Chemistry (MSc by Research)

There is increasing concern regarding the potential environmental impact of metals from the disposal of electronic products. In addition, the recovery of such metals is of considerable financial importance due to the finite nature of certain elements currently obtained from mining. The project will involve extracting key transition metals from chipped waste electronic materials using digestion and precipitation using organic acids. Initial work will involve the optimisation of the extraction methodology of metal ions in solution, followed by a study of the decomposition of the salts to obtain pure metals and/or their oxides. Techniques used in the project will include: complexometric titrations, thermal analysis (DSC, TGA, and thermomicroscopy), metal quantification using elemental methods (XRF and ICP-OES), and structural characterisation through P-XRD. The details of the project will be discussed with the candidate and the project will be tailored based on the candidate’s research interest.

Self-funding applicants are welcome. In addition to tuition fees, bench fees of £5,000 per annum are required for this topic.

Our standard University deadlines apply. Please see our Deadlines for Applications page to find out more

• Dr Gage Ashton

Most geochemical processes occur at the mineral-fluid interfaces. Characterization of these interfaces and their interaction with contaminants (including radionuclides and heavy metals) and pollutants is therefore crucial to the understanding and the control of any interface process whether involved in geochemical processes or in any industrial and technological approaches that see mineral phases at the heart of their applications. This PhD will address the modelling challenges in the field, covering approaches that are capable of gaining insights into the structure and the processes, including but not limited to adsorption, transport and reactivity, at the interfaces of minerals with the surrounding environment. Applications to contaminants and pollutants remediation, construction, mineral formation and uptake in biological media, human healthcare and of course geochemistry could all be considered. The PhD student will undertake novel research using multiscale computational approaches to contaminants and pollutants at mineral/material interfaces with focus on the role of structure, adsorption and reactivity. The details of the project will be discussed with the candidate and the project will be tailored based on the candidate’s research interest. The supervisor’s research outputs: https://scholar.google.co.uk/citations?user=jAUrSBQAAAAJ&hl=en

Self-funding applicants are welcome. In addition to tuition fees, bench fees of £3,000 per annum is required but can be discussed based on the characteristics of the project and student’s interest.

Our standard University deadlines apply. Please see our Deadlines for Applications page to find out more

• Dr Marco Molinari

Biomedical materials engineering develops biomaterials that are manufactured to be suitable for use as medical devices. Nanomaterials of oxides, metals, carbon-based materials (i.e. graphene, nanotubes, etc.), and polymers make up the vast majority of biomaterials. For practical uses (sensors, biosensors, nanozymes etc.) nanomaterials are usually chemically modified at the surface forming composite materials. Unlike, the bulk properties of these materials which are generally well known, the properties arising at the nanoscale from surfaces and interfaces in contact to the biological environment are peculiar to the system. The chemistry of surfaces and interfaces and their characterization are therefore key to a quantitative understanding of the materials properties. Controlling such properties is imperative to allow for the prediction of the materials behaviour when immerse in the biological environment. This will not only affect biomedical processes at the materials interfaces but also any industrial and technological applications that see such systems at the heart of their approaches. The PhD student will undertake novel research using multiscale computational approaches capable of gaining nanoscale and microscale insights into the chemistry, structure and processes at the surfaces and interfaces of biomedically relevant materials. The details of the project will be discussed with the candidate and the project will be tailored based on the candidate’s research interest. The supervisor’s research outputs: https://scholar.google.co.uk/citations?user=jAUrSBQAAAAJ&hl=en

Self-funding applicants are welcome. In addition to tuition fees, bench fees of £3,000 per annum is required but can be discussed based on the characteristics of the project and student’s interest.

Our standard University deadlines apply. Please see our Deadlines for Applications page to find out more

• Dr Marco Molinari

Key factors in modelling catalytic materials are related to their surface properties. Surface morphology is known to affect catalytic activity. Here one of the key challenges is to identify strategies to enhance the expression of such surfaces and also to prevent their disappearance over time. To understand how surface composition affects surface catalysis, we will be using molecular modelling to predict surface composition at relevant conditions of temperature and pressure. By mapping the energetics of the interactions, we can calculate temperature of desorption and predict nanoparticle morphology of catalytically relevant oxides. The PhD student will undertake novel research using multiscale computational approaches capable of gaining nanoscale insights into the chemistry, structure and processes at the surfaces of materials for catalysis. We will be using molecular modelling based on classical and ab initio techniques. The details of the project will be discussed with the candidate and the project will be tailored based on the candidate’s research interest. The supervisor’s research outputs: https://scholar.google.co.uk/citations?user=jAUrSBQAAAAJ&hl=en

Self-funding applicants are welcome. In addition to tuition fees, bench fees of £3,000 per annum is required but can be discussed based on the characteristics of the project and student’s interest.

