Meet Research Fellow, Dr Sepidar Sayyer.
What is your role at ANFF Materials?
I am working as a research fellow and materials scientist at ANFF Material’s UOW node.
What is your area of expertise and what kind of experience do you have in this area?
My area of expertise is in materials development, materials characterisation and device fabrication. I have extensive experience in the development, processing and characterisation of nanocarbon materials and composites as well as prototyping and fabrication of devices and structures for industrial and biomedical applications.
I also have expertise in materials characterisation and data analysis, particularly in developing and performing mechanical, rheological and thermal characterisation techniques for materials and structures.
What are some of the projects and collaborations you are currently working on?
Over the past few years, I have been working with our multi-disciplinary team here at UOW. My current collaborative highlights include; the development of a 3D printer for 3D printing prosthetics, the iFix system (the development and characterisation of bioinks) and the Sutrode project (the development of novel graphene-based fibres as a new electrical stimulation device).
What are the future outlook of these projects?
The development of a 3D printer for 3D printing silicone materials would be a revolutionary breakthrough in creating prosthetics. Using this technique, facial prosthetics can be fabricated in a high speed and precision through a sustainable additive manufacturing method.
The iFix system is a novel medical treatment technology for corneal disease and injuries. By using a hand-held device that delivers a bioink, corneal defects can be treated faster with greater transparency to aid visual rehabilitation.
The Sutrode is a graphene-based fibre developed to be used as an electrical stimulation device. The Sutrode can overcome the shortcomings of pharmaceutical drugs by delivering targeted electrical stimulation to the neural circuits of specific tissues and organs.
How is this work being translated into real applications?
All these projects are in collaboration with domestic and international researchers and clinicians to ensure the translation of the technology into real applications.
The development of silicone 3D printer is a collaboration between Sydney, Wollongong and Deakin University in Australia and AMTZ and MERF in India, to develop bilateral Bioprinting research through clinical trial and workshops.
The iFix project is a collaboration between researchers at UOW/ANFF/TRICEP and corneal specialist and ophthalmic surgeons at University of Sydney.
The Sutrude development, lastly, is is in collaboration with University of Texas at Dallas to conduct in-vivo clinical trials.