidents during flight. During KTP2 (G2), the anomaly detection algorithms developed were adapted to detect flight data recorder anomalies. The IIR research was supported by a KTP (G1) and an EPSRC Industrial CASE PhD studentship (G4) (between 2006 and 2011). It introduced our single class classification approaches (R3, 6) to the aviation sector for the first time. These approaches are semi-supervised, in that they are trained on known ‘normal’ flight data and tested on unknown data. All airlines have Standard Operating Procedures that guide how the aircraft should be flown; these inform how we selected the “normal” data on which the single class classification approaches were trained. We found we could detect over 3 times as many anomalies as with existing approaches. Furthermore, they could be quantified, allowing earlier detection (R1, R2).
In the UK it is a legal requirement for each plane to carry a flight data recorder (FDR). Analyses of FDR data are not only of critical importance in an accident but can also play a crucial role in accident prevention. In the UK, for example, the law stipulates that flight recorders must be analysed at least once a year to detect flight errors occurring outside accepted safety parameters. Historically, this task was undertaken manually, a process that was time-consuming, expensive, and required complex technical skills. It was also prone to human error. Further research, supported by a double KTP (G2, 3) (between 2010 and 2013), adapted these algorithms (R1, 2) to automatically detect errors in the FDR such as poor calibration, incorrect installation and faulty recording (R4). This was a world first achievement and allowed an FDR to be completely analysed within minutes rather than over weeks.
3. References to the research
Publications
(R1) Smart, E., Brown, D. J., & Denman, J. (2012). Combining Multiple Classifiers to Quantitatively Rank the Impact of Abnormalities on Flight Data. Applied Soft Computing Journal, 12(8), 2583-2592. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.asoc.2012.03.059
(R2) Smart, E., Brown, D., & Denman J. (2012). A Two-Phase Method of Detecting Abnormalities in Aircraft Flight Data and Ranking Their Impact on Individual Flights. IEEE Transactions on Intelligent Transportation, 13(3), 1253-1265 https://doi.org/10.1109/TITS.2012.2188391
(R3) Smart, E., Grice, N., Ma, H., Garrity, D. & Brown, D.J., (2020). One class classification based anomaly detection for marine engines. In R. Jardim_Goncalves., V. Sgurev, V. Jotsov, & J. Kacprzyk (Eds) Intelligent Systems: Theory, Research and Innovation in Applications (pp.223-245). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-38704-4_10
(R5) Aboutalebi, A., Labib, A., Brown, D., Wasif, H., & Axel-Berg, L. (2012). Implementation and management of an advanced online condition monitoring system. Proceedings of the 2012 IEEE Symposium on Industrial Electronics and Applications (pp. 257-262). Bandung, Indonesia https://doi.org/10.1109/ISIEA.2012.6496640
(R6) Smart, E., Brown, D., & L. Axel-Berg, L. (2013). Comparing one and two class classification methods for multiple fault detection on an induction motor. Proceedings of the 2013 IEEE Symposium on Industrial Electronics & Applications (pp. 132-137). Kuching, Malaysia https://doi.org/10.1109/ISIEA.2013.6738982
Patent
(R4) Jesse, D., Jesse, C., Seldon, A., Rahman, N., & Fahimi, F. (2012). Flight data validation apparatus and method, GB2494487B.
Grants that supported this work
(G1) Brown, D. Creation of an Intelligent Search Engine to Extract Flight Safety Information from Aircraft Data. Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP1), KTP Number: 001136, 27 February 2006-26 February 2009, (GBP156,000).
(G2) Brown, D. Semi-Automatic Testing of a Digital Flight Data Recorder System (DFDRS) in Accordance to a Method of Compliance for Airworthiness and Operational Approval. Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP2), KTP Number: 001511, 28 June 2010-25 September 2013, (GBP217,000).
(G3) PI: Brown, D. Condition Monitoring for Dairy Filters. Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP3), KTP Number: 007935, 1 September 2010-1 August 2013, (GBP229,000).
(G4) PIs: Brown, D., & Smart, E. Detecting Abnormalities in Aircraft Flight Data and Ranking their Impact on the Flight. EPSRC Industrial CASE Studentship (EPSRC PhD), EPSRC Grant Number: GR/T18868/01, Voucher Number: VN06001600, 1 October 2007-1 April 2011, (GBP84,000).
(G5) Brown, D., Ouelhadj, D., Hillstrom, A., & Smart, E. The Virtual Engineer. Funded by the Technology Strategy Board, November 2013-October 2015. Innovate Collaborative Research and Development, 1 October 2013-30 September 2015, (GBP139,244).
4. Details of the impact
We have applied our methods across industry sectors in collaboration with beneficiaries to apply research findings for real world use. Maintenance methods have been improved through modern data analysis. The underpinning research has had significant impact at both Stork and Flight Data Services Ltd (FDS).
Stork Bottling and Blowmoulding Ltd UK
Stork is one of the largest builders and sellers of filling machines in the world, with a focus on dairy products. The dairy sector is known as a ‘just-in-time’ industry, as milk needs to be delivered from farm to shop in 36 hours. Stork’s filling machines mould plastic into bottles, fill them with milk and cap them, ready for distribution to sellers. In this industry, production targets are top priority and reliability comes second. This is despite breakdowns costing a dairy upwards of GBP300,000 per day in fines for breach of contract, lost production, repair labour and spare parts (S2).
