Dr. Ioana Taylor
- Position: Research Fellow in Textile Engineering
- Areas of expertise: sustainable fashion; circularity; material innovation; microplastic pollution; melt extrusion; nonwoven manufacturing; textiles testing and characterisation; textile recycling; clothing comfort
- Email: I.Taylor2@leeds.ac.uk
- Location: G79 Clothworkers Central
Profile
My undergraduate degree is in textile engineering and I obtained a PhD from the “Gh. Asachi” University of Iasi, Romania, with part of my research completed in the School of Textiles Industries at the University of Leeds, as part of a TEMPUS PHARE European project.
Since arriving in the UK I have gained a vast experience in teaching at all levels during my career as a teacher of Textiles, Design and Technology and Art, skills that I have been able to transfer to my career as a researcher when I joined the University of Leeds in 2019.
Working with industry partners has been the best opportunity to share my technical knowledge and advance development of new products that meet sustainability requirements.
Responsibilities
- Research fellow in Textile Engineering
Research interests
My background is in textile technology, my masters’ research was on technical textiles for sportswear and my Phd studied the comfort, moisture vapour management and breathability of protective clothing systems worn in extreme environments.
My recent research interests focused on sustainable fashion, circularity and material innovation. As part of the Future Fashion Factory and Innovate UK projects I have developed sustainable materials and processes in collaboration with industry partners, including recycling of pre and post consumer textile waste (https://litac.leeds.ac.uk/funded-projects/).
Part of the team at the University of Leeds researching microplastic pollution, I helped establish industry standards to mitigate fibre release from textiles during laundry.
My current research includes collaborations with the industry working on projects involving large-scale fibre extrusion and nonwovens manufacturing processes.
Qualifications
- Qualified Teacher Status
- PhD in Textiles (performance clothing)
- MSc in Textiles (sports clothing)
- B.Eng in Textiles manufacturing
Student education
I presently contribute to the professional education PACE onsite courses aimed at industry professionals, teaching Nonwovens Fundamentals. This includes nonwoven manufacturing processes and fabric characterisation.