Dr Colin L Freeman

MSci Chemistry, PhD
Research Associate (Modelling)

Address:
Department of Materials Science and Engineering
Sir Robert Hadfield Building
Mappin Street, Sheffield, S1 3JD

Telephone: +44 (0) 114 222 5965
Fax: +44 (0) 114 222 5943

Email: c.l.freeman@sheffield.ac.uk

Colin Freeman was awarded a MSci in Chemistry from University College London in 2002. He then moved to the Chemistry department at the University of Bristol where he studied for a PhD in “Simulations of Solid Solutions and Interfaces” . He continued at Bristol where he was a research associate for six months before moving to Sheffield in 2006. At Sheffield Dr Freeman pioneered research into atomic simulations of the material-molecule interface for the study of biominerals. Since completing this project he has been working on a range of simulation projects including electroceramics, biominerals and interfaces.

Research interests

My specialisation is computational simulation of molecules and material systems and their interfaces. I am particularly interested in understanding the influence materials and minerals and exert of biological molecules by altering molecular properties and similarly how molecules are able to influence material properties or control the crystallisation of a material.

Current research

Current research includes the study of the following systems:

• Calcite growth in biominerals.
• DNA interactions with silica surfaces.
• Doping in Barium Titanate.
• Iron oxide formation via biological molecules.
• Lithium battery cathode materials.
• ZnO and wurtzite thin film growth.
• Garnet minerals and defect partioning.
• Properties of quintinery alloys.
• Materials for nuclear processes.
• Prediction of Magnetic properties in materials.

Key publications

• Freeman C.L., Dawson J.A., Chen H.R., Harding J.H., Ben L.B., Sinclair D.C., A new potential model for barium titanate and its implications for rare-earth doping, Journal Of Materials Chemistry 21(13), (2011), 4861-4868.
• Freeman C.L., Harding J.H., Quigley D., Rodger P.M., Structural Control of Crystal Nuclei by an Eggshell Protein, Angewandte Chemie International Edition, 49(30), (2010), 5135-5137.
• Freeman C.L., Duffy D.M., Harding J.H., Simulations of Calcite Crystallisation on Self-Assembled Monolayers, Langmuir, 24, (2008), 9607.
• Freeman C.L., Harding, J.H., Cooke D.J., Elliot J.A., Lardge J.S., Duffy D.M., New Forcefields for Modeling Biomineralization Processes, Journal Of Physical Chemistry C 111(32), (2007), 11943.
• Freeman C.L., Allan, N.L., van Westrenen W., Local cation environments in the pyrope-grossular Mg₃Al₂Si₃O₁₂-Ca₃Al₂Si₃O₁₂ garnet solid solution, Physical Review B, 74(13), 134203 (2006).
• Freeman C.L., Claeyssens F., Allan N.L., Harding J.H., Graphitic nanofilms as precursors to wurtzite films: Theory, Physical Review Letters, 96(6), 066102, (2006).

Conferences

Structure-Property Relationships in Hierarchical Biocomposites
July 16, 2012 to July 18, 2012
Location : CECAM-HQ-EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland