Philip Shipway is currently Cripps Professor of Engineering Materials at the University of Nottingham, and a leading UK tribologist. Philip Shipway has worked in a variety of areas which address the wear of engineering components by several different mechanisms. He has developed new understanding of erosive and abrasive wear processes in metals and non-metals, in both qualitative and quantitative ways, and also contributed significantly to the development of laboratory wear-testing techniques.
Philip Shipway’s main influence has been his commitment to understanding the physical processes of material removal in various types of wear, and the link between material microstructure and both the mechanisms and rate of wear. He has also made significant contributions to the understanding and development of manufacturing processes that involve particle and fluid jet impact. Two areas of work are cited as particular achievements: optimisation of HVOF-sprayed WC-Co coatings for wear resistance; and a model for fretting wear based upon understanding of the governing physical processes.
He was a member of the Steering Committee of the International Conference on Wear of Materials from 2005 to 2018. From 2013 to 2018, Philip Shipway was co-Editor-in-Chief of the international journal WEAR, the first to be established in this area of tribology and still one of the leading journals.
Of particular note, is his extensive work with Rolls-Royce in both their aerospace and submarines business areas. He has worked with a variety of companies around the world over his career, from small equipment manufacturers to large plcs. His work with Rolls-Royce is particularly important, focusing on wear-resistant HVOF WC-Co coatings, dry film lubricants, fundamental models for modelling of fretting contacts, and most recently, cobalt-free hardfacings and chrome-plate alternatives for nuclear reactors which provide substantial environmental benefits.
In 2016 he collaborated with Professor Ian Hutchings in a substantially revised and updated second edition of the textbook “Tribology: Friction and Wear of Engineering Materials”. This book is highly cited and widely used as a key resource in tribological education around the world.
Philip has supervised over 50 PhD students to successful completion of their studies in the field of tribology, with many of these students continuing in tribology-related careers.