Stork was introduced to the IIR in 2009 and quickly grasped the potential of the anomaly detection techniques that had been developed for flight safety. Following a double KTP (G3) with University of Portsmouth (between 2010 and 2013), these anomaly detection techniques were adapted to create an automated system called The Virtual Engineer (TVE) to detect and predict faults on these milk fillers (G5). The former General Manager at Stork said (S2) that “From 1 August 2013, across 11 fillers in 3 separate dairy sites, TVE detected a total of 31 faults earlier and before they reached critical states, including main bearing faults, gearbox faults and shaft alignment problems. My engineers assessed the faults that were alerted to us by TVE and concluded that if they were left undetected, the total cost to the dairies was estimated to be over GBP15,000,000”. TVE identified parts of the Stork filler that failed more often than others. “Greater customer engagement, due to TVE, led to a design change as certain components suffered failure more than others (e.g. universal joint). Customers noted that this level of engagement was not found from our competitors.” (S2)
TVE initiated a change in culture at the dairies. Before TVE, faults were only repaired after breakdown, which meant a loss of production and often higher repair costs. After TVE, dairy staff were actively discussing the TVE outputs to determine when best to schedule repairs without interrupting production. In addition, our technology reduces food waste; Stork estimated that we prevented the waste of 7000 litres of milk during the trial (S2).
Stork engineers improved their skills by combining what they could see on the machine with the results of TVE, which led to more effective filler care, and the promotion of staff who had acquired improved skills and achievements through the project. The General Manager said (S2) “Engineers have also learned how the vibration profiles of the machines change when the machine speed changes. This led to them being able to identify faults quickly at both high and low machine speeds. In the past, only at high machine speeds could they detect faults.”
Innovate UK regarded the results of this double KTP (G3) as ‘outstanding’ and awarded the partnership the top grade in 2014 (S3).
Flight Data Services Ltd
Safety is a major focus of the aviation industry as equipment failures can result in multiple deaths and the loss of aircraft. Annex 6 of the International Civil Aviation Organization’s (ICAO) Convention on International Civil Aviation for aircraft over 27 tonnes stipulates that all such aircraft should undertake flight data monitoring (FDM).
FDS is the world's largest dedicated provider of Flight Data Analysis services encompassing FDM Flight Operations Quality Assurance (FOQA) and FDR Readout technology. Before collaborating with the IIR, data had to be analysed manually, which could take several days. This meant that an aircraft could be flying with a faulty recorder, which would put lives at risk as mechanical faults or dangerous flying would go undetected. Our research into anomaly detection (R1, 2, 4) formed the core technology of Express Readout, the world's first service that automatically detects errors in the flight data recorder, which was launched by FDS in October 2015. Express Readout allowed the FDR to be analysed automatically within minutes at less than half the cost of conventional manual analysis (S1). The Chief Technology Officer at FDS, L3Harris says (S8); “ This automated service is revolutionary for the industry as it provides operators with the ability to test their equipment and generate the necessary documentation faster than ever before”. Additionally, he comments (S8): “ With Express Readout, operators are provided with a much faster and higher level of accuracy when compared with human validation alone; saving time and resources.”
FDS protected this intellectual property (IP), which stems from the above research through a series of patents within the UK, USA and Australia:
Flight data monitoring and validation, UK Patent: GB2494487B (2013), US Patent: US9346557B2 (2016) (S5)
Flight data validation apparatus and method, UK Patent: GB2494569B (2014) (S6)
Flight data monitoring method and system, UK Patent: GB2494553B (2017), Australia Patent: AU2015201517B2 (2016), Australia Patent: AU2015201516B2 (2016), Australia Patent: AU2013205845B2 (2014) (S7)
Based on this IP, L3Harris Technologies Incorporated purchased FDS in June 2019. L3Harris are a global aerospace and defence technology innovator with revenues of 18 billion USD (03-2020) (S9), who are known for their ‘black boxes’ like their SRVIVR25™ line of crash-protected voice and flight data recorders. The sale of FDS (including the intellectual capital behind Express Readout), totalled GBP8,000,000. The importance of IP (including the IP that resulted directly from our research) to this sale is evidenced by the fact that the proportion of this sale that was due to intellectual capital was valued at USD7,000,000 (06-2019) (S4).
In conclusion, the research mentioned from the University of Portsmouth team has generated a combined savings and revenue of GBP20,000,000 in these two industries.
5. Sources to corroborate the impact
(S1) Flight Data Services Website: https://www.flightdataservices.com/2015/10/16/services-express-readout
(S2) Testimonial from General Manager of Stork UK to support financial figures 05/11/2019
(S3) Innovate UK gave outstanding grade to the KTP with Stork - 2014
(S4) Form 8-K L3Harris Technologies 31st July 2019
(S5) Flight data monitoring and validation - patent 2016
(S6) Flight data validation apparatus and method - patent 2013
(S7) Flight data monitoring method and system - patent 2015
(S8) Aerospace Tech Review Article 09/04/2020
(S9) Value of L3Harris Technologies
- Submitting institution
- University of Portsmouth
- Unit of assessment
- 12 - Engineering
- Summary impact type
- Technological
- Is this case study continued from a case study submitted in 2014?
