Contact Dr Rachael Hazael
- Tel: +44 (0) 1234 988410
- Email: rachael.hazael@cranfield.ac.uk
- ORCID
Background
Rachael is a reader in Applied Materials where her research to-date has been investigating the effects of extreme conditions on material behaviour specialising in novel materials, chemistries and biological systems. Specifically, high pressure and variable temperature explosive and ballistic events have led to the majority of my recent work on armour systems and personal protective equipment- investigating applying advanced functional materials for this purpose and characterising their behaviour experimentally and computationally. I am experienced in the derivation of material behaviour under dynamic shock compression as well as blast pressure and often consult with both military and security personnel on the effects of pressure on structures and materials. I lecture extensively on several M-Level courses on topics focused on material response from explosive/ballistic events, specifically focused on PPE, vehicle armour and structures. I also teach and manage core modules on the Forensics Explosive and Explosion Investigation MSc and Forensic Ballistic MSc.
Rachael was shortlisted for the Women In Defence Awards 2022 in the Research and Innovation category
She was also selected as a Finalist, Top 50 Women in Engineering 2023: Safety and Security.
She is the head of the AMPEG (Advanced Materials for Protective Engineering Group) at Cranfield Defence and Security:
https://www.cranfield.ac.uk/centres/cranfield-forensic-institute/research-areas/advanced-materials-for-protective-engineering-blast-and-ballistics
Current activities
I currently lecture on the response of materials to impact events such as armour materials for vehicle and body armour to several courses on site. I also have an interest in the response of bio materials to impact events such as: tissue analogues, microbes and organic molecules.
Publications
Articles In Journals
- Read J, Hazael R & Critchley R. (2024). Penetration performance of protective materials from crossbow attack: a preliminary study. Forensic Science, Medicine and Pathology, 20(1)
- Thawani B, Hazael R & Critchley R. (2024). Numerical modelling of hydrogen leakages in confined spaces for domestic applications. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, 56
- Read J, McNaught K, Hazael R & Critchley R. (2024). Evaluation of soft tissue simulant performance against economic and environmental impact. Environmental Science: Advances, 3(4)
- Read J, Quinlan P, Bloodworth-Race S, Hazael R & Critchley R. (2024). Sustainable and economical alternatives to fragment capture materials in explosive and ballistic trials. Forensic Science, Medicine and Pathology
- Thawani B, Lim SK, Brown L, Critchley R & Hazael R. (2023). Design of Multi-layered Protection Against Guided Mortar Threats Yhrough Numerical Modeling. Defence Technology, 29(Propellants, Explosives and Pyrotechnics. 11 1 1986)
- Thawani B, Batchelor T, Painter J, Hazael R & Critchley R. (2023). Multi-impact response of CR4 mild steel: characterising the transition from absorption to failure. Engineering Research Express, 5(1)
- Watson KE, Henwood BJ, Hewins K, Roberts A & Hazael R. (2023). Ballistic impact of hollow‐point ammunition on porcine bone. Journal of Forensic Sciences, 68(4)
- Thawani B, Hazael R & Critchley R. (2023). Assessing the pressure losses during hydrogen transport in the current natural gas infrastructure using numerical modelling. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, 48(88)
- Read J, Ritchie T, Brown L, Bloodworth-Race S, Thawani B, .... (2023). Quantification of fragmentation capture materials and an assessment of the viability of economical alternatives: a preliminary study. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences, 381(2259)
- Collett G, Ladyman M, Temple T, Hazael R & McNaught K. (2023). Introducing Bayesian belief updating as a method to counter improvised explosive devices: a qualitative case study on identifying human behaviours associated with explosive chemical precursor diversion. Security Journal, Available online 21st August 2023
- Henwood B, Helliker A, Hazael R & Hewins K. (2023). An assessment of a non-destructive magneto-optical imaging technique for the recovery of laser engraved marks from steel plates and firearm components. Science & Justice, 63(6)
- Critchley R, Hazael R, Bhatti K, Wood D, Peare A, .... (2022). Blast mitigation using polymeric 3D printed auxetic re-entrant honeycomb structures: A preliminary study. International Journal of Protective Structures, 13(3)
- Rickman JM, Painter J & Hazael R. (2022). A scanning electron microscopy study of projectile entry fractures in cortical bone; genesis and microarchitectural features. International Journal of Legal Medicine, 136(2)
- Read J, Hazael R & Critchley R. (2022). Soft Tissue Simulants for Survivability Assessment—A Sustainability Focussed Review. Applied Sciences, 12(10)
- Bloodworth-Race S, Critchley R, Hazael R, Peare A & Temple T. (2021). Testing the blast response of foam inserts for helmets. Heliyon, 7(5)
- Thawani B, Hazael R & Critchley R. (2021). Numerical modelling study of a modified sandbag system for ballistic protection. Journal of Computational Science, 53(July)
- Collett G, Ladyman M, Hazael R & Temple T. (2021). The use of a predictive threat analysis to propose revisions to existing risk assessments for precursor chemicals used in the manufacture of home-made explosives (HME). Heliyon, 7(12)
Conference Papers
Books
- Bruton K, Hazael R, Critchley R & Bloodworth-Race S. (2022). Lignocellulosic Natural Fibers in Polymer Composite Materials: Benefits, Challenges and Applications In Hashmi MSJ(ed.), Encyclopedia of Materials: Plastics and Polymers (3). Elsevier.
- Roberts L, Critchley R, Salberg D, Bloodworth-Race S & Hazael R. (2022). Development of a risk matrix for low-cost engineering solutions: a systematic approach In Temple TJ & Ladyman MK (eds), Challenges in Risk Analysis for Science and Engineering. IOP Publishing.
- Thawani B, Critchley R & Hazael R. (2022). Influence of automation on human factor integration in Risk Assessment systems In Temple TJ & Ladyman MK (eds), Challenges in Risk Analysis for Science and Engineering. IOP Publishing.