Dr Matthew Wadge
Dr Matthew Wadge BSc (Hons), PhD, MIMMM, FIBMS
Third Century Fellow in Surface Engineering
My profile
Biography
I am a Third Century Research Fellow in Surface Engineering at Manchester Metropolitan University, having joined in November 2024 from the Advanced Materials Research Group at the University of Nottingham (UoN). I hold a First-Class BSc (Hons) degree in Biomedical Materials Science, and a PhD in Materials Engineering and Materials Design, both from the University of Nottingham, having completed my PhD in August 2020. I previously held the post of EPSRC Doctoral Prize Fellow (2020-2021). My research primarily focusses on the production of thin film coatings via wet chemical and PVD methodologies, specifically magnetron sputtering for a plethora of different applications, including biomaterials, energy storage, water treatment and electrocatalysis. My previous fellowship investigated the development of new high pressure (>1000 bar), ambient temperature intermetallic alloys for hydrogen storage systems (H2COOL).
Previous research during my Doctoral Prize Fellowship investigated the self-assembly of microspheres into 3D constructs utilising alkaline titanate structures to do so, with the view to generate a platform technology using these materials. I have received a number of prestigious prizes including: The Armourers and Brasiers’ Best PhD Student and Best BSc/BEng Student of the Year Awards (2020 & 2018, respectively), presentation prizes at both National (UKSB, Future Materials, etc.) and International (ESB and WBC) conferences, being named as one of ‘15 under 30’ to look out for in Materials Science by Materials World, as well as being a National Finalist in the IOM3 Younger Persons Lecture Competition (2019). I was awarded the 2024 Silver Medal by the IOM3 for “outstanding contribution in materials, minerals or mining (early career)”.
I have also taken on additional voluntary roles as a STEM outreach ambassador for the Pint of Science festivals (2017-2020), as well as being a Committee Member for the Engineering Research Futures (University of Nottingham). I have helped organise and co-ordinate the Pint of Science festival, first as an event manager (2017-18), then as the city co-ordinator for Nottingham (2018-19), as well as my most recent role as one of the National advisors to the Pint of Science central team (2019-20). I co-ordinated a sell-out festival in 2018/19, with over 1500 attendees; 3rd largest festival turnout in the UK, including a sell-out event (over 400 attendees) with astronaut Dr. Michael Foale CBE. The Engineering Research Futures Committee aimed at improving research culture for researchers, which received recognition through being awarded a Tri-Campus Award (UoN).
I hold several professional memberships, including Member of the IOM3 (MIMMM), Fellow of the Institute of Biomedical Sciences (FIBMS), Alumnus of the Armourers and Brasiers, as well as Membership of the UK and European Biomaterials Society and the East Midlands Materials Society. I have reviewed for international journals, including Biomaterials, International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Journal of Nanostructure in Chemistry Journal of the European Ceramic Society, Surface & Coatings Technology, Advanced Engineering Materials and Infectious Disease Reports, as well as for EPSRC grants. I have supervised over 25 Undergraduate/Masters students, and 4 PhD researchers, as well as previously heading the Thin Films and Induction Melter laboratories (UoN).
Teaching
Supervision
Matthew has supervised 28 Undergraduate/Masters projects, as well as 4 PhD Students:
Dr Jonathan Wilson (2020-2024) Thesis Title: Novel Bi-layer Coatings for the Protection and Functionalisation of Magnesium-based Medical Alloys
Mr Alex McGrath (2020-2024; ongoing) Thesis Title: Synthesis and Characterisation of Metal Alloys for Hydrogen Storage and Related Applications
Mx Elizabeth Agathanggelou (2023-2027) Thesis Title: Dual Energy Store for Refrigerated Transportation
Mr Andrew Gray (2023-2027) Thesis Title: Next Generation Solid State Hydriding Materials for Compressors
Research outputs
Key Published Topics: Magnetron Sputtering, Alkaline Titanates, Wet Chemical Modification, Corrosion, Biodegradable Materials, Hydrogen Storage Alloys
-
Journal articles
Adams, M.J., Wadge, M.D., Sheppard, D., Stuart, A., Grant, D.M. (2024) 'Review on onshore and offshore large-scale seasonal hydrogen storage for electricity generation: Focusing on improving compression, storage, and roundtrip efficiency.' International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, 73pp. 95-111.
Wadge, M.D., Agyakwa, P.A., Felfel, R.M., Homer, R., Cooper, T.P., Kudrynskyi, Z.R., Lester, E., Ahmed, I., Grant, D.M. (2024) 'Self-assembled titanium-based macrostructures with hierarchical (macro-, micro-, and nano) porosities: A fundamental study.' Materials & Design, 240
McGrath, A.J., Wadge, M.D., Adams, M., Manickam, K., Ling, S., Walker, G.S., Grant, D.M. (2024) 'Stoichiometry and annealing condition on hydrogen capacity of TiCr2-x AB2 alloys.' International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, 53pp. 582-591.
Wadge, M.D., McGuire, J., Thomas, K.G., Stuart, B.W., Felfel, R.M., Ahmed, I., Grant, D.M. (2023) 'Developing alkaline titanate surfaces for medical applications.' International Materials Reviews, 68(6) pp. 677-724.
Witman, M.D., Ling, S., Wadge, M., Bouzidi, A., Pineda-Romero, N., Clulow, R., Ek, G., Chames, J.M., Allendorf, E.J., Agarwal, S., Allendorf, M.D., Walker, G.S., Grant, D.M., Sahlberg, M., Zlotea, C., Stavila, V. (2023) 'Towards Pareto optimal high entropy hydrides via data-driven materials discovery.' Journal of Materials Chemistry A, 11(29) pp. 15878-15888.