- No
1. Summary of the impact
UoP research has led to the development and implementation of water management technologies. New treatment technologies and site modelling implemented by a major UK water company improved wastewater treatment performance giving enhanced environmental protection and substantial cost savings. Increased performance of novel and enhanced package sewage treatment plants has reduced cost and stimulated commercial growth of SMEs. Research on blue-green water management systems has informed policy, improved environmental protection and provided commercial benefits to industrial collaborators. Lastly, novel soil washing technology has been developed and applied to achieve large scale hydrocarbon remediation at industrial sites.
2. Underpinning research
UoP research has led to the development and implementation of novel wastewater technologies. Research is undertaken at our unique Environmental Technology Field Station (ETFS) or at real-world sites to understand wastewater treatment processes through a combination of fundamental science and engineering approaches. The body of research underpinning the impact is across four technologies in particular:
Conventional Small waste-water treatment works (WwTW)
Package treatment plants
Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS)
Novel materials in combination with natural systems for wastewater treatment
The team apply a range of approaches, for example: focusing on specific pollutants (e.g. phosphorous, hydrocarbons), optimising design and operation, and/or demonstrating the efficacy of technologies in real-world settings.
The UoP ETFS is a unique facility located at a waste-water treatment works which was extensively upgraded in 2015 with a UoP investment of over GBP150,000. Pumped sewage supplies from various WwTW stages allow research at operationally relevant pilot-plant scales. Test bed facilities, including a 20m greenhouse and dedicated laboratories, also allow environmental technologies and monitoring to be assessed at scales and intensities relevant to real world applications. The overarching objective of the multidisciplinary research is to characterise high variable environmental technologies and systems with extensive multivariate monitoring. This alongside detailed mechanistic studies contribute to the design and operation codes for improving the performance of environmental technologies.
Research using large-scale pilot plants at the ETFS currently involves industrial collaborations with the regional water utility Southern Water (SW) (G1) and WPL Ltd (G3, G4). Research with SW encompasses several technologies that address their current Research & Development (R&D) concerns such as increasing the technological options for phosphorus (P) removal from effluents, especially at their hundreds of small waste water treatment plants. Discharge consents are becoming more strict and commonly used options to mitigate negative environmental impacts at large sites, such as chemical (ferric) dosing, pose significant operational challenges at smaller sites, making the same interventions economically unsustainable. A potential alternative is to use granular materials that can remove P from wastewater, utilising mechanisms such as precipitation and adsorption, through passive filters. A key piece of research with SW has therefore been improving the understanding of the kinetics of phosphorous attachment to these “reactive media” through large-scale long-term comparative studies of different media, using real sewage, rather than laboratory simulations (G2). This has highlighted the interaction of uptake rates and ultimate uptake capacity over various flow regimes and hydraulic residence times. This has been augmented by characterisation of deposits using advanced imaging and analysis techniques at the UoP (XRD, XRF, SEM-EDAX) to inform understanding of the mechanisms and potential for nutrient recovery (R1). Some of these materials increase effluent pH, so passive pH correction experiments have also been undertaken to allow these effluents to be released. Other studies with SW have examined immobilised bacteria for P removal and novel methods for optimising and diagnosing WwTW operations, based on modelling and analysis of historic data to improve treatment performance and inform future treatment requirements (R2).
Collaborative R&D with WPL has been in operation throughout this REF period (G3, G4). WPL Ltd provide a range of products and services to the water sector including “package” wastewater treatment plants, where a series of processes in one container provide treatment solutions typically used at small WwTP or where mains sewerage is not available. The application of these technologies are deployed around the world in low, middle and high income countries. Their long established submerged aerated filter range has been refined through a series of monitoring full-scale units installed at the ETFS and operated under modified aeration patterns and various internal configurations. This has informed the development of numerical models to develop optimised aeration and design strategies to reduce energy use.
The group has a >40 year track record of research into blue-green water technologies in the UK and overseas, particularly focussed on using wetland plants to promote treatment (R3, R4, R5, R6). In addition, our focus on wetlands has extended to Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS) and the research at the ETFS has focussed on characterising pollutant removal in vegetated systems. The international consultancy Mott MacDonald and the Highways Agency funded a study of detention ponds to manage flows and treat runoff from trunk roads. This assessed treatment performance and the fate of metals and hydrocarbons, through intensive multivariate monitoring of field systems. This characterised accumulation rates and speciation of metals that were uncertain at the time and key to long term management and performance (R4). Research into the treatment performance of SuDS in housing developments (with infrastructure consultancy Mayer Brown Ltd and the Environment Agency) demonstrated the pollutant removal capacity of swales and vegetated ponds, particularly for metals and hydrocarbons (G5, G6). Following these field studies, modelling studies used computational fluid dynamics to examine how pond geometry can enhance sedimentation, and the understanding of Poly-cyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon removal rates in swales was enhanced through monitoring a 10m greenhouse model fed with simulated storms mimicking polluted road runoff. The various economic, policy and social barriers to SuDS uptake in England were investigated in a NERC Green Infrastructure Innovation project, ProSuDS (R5, G7), which included evaluation of residents’ perceptions (R5). Studies of hydrocarbon treatment in SuDS have also been extended to phytoremediation studies of contaminated land (R6, G8).
