The University can import some biological or chemical substances for Non-commercial educational or scientific research free of duty and VAT.
You must use the goods only for non-commercial research purposes.
See HMRC Notice 366 (Importing biological and chemical substances for research free of duty and VAT) [1] for more details and how to apply
Links
[1] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/notice-366-importing-biological-and-chemical-substances-for-research-free-of-duty-and-vat/notice-366-importing-biological-and-chemical-substances-for-research-free-of-duty-and-vat