Synthesis, Catalysis and Mechanisms

We focus on the development of new methods for the synthesis of molecules with applications in organic, inorganic, and biological chemistry.

Distinctively, our work is underpinned by fundamental, mechanism-led research that seeks to combine experimental, spectroscopic and computational approaches. Our wide-ranging, innovative activities include:

Fundamental studies in transition metal catalysis
Mechanistic physical organic chemistry
Prebiotic/origins of life chemistry
Target molecule synthesis
Macrocycles
Data-driven reaction optimisation
Main group organometallic chemistry

Our applied research projects address global challenges such as antibiotic resistance, environmental remediation and environmental sustainability. We have strong links with the pharmaceutical and agrochemical industries.

Staff

Name	Expertise
Duncan Bruce	Materials chemistry
Victor Chechik	EPR and nanoscale chemistry
Paul Clarke	Total synthesis of natural products Prebiotic chemistry Origins of life
Caroline Dessent	Physical chemistry of gas-phase biological ions Gas-phase inorganic chemistry Mass spectrometry
Richard Douthwaite	Molecular and materials chemistry Photocatalysis
Simon Duckett	Organometallic chemistry Reaction mechanisms
Anne Duhme-Klair	Metal ions in biology and medicine
Ian Fairlamb	Transition metals in synthesis, catalysis and chemical biology: reactivity, mechanism and applications
Martin Fascione	Chemical glycobiology Synthetic carbohydrate chemistry Chemical/enzymatic modification of proteins
Pratibha Gai	Surface science Catalysis Nanomaterials Atomic processes Electron microscopy developments
Gideon Grogan	Structure, function and application of novel biocatalysts
Roderick Hubbard	Structure-based drug discovery
Michael James	Charge-Transfer Complexes in Organic Synthesis
Peter Karadakov	Modern valence-bond theory and chemical reactivity Ab initio calculation of NMR properties
Jason Lynam	Transition metal and main group chemistry
Duncan Macquarrie	Heterogeneous catalysis Green chemistry: development and applications of novel organic-inorganic hybrid materials
Avtar Matharu	Green and sustainable chemistry: biobased chemicals, processes and materials
Michael North	Green organic chemistry
Peter O'Brien	Development of new methods in synthesis and medicinal chemistry
Alison Parkin	Electrochemical insights into redox-active metalloproteins, bacterial metabolism and catalysis
Robin Perutz	Organometallic photochemistry Small molecule activation Catalysis and solar fuels
Anne Routledge	Bio-organic chemistry
John Slattery	Ionic liquids Computational chemistry Main-group chemistry
David Smith	Dendrimer, supramolecular and nanoscale chemistry
Richard Taylor	The total synthesis of compounds of biological importance: design and development of new synthetic methods
William Unsworth	Synthetic chemistry, macrocycles, spirocycles, natural products
Paul Walton	Bioinorganic chemistry
Andrew Weller	Organometallic Chemistry: Synthesis, Catalysis and Mechanism
Luke Wilkinson	Paddlewheel-porphyrin conjugates for solar harvesting applications

PhD projects

Explore the PhD projects currently offered by the Department of Chemistry.

Browse PhD projects