3. References to the research
(R1) Benzing. S, F. Couceiro, F., Barnett, S., Williams, J.B., Pearce, P. & Stanford, C. (2020). Impact of hydraulic retention time on phosphorus removal from wastewater using reactive media. Water Science and Technology, 82(12), 2920-2928. https://doi.org/10.2166/wst.2020.526
(R2) Holloway, T.G. Williams, J.B., Ouelhadj, D., & Cleasby, B. (2021). Process stress, stability and resilience in wastewater treatment processes: A novel conceptual methodology, Journal of Cleaner Production, 282, 124434. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.124434
(R3) Stefanakis, A.I., Bardiau, M., Trajano,D., Couceiro, F., Williams, J.B. & Taylor, H. (2019). Presence of bacteria and bacteriophages in full-scale trickling filters and an aerated constructed wetland. Science of The Total Environment, 659, 1135-1145. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.12.415
(R4) Pontier, H., Williams, J.B., & May, E. (2004). Progressive changes in water and sediment quality in a wetland system for control of highway runoff. Science of the Total Environment, 319(1-3), 215-224. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0048-9697(03)00410-8
(R5) Williams, J.B., Jose, R., Moobela, C., Hutchinson, D.J., Wise, R. & Gaterell, M. (2019). Residents’ perceptions of sustainable drainage systems as highly functional blue green infrastructure. Landscape and Urban Planning, 190, 103610. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2019.103610
(R6) Pinchin, H., Williams, J.B., May, E, Mant, C., & Hodkinson, B. (2012). In situ and microcosm investigations into the phytoremediation of hydrocarbon contaminated lagoon sediments using P. australis. Journal of Environmental Engineering, 139(4), 488-495. http://dx.doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)EE.1943-7870.0000591
Statement in support of underpinning research quality
Underpinning research programmes are either original research or research-led innovation studies employing robust design and appropriate techniques, data analysis, and interpretation. These are supported by external funding, either directly from industry or competitively awarded, peer-reviewed funding. All references (R1-R6) are published in relevant peer-reviewed academic journals: R2, 3 and 5 are returned to REF 2021.
Research grant funding
(G1) Williams, J. & Couceiro, F. Innovation Hub for Evaluation of Technologies & Associated Mechanisms for Compliance and Optimal processes in Water and Wastewater. Funded by Southern Water Services Limited, May 2017-April 2020, (GBP1,302,000).
(G2) Williams, J. Assessment of Phosphorus Removal Technologies. Funded by Southern Water Services Limited, October 2016-March 2020, (GBP63,998).
(G3) Williams, J., & Couceiro, F. Improved Energy Performance for HiPAF Sewage Treatment. Funded by WPL Ltd, February 2018-January 2021, (GBP103,000).
(G4) Williams, J. KTP - WPL Ltd. Funded by Department of Trade and Industry and WPL Ltd, June 2004-June 2008, (GBP209,832).
(G5) Williams, J & Mant, C. KTP Mayer Brown Ltd. Funded by the Technology Strategy Board and Mayer Brown Ltd, May 2008 -May 2010, (GBP89,100).
(G6) Williams, J. Sustainable urban drainage systems for pollution control. Funded by the South East England Development Agency, January 2008-September 2008, (GBP17,088).
(G7) Williams, J., Moobela, C., Gaterell, M. & Hutchinson, D. PROSuDs: Providing Real-world Opportunities for Sustainable Drainage Systems. Funded by the Natural Environment Research Council, January 2016-September 2018, (GBP100,453).
(G8) Williams, J. Phytoremediation of Horsea Lagoon. Funded by the Ministry of Defence, February 2007-February 2013, (GBP42,000).
4. Details of the impact
Introduction
Research undertaken at the ETFS has underpinned the development and application of novel wastewater technologies leading to significant commercial and environmental benefits within the REF period. This impact is demonstrated through five key strands:
Improved performance and cost savings for a major UK water company;Influencing national policy for the implementation of SuDS;Economic growth and job creation for UK SMEs;Innovation and new product/service for Kuwaiti energy technology company;Environmental and amenity benefits through strands 2\-4.
Background: Impact through industrial collaboration
A major component of our impact has occurred through collaborative, industrially funded research investigating wastewater treatment mechanisms and performance. Our research has provided an evidence base for improvements to the performance or efficiency of the technology, essentially underpinned by our research contributions that have led to a more complete understanding of the underlying treatment processes, and also the development of independently assessed evidence that can further support the adoption and commercialisation of the technology. This is valuable for SME innovators, as the UK wastewater industry is traditionally risk adverse and requires robust evidence before adopting new technologies.
