At the forefront of aeronautical research

Factors such as these have led organisations, such as the Advisory Council for Aircraft and Innovation in Europe (ACARE) to target a reduction in perceived noise. Jennifer’s research hopes to tackle this: 

I’m looking at new forms of soundproofing for the jet engine inlet and these new materials, which are called meta materials, introduce a natural structure into materials and gives it new properties. A really good example is a metallic foam. Metals don’t normally come as a foam, but you can force them into this structure and make them much better with noise. The ones I look at specifically are called space filling curves; basically, I design mazes and the noise gets trapped in the maze. 

These mazes are aiming to be lighter and thinner than traditional methods and work at a broader frequency range.

Prior to her PhD, Jennifer completed an MEng in Aeronautical Engineering, and explains how she came to be interested in engineering, and how overcoming her personal barriers has inspired her research today: 

I am neurodiverse; I have autism, dyslexia and Meares-Irlen Syndrome. Being dyslexic, anything with big essays was not my forte and luckily as an engineer most of my essays are filled with formulas and graphs, so that was really the route for me. 

I fell in love with engines, engine design and I was good at the acoustics side and really interested in noise. Being autistic, noise is something that can be really difficult for me and I know that controlling it is really important. It’s been a domino effect of finding something you’re good at and going further with it.” 

Jennifer is in the last few weeks of her PhD and is in the process of writing up her doctoral thesis. 

After extensive literature reviews, simulation, and experimental testing work - including over 400 experimental runs - my work has concluded by proposing a bespoke metamaterial design that focuses on the low frequency range of jet engines. The ‘HexSpi double’ is only 66% of the height and 90% of the weight of a traditional liner, and offers multiple peak noise reduction rather than single. With further refinement in industry this could be a viable acoustic liner in use in the very near future.

Jennifer is an active member of the Women’s Engineering Society (WES) and has inspired others through her outreach work. Passionate about gender equality in engineering, she’s keen to inspire more women to study STEM subjects. 

By joining the WES at Loughborough and volunteering for the national charity I have been able to network, support and learn from many fantastic role models.

Jennifer was recently awarded the Gillian Skinner Award for her valuable contribution to WES. She offers her advice for young women interested in a career in STEM: 

If it is something you want to do, go ahead and do it. It can be hard to start off, particularly if you come from a non-engineering background but ask for help, because if you ask STEM ambassadors or engineering institutes there are hundreds of people who cannot wait to support you. I’m not alone in wanting to help the next generation as I know they’re going to help change the world.