Wadge, M.D., Lowther, M., Cooper, T.P., Reynolds, W.J., Speidel, A., Carter, L.N., Rabbitt, D., Kudrynskyi, Z.R., Felfel, R.M., Ahmed, I., Clare, A.T., Grant, D.M., Grover, L.M., Cox, S.C. (2023) 'Tailoring absorptivity of highly reflective Ag powders by pulsed-direct current magnetron sputtering for additive manufacturing processes.' Journal of Materials Processing Technology, 317
Woodliffe, J.L., Molinar-Díaz, J., Islam, M.T., Stevens, L.A., Wadge, M.D., Rance, G.A., Ferrari, R., Ahmed, I., Laybourn, A. (2023) 'Rapid synthesis of magnetic microspheres and the development of new macro–micro hierarchically porous magnetic framework composites.' Journal of Materials Chemistry A, 11(27) pp. 14705-14719.
Wadge, M.D., Bird, M.A., Sankowski, A., Constantin, H., Fay, M.W., Cooper, T.P., O'Shea, J.N., Khlobystov, A.N., Walsh, D.A., Johnson, L.R., Felfel, R.M., Ahmed, I., Grant, D.M. (2023) 'Nanostructured, Alkaline Titanate‐Converted, and Heat‐Treated Ti6Al4V Microspheres via Wet‐Chemical Alkaline Modification and their ORR Electrocatalytic Response.' Advanced Materials Interfaces, 10(5)
Felton, J., Blundo, E., Kudrynskyi, Z., Ling, S., Bradford, J., Pettinari, G., Cooper, T., Wadge, M., Kovalyuk, Z., Polimeni, A., Beton, P., Grant, D., Walker, G., Patanè, A. (2022) 'Hydrogen-Induced Conversion of SnS2 into SnS or Sn: A Route to Create SnS2/SnS Heterostructures.' Small, 18(33)
Wadge, M.D., Carrington, M.J., Constantin, H., Orange, K., Greaves, J., Islam, M.T., Zakir Hossain, K.M., Cooper, T.P., Kudrynskyi, Z.R., Felfel, R.M., Ahmed, I., Grant, D.M. (2022) 'Characterization of potential nanoporous sodium titanate film formation on Ti6Al4V and TiO2 microspherical substrates via wet-chemical alkaline conversion.' Materials Characterization, 185
Speidel, A., Wadge, M.D., Gargalis, L., Cooper, T.P., Reynolds, W., Grant, D., Hague, R., Clare, A.T., Murray, J.W. (2022) 'The interaction of volatile metal coatings during the laser powder bed fusion of copper.' Journal of Materials Processing Technology, 299
Felfel, R.M., Parsons, A.J., Chen, M., Stuart, B.W., Wadge, M.D., Grant, D.M. (2021) 'Water resistant fibre/matrix interface in a degradable composite: synergistic effects of heat treatment and polydopamine coating.' Composites Part A: Applied Science and Manufacturing, 146
Wadge, M.D., McGuire, J., Hanby, B.V.T., Felfel, R.M., Ahmed, I., Grant, D.M. (2021) 'Tailoring the degradation rate of magnesium through biomedical nano-porous titanate coatings.' Journal of Magnesium and Alloys, 9(1) pp. 336-350.
Wadge, M.D., Turgut, B., Murray, J.W., Stuart, B.W., Felfel, R.M., Ahmed, I., Grant, D.M. (2020) 'Developing highly nanoporous titanate structures via wet chemical conversion of DC magnetron sputtered titanium thin films.' Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, 566pp. 271-283.
Coe, S.C., Wadge, M.D., Felfel, R.M., Ahmed, I., Walker, G.S., Scotchford, C.A., Grant, D.M. (2020) 'Production of high silicon-doped hydroxyapatite thin film coatings via magnetron sputtering: deposition, characterisation, and in vitro biocompatibility.' Coatings, 10(2)
Arafat, A., Samad, S.A., Wadge, M.D., Islam, M.T., Lewis, A.L., Barney, E.R., Ahmed, I. (2020) 'Thermal and crystallization kinetics of yttrium-doped phosphate-based glasses.' International Journal of Applied Glass Science, 11(1) pp. 120-133.
Parsons, A.J., Felfel, R.M., Wadge, M.D., Grant, D.M. (2020) 'Improved phosphate-based glass fiber performance achieved through acid etch/polydopamine treatment.' International Journal of Applied Glass Science, 11(1) pp. 35-45.
Wadge, M.D., Stuart, B.W., Thomas, K.G., Grant, D.M. (2018) 'Generation and characterisation of gallium titanate surfaces through hydrothermal ion-exchange processes.' Materials and Design, 155pp. 264-277.
-
Conference papers
Kudrynskyi, Z.R., Connor, P.H., Cooper, T.P., Wadge, M.D., Kerfoot, J., Zheng, X., Felfel, R.M., Korolkov, V.V., Kubal, M., Gerada, C., Grant, D.M. (2024) 'All-Inorganic Electrical Insulation Systems for High-Power Density Electrical Machines.'
Career history
November 2024 - Present
Third Century Fellow in Surface Engineering, Manchester Metropolitan University
December 2021 - October 2024
Research Fellow in Hydrogen Storage Materials, University of Nottingham
October 2021 - December 2021
Research Fellow in Catheter Lubricity, University of Nottingham
October 2020 - October 2021
EPSRC Doctoral Prize Fellow, University of Nottingham
October 2017 - October 2020
PhD in Materials Engineering and Materials Design, University of Nottingham
October 2014 - October 2017
BSc. (Hons) in Biomedical Materials Science, University of Nottingham