Impact strand 1: Improved performance and cost savings for a major UK company
The University’s long term strategic partnership with Southern Water (SW) led to “The Hub” being established at the ETFS in 2017. The University employs 2 dedicated full-time scientific officers at The Hub to carry out research onsite and act as a bridge to the research expertise and facilities at the University of Portsmouth thus expanding the R&D capacity of SW. This research has focussed on assessing phosphorus (P) removal from effluents, particularly for small WwTP where increasingly tight discharge consents challenge the efficacy and economic viability of conventional technologies. Southern Water operates 367 WwTW, of which 224 serve <2,000 people and 136 <500. Installing the most common P solution, chemical dosing, could cost over GBP100,000 for each site requiring significant investment and increased costs for customers. A number of technologies have been evaluated to increase SW’s approved list of options, to date this has involved practical research studies into treatment options for P removal such as enhanced dosing/coagulation, electrocoagulation and immobilised bacteria at both the laboratory and pilot plant scales. These studies have resulted in systematic technical reports used by SW in investment decisions and provided design guidance to SW’s Engineering and Technical Services informing in-house design of WwTP. SW stated: "Research outcomes and other support provided by The Hub have increased our options to meet future regulations and reduced our reliance on existing, highly expensive, solutions" (S1). Furthermore, data from these and other studies conducted by the team underpinned new models that enabled simple visualisation of stress to wastewater treatment plan informing operation and capacity at WwTW. This work led SW to a saving of GBP8,500,000 on plans for future investment. SW stated: “The Hub provided an intensive monitoring campaign, analysis and calibration of modelling to assess process resilience in real time, which provided realised capital benefits of GBP8.5million” (S2). SW has also benefited from the contributions that the publicity, conference presentations and academic papers resulting from the collaboration make to its Public Relations strategy, by demonstrating its commitment and investment in improving environmental performance and process efficiency to customers and regulators (S2).
Impact Strand 2: Influencing national policy for the implementation of SuDS
Our research in the use of wetlands and sustainable drainage systems (SuDS) has promoted the national use of nature-based solutions for improving water management; adding to the stock of validated case studies that demonstrate the value of SuDS to policy makers and informing design guidance for pollutant removal. This influenced the 2006 policy of the Highways Agency (Design Manual for Roads and Bridges: Vegetated Drainage Systems for Highway Runoff (DMRB HA 103/06 (S3)), that has seen wider uptake of vegetated SuDS on the road network in the period 2013-2020 (S4). Highways England stated: “This work influenced our policy and informed past and current practice in relation to road runoff control in vegetated systems. Vegetated detention pond systems are now an integral part of highway design and the runoff management treatment providing enhanced environmental protection for many watercourses.” Major infrastructure projects in this period (e.g. A1, A14 improvements) have included vegetated drainage systems designed in accordance with DMRB HA 103/06.
Impact Strand 3: Economic growth and job creation for SMEs
A number of SMEs have also exploited the research expertise and ETFS test facilities to develop novel package sewage treatment plants and improved performance, and therefore competitiveness of existing products. The strongest example of this is the long term collaboration with WPL who, in addition to large scale installations for water utilities, provide package sewage treatment plants to homes and communities not connected to the main sewerage network. The company has used the outcomes of research collaboration to develop a novel package technology for sludge management and made several refinements to the design of the aeration systems of the HiPAF Submerged Aerated Filters that have maintained the competitiveness of this well established technology; WPL sell >50 plants a year ranging in scale from 150 to 1,000 population. WPL stated: **“The research has supported the growth and economic prosperity of a local SME contributing to over GBP3million of sales and an estimated 20 jobs in the supply chain.” (S3). Another SME, Mayer Brown Ltd, exploited the outcomes of our SuDS research to secure new clients. Our research validated the performance of their vegetated SuDS designs in housing developments. This led to commercial benefits in the form of increased sales in the REF period (estimated GBP300,000) (S5).
Impact strand 4: Innovative new product/service for Kuwaiti energy technology company
The team developed expertise in green-blue water technologies for the removal of hydrocarbons (R6). This expertise was developed further through a Kuwaiti government funded PhD that developed a novel soil washing technology using bio-surfactants from natural products and ultrasound. This ex-student has since patented the process in the US and Gulf States (US10072469B2 (S6) and GC0006708 (S7)). The technology has been through several stages of scale-up trials in collaboration with the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research. The technology has been certified for full-scale use by the Kuwait Oil Company and has so far remediated a decommissioned oil production facility and a refinery. The technology is now being applied to other contaminated sites significantly contributing to environmental protection (S8).
Impact strand 5: Environmental and amenity benefits
In addition to the commercial and policy benefits there is a significant environmental benefit arising from the implementation of the technologies described in impact strands (IS) 2 to 4: SuDS built to design standard DMRB HA 103/06 in the period (IS2), small-scale WwTP installed by WPL Ltd (IS3), and the two field sites for the novel hydrocarbon remediation (IS4). Benefits are reduced pollution, and enhanced ecological and amenity quality in natural water bodies.
5. Sources to corroborate the impact
(S1) Letter of support Southern Water
(S2) Letter of support from WPL Ltd
(S3) Design Manual for Roads and Bridges
(S4) Letter of support Highways England 30/11/2020
(S5) Letter of support Buckland Developments
(S6) US patent US 2017/0136504 A1: Meshari AlMutari
(S7) Gulf States Patent GC0006708: Meshari AlMutari
(S8) Letter of support Enertech Holding Company Kuwait 13/12/2020
- Submitting institution
- University of Portsmouth
- Unit of assessment
- 12 - Engineering
- Summary impact type
- Technological
- Is this case study continued from a case study submitted in 2014?
