Andrea Hamilton

Dr. Andrea Hamilton serves as a Senior Lecturer in Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Strathclyde's Faculty of Engineering. Her research bridges environmental remediation and advanced materials science, focusing on sustainable solutions for water treatment, mine water valorisation, and nuclear waste containment. She leads externally funded projects from NERC and Scottish Enterprise, addressing critical challenges in heavy metal sequestration and construction material durability while contributing to UN Sustainable Development Goals for clean water and sustainable infrastructure.

Dr. Hamilton's research spans environmental engineering, materials science, and geochemistry with emphasis on mineral sequestration for heavy metal removal (cobalt/nickel), water-vapour permeability in construction materials, and hydroxyapatite-based radiological barriers. Her work on cementitious systems for nuclear waste containment and mine water remediation employs synchrotron techniques (XRF/XRD) for impurity analysis and material characterization, aligning with SDG 6 (clean water) and SDG 11 (sustainable cities).

Analysis of her 2023-2024 publications reveals concentrated innovation in environmental remediation technologies. Key themes include low-cost calcium silicate hydrate materials for cobalt sequestration, advanced water-vapour permeability measurement techniques, and hydroxyapatite coatings for radiological containment. Her interdisciplinary approach integrates chemistry, materials engineering, and environmental science to develop scalable solutions for industrial wastewater treatment and sustainable construction, demonstrating strong translational potential for mining and nuclear sectors.

No scientific awards or fellowships are documented in the provided information.

Dr. Hamilton actively supervises postgraduate researchers and secures competitive research funding:

• Postgraduate Students:
  • Bao Liu (cobalt sequestration research)
  • Han Zhou (calcium silicate hydrate development)
  • R. Maddalena (hydrothermal synthesis)
• Current Grants:
  • A combined geochemical and biosorption tool for mine water clean-up (NERC, 2025-2026)
  • CONi – Critical metals sequester technology (Scottish Enterprise, 2024-2025)
• Past Projects:
  • Clean-up of divalent cobalt/nickel ions (2022)
  • Effect of high temperatures on cement backfill (2021-2025)
  • Advanced characterisation of salt-cements (2021-2028)

Her laboratory utilizes specialized equipment including AFM Asylum Cypher and AFM Nikon Eclipse for nanoscale materials characterization. The research team collaborates across chemical engineering, physics, and environmental science disciplines, engaging with mining and construction industry partners on sustainable material development. Current initiatives focus on integrating biosorption techniques with geochemical processes for mine water valorisation and advancing cementitious barriers for nuclear waste containment through multi-institutional consortia.