Dr Georgina Zimbitas PhD

School of Chemical Engineering
Post-Doctoral Research Fellow

Contact details

Telephone: +44 (0) 121 414 5276
Email: g.zimbitas@bham.ac.uk

Address: School of Chemical Engineering
University of Birmingham
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B15 2TT

Georgina Zimbitas is a Post-doctoral Research Fellow with extensive knowledge in the field of surface science. In the past she has researched the interactions of gases and solids in extreme conditions - from ultra-high vacuum to high temperature furnace environments – and is now investigating the interactions of solids with liquids in the forms of thin films and foams.

She is interested in not only experimental but also theoretical aspects of her work, having published both experimental studies and numerical simulations.

Georgina enjoys learning new techniques and methods and as such is enthusiastic and contributive in her supervising of students. She also actively seeks out to take part in administrative aspects of her project, putting to good use her organisational skills.

Qualifications

Post-Doctoral Research Fellow, 2014, Dept. of Chemical Engineering, University of Birmingham, UK
Post-Doctoral Researcher, 2008, Mechanical, Maritime and Materials Engineering (3ME), TU Delft, NL
PhD in Physical Chemistry, Surface Science Research Centre, University of Liverpool, 2007, UK
BSc in Applied Chemistry, 1997, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (R.M.I.T), AUS

Biography

Georgina qualified with a BSc from RMIT Australia in 1997. She then moved to Greece where she obtained a licence to teach English as a foreign language and as such taught both English and Chemistry before deciding to acquire a higher education degree. She was awarded a PhD in Physical Chemistry from the University of Liverpool, UK, in 2007. Whilst there she used ultra-high vacuum conditions/techniques such as LEED, TPD and molecular beams.

In 2008 she began working as a Post-doctoral researcher at the Department of Mechanical, Maritime and Materials Engineering (3ME) of TU Delft, Netherlands. Here she used high-temperature furnace oxidation methods while at the same time becoming familiar with modelling by preparation of numerical simulations of diffusion of gasses within binary alloys.

In a never-ending quest to expand her knowledge, Georgina became a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow in the Department of Chemical Engineering of the University of Birmingham in 2014. Here she is currently studying the interactions of small, solid particles with surfactant thin liquid films and foams. She is also involved in an additional 2 projects as co-supervisor of two post-graduate students, while also co-organising and teaching in modules of the department.

Teaching

Co-organised and taught in the Module “Developing Food Structure Through Thermal Processing”, 2014

Postgraduate supervision

Currently co-supervising two post-graduate students in the Chemical Engineering Department.

Research

Georgina is currently working on examining the properties of viscous surfactant liquids and their interactions with various particles. Her research involves the use of various techniques such as Micromanipulation and Optical Microscopy. A plethora of equipment is used, such as Foam Columns, High-speed / High-Resolution Cameras, Tensiometers, Rheometers, Particle Size Distributors, SEM, etc.

In 2008 she began working as a Post-doctoral researcher at TU Delft. She was involved as the leader of the project 'Modelling Oxidation & Reduction of Advanced High Strength Steels (AHSS) during Continuous Annealing' where she focused on numerical simulations of oxidation of alloying elements via the use of MATLAB and diffusional software packages such as FactSage, DICTRA and ThermoCals. At the same time Georgina performed experimental studies using equipment such as high-temperature furnaces with varying gas inputs, SEM/EDS and FIB.

Georgina qualified with a PhD from the University of Liverpool in 2007. Whilst there she used ultra-high vacuum conditions/techniques, namely LEED, TPD and molecular beams. The project involved many aspects of ice growth, including the growth of ice on a clean and oxygen covered Pt(111) surface, the nucleation growth of various ice layers using small halogenated molecules as ice-probes, heterogeneous reactions on ice surfaces and hydrate formation of water-ice with small molecules.

Other activities

Member of ICHEME (from 2015)
Member of the Greek Association of Chemists (from 2002)
Member of RACI (1994-1997)

Publications

11. G. Zimbitas, Z. Zhang, P.J. Fryer, S. Bakalis, Particle Interactions with Thin Film Structures, 29th EFFoST International Conference Proceedings, (in preparation for Nov., 2015)

10. F.S. Mohd‐Salleh,, G. Zimbitas, P.J. Fryer, S. Bakalis, Particle Microwave Puffing of Starch Pellets, 29th EFFoST International Conference Proceedings, (in preparation for Nov., 2015)

9. V.A. Lashgari, G. Zimbitas, C. Kwakernaak & W.G. Sloof, Kinetics of Internal Oxidation of Mn-steel Alloys, Oxidation of Metals, 9^th July (2014) [DOI: 10.1007/s11085-014-9490-7]

8. G. Zimbitas & W.G. Sloof, Modeling Internal Oxidation of Binary Ni alloys, Materials Science Forums, 696, p82 (2011). DOI:10.4028/www.scientific.net/MSF.696.82]

7. G. Zimbitas, et al., Wetting of mixed OH/H2O layers on Pt (111), J. Phys. Chem., 128(7), p074701 (2008). [DOI: 10.1063/1.2830266]

6. G. Zimbitas, et al., Comment on Dissociation of Water Buried under Ice on Pt(111) , Physical Review Letters, 99, p109601 (2007). [DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.99.109601]

5. S. Haq, et al., Growth of Intact Water Ice on Ru(0001) between 140 and 160 K : Experiment and density-functional theory calculations, Physical Review B, 73, p1-11, (2006). [DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevB.73.115414]

4. G. S. Karlberg, et al., Water Desorption from an Oxygen covered Pt(111) Surface: Multi Channel Desorption, Journal of Chemical Physics, 124, p204712, (2006). [DOI: 10.1063/1.2200347]

3. G. Zimbitas, S. Haq, A. Hodgson, The Structure and Crystallization of Thin Water Films on Pt(111), Journal of Chemical Physics, 123, p174701-9, (2005). [DOI: 10.1063/1.2060691]

2. G. Zimbitas, A. Hodgson, Morphology of Thin Water Films on Pt(111) Probed by Chloroform Adsorption, Chemical Physics Letters, 417, p1-5, (2005). [DOI: 10.1016/j.cplett.2005.09.127]

1. A. Hodgson, C.M. Clay, G. Zimbitas, et al., Water and mixed OH/water coadsorption at metal surfaces, Abstracts for Papers of the American Chemical Society, 229, U792, (2005).

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