- No
1. Summary of the impact
Significant commercial impacts have been achieved, including substantial economic gains, new product creation, technology improvements, commercial visibility, job creation and new medical insights based on groundbreaking research undertaken by the University of Portsmouth (UoP) Zeiss Global Centre (ZGC) in X-ray computed tomography (XCT) for bioengineering.
This multidisciplinary research has pushed the boundaries of lab-based 3D X-ray microscopy and was conducted in close collaboration with international industry partners operating in bioengineering (Biotrics, GSK), imaging (Zeiss, Thermofisher Scientific, LaVision) as well as UK National Facilities (Diamond Light Source) and healthcare professionals (consultant orthopaedic surgeons at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital, London).
2. Underpinning research
This Case Study is focusing on the use of X-ray imaging (computed tomography – CT) for the analysis and evaluation of biomaterials and biological tissues for bioengineering research.
Research environment
Since 2011 research has developed at the UoP combining X-ray computed tomography (XCT) and in situ mechanical evaluation of biological tissues and biomaterials. This has been achieved through the use of emerging techniques such as digital volume correlation (DVC), which is today recognised worldwide as a UoP specialism in the Bioengineering community (as exemplified by a recent invited Frontiers Webinar on the topic form the Journal of the Mechanical Behavior of Biomedical Materials: https://youtu.be/2v_aH32g778). This expertise is reflected in the establishment in 2016 of the Zeiss Global Centre (ZGC) http://bit.ly/ZGCUoP through a strategic partnership with Carl Zeiss Ltd. The ZGC supports research across different faculties/departments at UoP and involves many collaborators in Europe and worldwide.
Importance of the research
In-depth understanding of tissue/biomaterial morphological, mechanical and functional properties in healthy and pathological conditions is of vital importance and fully aligned with the remit of UKRI themes such as EPSRC Healthcare Technologies (e.g Developing Future Therapies, Optimising Treatment). Technological advances in XCT-based research of biological tissues and biomaterials, incorporating additional evaluations such as mechanics and DVC, has enabled this understanding and brought about new knowledge that has provided a novel platform for the treatment of musculoskeletal conditions and oral care, and has translated into economic and technological growth for organisations.
Research at UoP
Prior to 2014, XCT-based technology in the field of bioengineering, particularly in musculoskeletal research, was predominantly dedicated to obtaining detailed subject-specific geometries to assess morphology (e.g. bone morphometric parameters) or aid more detailed numerical simulation (e.g. subject-specific finite element models). Techniques such as XCT-based digital volume correlation (DVC) were still relatively unknown in biomaterials research and completely unexplored in the field of dentistry and oral care, in part due to the limited presence and availability of commercial DVC software solutions. In fact, paper (R1, 2013) is considered to be the first UK research to use a commercial DVC in the bio-area. From that paper, it was evident how the unique ability of DVC in capturing 3D full-field strains only from XCT images would lead a step-change in the understanding of the mechanical performance of biomaterials in both simulated and real biological environments, particularly for the healthcare industry. Another vital question that was not fully addressed in the previous REF period, given the relative infancy of the technique, was in relation to the reliability of displacement/strain measurement in tissues and biomaterials from different DVC strategies and software solutions, as this could obviously jeopardise any mechanical evaluation from the technique. This problem was even more important when thinking to scale DVC measurement based on lower-resolution XCT images, such as the ones from clinical CT and in particular new emerging weight-bearing CT systems (e.g. pedCAT, Curvebeam, launched in 2013). Thus, hampering any reliable translation of the technology into clinical practice for the assessment of pathologies and trauma.
Research conducted at UoP by Gianluca Tozzi since 2014 focused on enhancing knowledge and translation to impact in:
Function/structure relationship of biological tissues and biomaterials through advanced XCT imaging and DVC analysis. Work carried out in this area includes comprehensive evaluation of bone (R2), teeth (R3), and biomaterials (R4, R5) via XCT-based evaluations both in vitro and ex vivo. The work pushed the boundaries of XCT in such materials and established new criteria to use digital volume correlation (DVC) technique for understanding tissue micromechanics.
Scaling up XCT/DVC to clinical CT. Important research has been recently conducted to propose DVC as a diagnostic tool to understand musculoskeletal mechanics (i.e. subtalar joint motion), with the aim to develop ad-hoc joint replacements (currently not available on the market) to be used in pathological conditions such as osteoarthritis (R6).