Our standard University deadlines apply. Please see our Deadlines for Applications page to find out more

• Dr Marco Molinari

Key factors in modelling energy materials are related to their properties. The modelling of transport properties in polycrystalline materials is key to understand performance of solid-state electrolytes. The interfaces and grain boundaries control such properties. Most interfaces are not pristine and dopants are likely to segregate, thus impacting materials’ properties. Grain boundaries are structural features that can enhance conductivity or blocks transport across the interface, depending on the nature of the material considered. Here, the segregation behaviour is highly dependent on the grain boundary structure, and there is scope to control the transport properties by changing the structure these interfaces. Grain boundary engineering will be at the core of this project. The PhD student will undertake novel research using multiscale computational approaches capable of gaining nanoscale insights into the chemistry, structure and processes at the interfaces of materials for energy generation. We will be using molecular modelling based on classical and ab initio techniques. The details of the project will be discussed with the candidate and the project will be tailored based on the candidate’s research interest. The supervisor’s research outputs: https://scholar.google.co.uk/citations?user=jAUrSBQAAAAJ&hl=en

Self-funding applicants are welcome. In addition to tuition fees, bench fees of £3,000 per annum is required but can be discussed based on the characteristics of the project and student’s interest.

Our standard University deadlines apply. Please see our Deadlines for Applications page to find out more

• Dr Marco Molinari

Key factors in modelling nuclear materials are related to their properties. The student can choose topics related to nuclear materials for energy generation, or their storage and disposal. In polycrystalline nuclear materials, most interfaces are not pristine, and dopants and fission products are likely to segregate, impacting the mass and thermal transport properties at the grain boundaries. This ultimately affects the way we engineer compositions that can better sustain the extreme conditions of the surrounding environments. As nuclear materials are exposed to extreme environments, corrosion may occur at their surfaces. The effect of the environment on the surfaces is key to understand corrosion for the long-term storage and disposal of nuclear materials. The PhD student will undertake novel research using multiscale computational approaches capable of gaining nanoscale insights into the chemistry, structure and processes at the surfaces and interfaces of materials for nuclear applications. We will be using molecular modelling based on classical and ab initio techniques. The details of the project will be discussed with the candidate and the project will be tailored based on the candidate’s research interest. The supervisor’s research outputs: https://scholar.google.co.uk/citations?user=jAUrSBQAAAAJ&hl=en

Self-funding applicants are welcome. In addition to tuition fees, bench fees of £3,000 per annum are required but can be discussed based on the characteristics of the project and student’s interest.

Our standard University deadlines apply. Please see our Deadlines for Applications page to find out more

• Dr Marco Molinari

Polysaccharides are natural polymers which can be extracted from, for example, the cell walls of fruits and vegetables or from the shells of crustaceans. Depending upon the source material and the extraction conditions polysaccharides can be negatively charged (e.g. pectin), neutral (e.g. guar gum) or positively charged (e.g. chitosan). It is proposed that negatively polysaccharide-based materials could be used to remove metal cations in the treatment of waste water or that positively charged polysaccharide-based materials could be used to remove anions.

Self-funding applicants are welcome. In addition to tuition fees, bench fees of between £3-£15,000 per annum are required depending on the nature of the project.

Our standard University deadlines apply. Please see our Deadlines for Applications page to find out more

• Professor Gordon Morris

Chitosan is a polysaccharide which is usually extracted from the shells of crabs, it is unique in nature as it is positively charged. When chitosan is mixed with tripolyphosphate nanoparticles can form. Their size, charge and stability will depend on the chitosan to tripolyphosphate ratio. In this project, nanoparticle size and stability (change in size) will be examined using, for example, viscometry and turbidimetry.

Self-funding applicants are welcome. In addition to tuition fees, bench fees of £9000 per annum are required for this project.

Our standard University deadlines apply. Please see our Deadlines for Applications page to find out more

• Professor Gordon Morris

This research will be in the area of synthetic organic chemistry and will focus specifically on the synthesis of heterocyclic natural products. The targets of this project are the indolizidine and pyrrolizidine alkaloids. These systems are of interest in the possible treatment of various diseases such as cancer, diabetes and viral infections such as AIDS, and some of them have the potential to function as potent analgesics or as potential treatments for Alzheimer’s disease and other neurological disorders. Examples of such compounds include the well-known "poison frog alkaloids".

Self-funding applicants are welcome. In addition to tuition fees, bench fees of £3,000 per annum are required.

Home/EU -June 30th/October 31st and Overseas May 31st/September 30th

• Dr Karl Hemming

This topic is in the area of synthetic organic chemistry used to target heterocyclic products with medicinal applications. The heterocyclic targets include pyrrolo-fused natural products such as the pyrrolobenzodiazepines and their sulfur analogues, beta-sultams, homotropanes, isoflavones, oxadiazoles and aza-sugars. The biological activities that we are interested in include anti-tumour compounds, antibiotics and anti-inflammatory compounds that target diseases such as Alzheimer's.

Self-funding applicants are welcome. In addition to tuition fees, bench fees of £3000 will be required for this research topic

Home/EU – for September- June 30th, for January-October 31st and Overseas for September- May 31st, for January- September 30th

• Dr Karl Hemming