Dr Javier Munguia

Supervisor Details

Contact Details

School of Engineering, University of Warwick

Scientific Background

Research Interests

Dr Munguia has over a decade of experience working with Additive Manufacturing /3D Printing technologies, CAD/CAM Design, Industrial and manufacturing engineering. His research encompasses:

3D CAD/CAE design, analysis and design optimization: parametric/generative design, topology optimization
Medical devices design & manufacture
Materials characterization, fatigue/long cycle materials tests
Machinery / test-bench design / purpose built 3D printing systems
Design for Additive Manufacturing / 3D Printing
Design theory and methodologies (QFD, Kansei, Axiomatic Design, Robust Design)

Scientific Inspiration

The industrialists from the 19^th century who had holistic engineering self-training and took big risks to go for large life-changing inventions (Lord Armstrong, James Watt, Stephenson) creating impacts that lasted until our days.

Research Groups

Nithyanandam Lab

Supervision Style

In three words or phrases: student-centred, spontaneous and promoting student independence and taking ownership of their project.

Provision of Training

Technical training on using equipment and kit is usually undertaken by myself, or I’ll personally direct you and make the request to the appropriate technical team.
I usually encourage you to take optional training courses offered by the School on a constant basis (data analysis, statistical software, etc.).

Progression Monitoring and Management

We like to be kept up to date, and will expect to see evidence of method development/data generation results on a monthly basis.
We will discuss your progression on a monthly basis. If these progression criteria are not met we will always discuss a plan of action together.
I have high expectations and will push you to your full potential.
I am here for advice and guidance to help you reach the goals we agree.

Communication

We’ll usually have a fortnightly supervision meeting to discuss all aspects of the project while taking the time to go through career planning, personal development and future planning.
I’m usually open to have informal catch-ups in the meantime.
For quick messages that require action on a short notice I encourage you to find me on Teams in case meeting in CAMPUS is not an option.

PhD Students can expect scheduled meetings with me:

In a group meeting

At least once per fortnight

In year 1 of PhD study

At least once per fortnight

In year 2 of PhD study

At least once per month

In year 3 of PhD study

At least once per month

These meetings will be face to face. I am usually contactable for an instant response 3 or 4 days per week.

Work Patterns

The timing of work in my lab is completely flexible, and (other than attending pre-arranged meetings), I expect students to manage their own time.

Notice Period for Feedback

I need at least 1 week’s notice to provide feedback on written work of up to 5000 words.

MIBTP Project Details

Current Projects (2025-26)

Primary supervisor for:

Upcycling Farm Residues into Fungal Bio-inks for 3D Printing

See the PhD Opportunities section to see if this project is currently open for applications via MIBTP.

Please Note: The main page lists projects via BBSRC Research Theme(s) quoted and then relevant Topic(s).

Upcycling Farm Residues into Fungal Bio-inks for 3D Printing

Secondary Supervisor(s): Professor Gary Bending

University of Registration: University of Warwick

BBSRC Strategic Research Priority:

Sustainable Agriculture and Food (Plant and Crop Science)
Renewable Resources and Clean Growth (Industrial Biotechnology)

Project Outline

This research plan is a collaboration between the School of Life Sciences and the School of Engineering, which will see the candidate work on fundamental aspects of biomaterials development while at the same time leading to practical applications of 3D bio-printing.

This project focuses on fungal fermentation processes as a potentially viable source for the development of sustainable ‘bio-inks’ which can then be used for the 3D printing of environmentally friendly structures. Fungi, including filamentous fungi and yeast, have shown the potential to be used as alternative biomaterials due to their ability to secrete extracellular enzymes and metabolise a diverse range of substrates for a wide range of applications including construction and insulation elements. Specifically, we aim to explore ‘Mycelium’ (the vegetative part of fungi) and its potential ability to replicate the shape and function of close-cell foams and synthetic fibres. This possibility has been suggested by recent studies with mycelium being used as a structural scaffold in combination with agricultural waste, such as corn stover or rice husks, to create biodegradable foam-like materials with desirable mechanical properties.

We intend to harness the current progress in bio-fabrication technology to apply state-of-the-art 3D-Printing for the precise custom-deposition of the resulting complex organic slurry formulations. This will enable the research team to create and design complex compliant structures whose behaviour can replicate the performance observed in synthetic materials (i.e., glass wool, stone wool, polystyrene, etc).

For the fundamental laboratory-based research, we will create a range of Mycelium-based bio-composites based on our experimental design, which will include: research and selection of potentially viable fungal strains, experimental design and selection of suitable growth and proliferation media for cultures. A range of agricultural waste bioproducts will be studied on their capacity to act as rich substrate which provides sufficient nutrients to promote fungal growth. Previous literature suggests agro-industrial residues such as corn starch, potato starch or sugar cane wet dust, to be viable substrates for solid-state fermentation; however the current processes are variable and highly dependent on the local conditions, climate, humidity and diversity, therefore we seek to develop a process that is appropriate for UK conditions and in particular that benefits from local agricultural-waste from the West-Midlands.

Different viable cultures will be created and transferred to a substrate to investigate colonization performance and seeding strategies. Our goal is to develop a range of Mycelium-based bio composites whose mechanical behaviour can be tuned according to the application, allowing us to create a range of bio-inks with pre-defined characteristics such as ‘stretchy-flexible’ or ‘hard-tough’.

In summary, the core activities of the project will include:

On the biologic/wet-lab aspect:

Explore mycelium cultures, media, nutrients, growth rates and ‘survival’ when mixed into ink/slurries.

Control growth parameters to obtain different densities/consistencies (density, flexibility, hardness, etc.).

Develop repeatable and viable bio-inks which can be consistently used for dispensing.

On the engineering aspect:

Characterize the rheologic and flow behaviour of the various ink formulations.

Characterize sample parts based on 3 main parameters: extrudability, flowability, and shape stability (similar to what we do for concrete).

Mechanical characterization: hardness, compression, flex tests of coupons.

As our ultimate goal, we expect the use of nature-derived fungal fibrous materials will have the potential to improve the current waste management and to drastically reduce CO² emissions mainly at the material creation and processing stages.

References

Enriquez-Medina et.al (2024) ‘Bridging gap between agro-industrial waste, biodiversity and mycelium-based biocomposites’ Journal of Bioresources and Bioproducts, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jobab.2024.07.001.

Gantenbein, S., Colucci, E., Käch, J. et al. Three-dimensional printing of mycelium hydrogels into living complex materials. Nat. Mater. 22, 128–134 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41563-022-01429-5.