3. References to the research
(R1) Madi, K., Tozzi, G., Zhang, Q.-H., Tong, J., Cossey, A., Au, A., Hollis, D. & Hild, F. (2013). Computation of full-field displacement in a scaffold implant using Digital Volume Correlation and Finite Element Analysis. Medical Engineering & Physics 35(9), 1298-1312. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.medengphy.2013.02.001
(R2) Palanca, M., Tozzi, G., Cristofolini, L., Viceconti, M., & Dall'Ara, E. (2015). 3D Local Measurements of bone strain and displacement: Comparison of three Digital Volume Correlation approaches. Journal of Biomechanical Engineering, 137(7), 071006. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.4030174
(R3) Lu, X., Pena Fernandez, M., Bradley, R., Rawson, S., O'Brian, M., Hornberger, B., Leibowitz, M., Tozzi, G., & Withers, P. (2019). Anisotropic crack propagation and deformation in dentin observed by four-dimensional x-ray nano-computed tomography. Acta Biomaterialia, 96, 400-411. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actbio.2019.06.042
(R4) Tozzi, G., Zhang, Q.-H., & Tong, J. (2014). Microdamage assessment of bone-cement interfaces under monotonic and cyclic compression. Journal of Biomechanics, 47(14), 3466-3474. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiomech.2014.09.012
(R5) Peña Fernández, M., Dall׳Ara, E., Bodey, A., Parwani, R., Barber, A., Blunn, G. & Tozzi, G. (2019). Full-field strain analysis of bone-biomaterial systems produced by the implantation of osteoregenerative biomaterials in an ovine model. ACS Biomaterials Science and Engineering 5, 2543-2554. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsbiomaterials.8b01044
(R6) Peña Fernández, M., Hoxha, D., Chan, O., Mordecai, S., Blunn, G., Tozzi, G. & Goldberg, A., (2020). Centre of rotation of the human subtalar joint using weight-bearing clinical computed tomography. Scientific Reports, 10(14), 1035. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-57912-z
Evidence for the quality of research
These outputs are a representative selection of related work. All employ robust design, appropriate research techniques and are published in respected peer-reviewed academic journals that are relevant to the discipline. For example, R1 is a pivotal paper for DVC application in the area of Biomaterials and cited 79 times; R2 was Editors' Choice paper for 2015 and cited 60 times; R4 is the first paper on use of DVC in bone-biomaterial systems and cited 38 times; R6 has attracted world-wide media attention (e.g. http://bit.ly/XrayUoP) and already cited 4 times.
Research grant funding
(G1) Tozzi, G. In situ XCT & DVC of MG-based bone-screw and plate-screw systems - continuation. Funded by Biotrics Bioimplants GmbH, January 2020-July 2021 (GBP93,578)
(G2) Tozzi, G. In situ XCT & DVC of MG-based bone-screw and plate-screw systems. Funded by Biotrics Bioimplants GmbH, January 2019-January 2020 (GBP92,475)
(G3) Tozzi, G. & Barber, A. 4D MicroCT Evaluation and Digital Volume Correlations (DVC) of Mg-Based Alloys. Funded by Botiss Medical AG, February 2018-July 2021 (GBP52,500).
(G4) Tozzi, G & Roldo, M. Development of imaging capability to evaluate biofilm removal from dentures. Funded by GlaxoSmithKline, January 2020-May 2020 (GBP24,527).
(G5) Tozzi, G. Multiscale Imaging and Mechanical Evaluation of Biomaterials in the Oral Cavity. Funded by GlaxoSmithKline, November 2017-January 2018 (GBP32,020)
(G6) Tozzi, G. (PI). DVC Application to Clinical CT Images. Funded by University College London, March 2018-September 2018 (GBP5,000).
(G7) Tozzi, G., Barber, A., Lupton, C., & Karabela, A. SR-microCT assessment of bone-biomaterial integration for osteoregenerative biomaterials. Funded by Diamond Light Source, May 2016 (GBP76,800)
4. Details of the impact
This research has had significant commercial impact for companies in the global optoelectronics, digital visualisation and bioimplants industries, as well as impact for the health profession and data analysis services provided by the Diamond Light Source. Specifically, this has led to impact for:
Carl Zeiss Ltd. (Microscopy), whose strategic priorities for their microscopy solutions were influenced by our work in the characterisation of biomaterials, enabling them to increase their market presence in that area (S1, S8, S9).
LaVision UK Ltd, a software company who improved their product on the basis of our research returning increased income (S2).
Thermo Fisher Scientific, a major scientific equipment manufacturer who used our data to launch new software solutions (S3, S10).
Biotrics bioimplants GmbH, a provider of bioimplants who have optimised product design and manufacturing processes and produced two new product lines, as well as taken on new staff and allocated additional R&D budget (S4).
GlaxoSmithKline plc (Consumer Healthcare), a world-leading provider of oral care products who improved their products, substantiated their marketing claims and captured significant income (S5).
The orthopaedic foot and ankle clinical profession, whose fundamental understanding of how the ankle works was changed (S6).
The Diamond Light Source, by enhancing its tomography services to industry and academia through the first benchmark validation of the Savu tomographic reconstruction, a high-throughput system for high-quality tomographic reconstruction of large datasets across Diamond (S7).
Increasing market presence and supporting strategic prioritisation
In the Zeiss Global Centre at UoP, Tozzi’s team undertook collaborative research with Carl Zeiss Ltd. into the competence of biological structures and biomaterials through advanced XCT, showcasing Zeiss capability and technology in XCT (R5). Since 2019, the research at ZGC has supported Zeiss promotional activities (S8) including the first use of phase-contrast capability in Zeiss Versa systems to resolve and mechanically evaluate (via DVC) cartilage-bone interface (S9). All this helped Zeiss to increase their presence in the biomaterials application field and due to Tozzi’s research, the biomaterials topic has now become a strategic priority at Zeiss by steering the direction of their Materials Science Sector team in the future development of applications in this area (S1).
Improved products and equipment for measuring strain for bioengineering applications
In order to allow reliable measurement of displacement/strain in any engineering materials, including biomaterials, a deeper understanding of different DVC software strategies was conducted (R2). The work was of major interest to DVC software developers such as LaVision, who relied on that knowledge to improve the correlation workflow in their latest commercial package (DaVis10). LaVision are the leading supplier of laser imaging systems in top selling application fields like fluid mechanics (e.g. aerodynamics, microfluidics), combustion (e.g. automotive, power generation) as well as spray and particle diagnostics (e.g. engines, pharma). As a result of Tozzi’s research, the improved software solution, since its launch in November 2017, has been utilised by other academics working in the field of bioengineering generating considerable income for LaVision (~GBP150,000) and delivering specific benefits to LaVision clients (S2).
Furthermore, the constant advancement and dissemination of the technique from the research attracted the attention of Thermo Fisher Scientific, a leading global provider of software applications, ranging from acquisition and imaging automation frameworks to advanced 3D data quantification and simulation digital solutions. Thermo Fisher Scientific developed an appetite for development and commercialisation of a new DVC module (2017) to be used within their existing Avizo platform (S10). In this case, this new package performance was finely tuned by using a dataset of XCT images of bone-biomaterial systems from (R4), which provided the required level of complexity to test the correlation strategy in this new DVC software. Since the launch of the product in 2017, the Avizo DVC module has had a significant impact on their sales in the material and living sciences, with several dozen customers using it daily to compute 3D full-field displacement and strains in materials (S3).
Commercial benefits for industry in the area of biomaterials for orthopaedics and oral care
The ZGC at UoP has established two major research collaborations with Biotrics bioimplants and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK).
Biotrics is operating in the area of biodegradable biomaterials such as Magnesium(Mg)-based alloys. Due to our research in bone-biomaterial systems [R4, R6], they have implemented advanced XCT and DVC at ZGC to fully characterise the mechanics-corrosion interplay in a range of their Mg products (both in vitro and ex vivo). Three funded projects (total of ~GBP250,000 (G1-3)) were aimed at optimising product design and manufacturing processes, and ultimately commercialising the latest generation of scaffolds for improved clinical performance. As a result, since 2019 the Mg-based implant area has become a strategic priority in Biotrics, which has contributed to the hiring of 10 scientific/technical staff and allocated a budget for magnesium research and development in the region of EUR5million (S7).
GSK is one of the world-leading over-the-counter (OTC) healthcare companies with business-generated sales of GBP9 billion in 2019. The ZGC has been collaborating with GSK since 2016 on a number of projects (most recently (G4, G5) for a total funding of ~GBP56,000) using XCT-based technology. As a result, GSK has been able to refine and further develop their oral care products and technology in the field of denture care, where the work substantiated the launch claims and expert marketing for a new ultrasonic denture bath for the Japan market, totalling GBP1.7million in innovation sales (S5). Also, due to our recent use of DVC in tooth biomechanics (R3), there is now an interest within Microbiological Sciences and Oral Care Innovation at GSK to use the brushing model combined with XCT and DVC for future product development.
Impact for the health profession: Changing the fundamental understanding of how the ankle works
Our published research in Nature Scientific Reports (R6), from research funded in 2017 (G6), has enabled the use of DVC for an unprecedented understanding of human subtalar joint mechanics from clinical images. The Director of the London Ankle & Arthritis Centre and national lead for ankle replacements on behalf of the British Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society stating that: ‘ This was a highly novel finding and information has had a fundamental impact on our understanding of how this complex joint works, its role in ankle sprains, instability in the case of flat feet (which affects more than 20% of the population), and in the development of ankle and foot arthritis. To date, the subtalar joint is still treated by fusion which is a procedure to stiffen the joint and remove any motion. The longer-term consequence of this is gradual wear and tear of adjacent joints and progressive pain and disability. This research is paving the way for a new joint replacement for the subtalar joint, which will be the biggest advance in foot and ankle surgery of the century’ (S6).
Enhancing Diamond Light Source tomography services to academia and industry
Research undertaken with the STFC-funded Diamond Light Source (G7, R5) served as the first benchmark validation of the Savu tomographic reconstruction toolkit (S7), which since 2016 is the standard procedure implemented and used by all the users (academia and industry) at Diamond.
5. Sources to corroborate the impact
(S1) Testimonial letter from Jatin Ladha (Account Manager at ZEISS Research Microscopy Solutions) as representative of Carl Zeiss Ltd 23/12/2020.
(S2) Testimonial letter from Dave Hollis (Technical Director for LaVision UK) as representative of LaVision 11/11/2020.
(S3) Testimonial letter from Laurent Galmiche (Senior Sales Manager for MSD Division) as representative of Thermo Fisher Scientific 05/03/2021.
(S4) Testimonial letter from Frank Witte (Chief Scientist Officer and Chief Technology Officer for Magnesium Technology) as representative of Biotrics 04/01/2021.
(S5) Testimonial letter from Rob Howlin (Senior Microbiologist at GSK Consumer Healthcare) as representative of GSK 23/12/2020.
(S6) Testimonial letter from Andy Goldberg (Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon and Director of the London Ankle & Arthritis Centre) 30/12/2020.
(S7) Online source for SAVU software at Diamond Light Source
(S8) Online source for Zeiss promotional activity in relation to the Musculoskeletal research
(S9) Online source for Zeiss promotional activity in relation to the cartilage-bone research
(S10) Online source for Thermo Fisher Scientific DVC module in relation to the research