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Our research excellence

Our research is driven by our desire to help solve some of society’s greatest scientific challenges. 100% of our research is of international standing (REF 2021, combining 4*, 3* and 2* submissions – Chemistry) and 100% of our research impact has been classed ‘outstanding’ or ‘very considerable’ (REF 2021, combining 4* and 3*submissions – Chemistry).

Our Department carries out research in three main areas of excellence:

Chemistry for Health
Materials for Energy and the Environment
Polymers and Soft Matter


Where will you take us next?

We work together to make life better for everyone, and our students are actively involved in our world-class research.

Watch our video to learn more about the research in our Department.

Our research areas

Our researchers are generating knowledge that is helping to develop sustainable technologies for energy production and improve healthcare, among other applications.

We want society to benefit from our research, both locally and globally, and work with industry to translate knowledge into products and processes. 

Chemistry for Health

We have world-leading expertise in the development of analytical methods to identify and characterise important (bio)molecules, from health/disease biomarkers to medical target compounds. 

We synthesise and test anti-microbial glassy materials, as well as hybrid inorganic-organic materials with molecular-sized channels suitable for drug storage.

In addition to the experimental work, we use computational methods based on quantum chemistry and molecular dynamics to aid the design of new drugs.

Materials for Energy and the Environment

Research in this theme focuses on materials for sustainable energy and environmental applications. 

We study thermoelectric inorganic materials for recovering energy from waste heat, photo- and electro- catalysts for hydrogen production or carbon dioxide reduction, among other applications. 

State-of-the-art X-ray diffraction instruments for structure determination under non-ambient conditions are available in our Chemical Analysis Facility and play a key role in establishing structure-property relationships. 

We use computational techniques, based on quantum chemistry and machine learning, to accelerate the design and understanding of novel energy materials. 


Polymers and Soft Matter

We develop polymeric materials that are used for cosmetics, ink formulations for 3D printing, and many other applications. 

Our researchers have done pioneering work in the field of self-healing polymers, creating materials that can repair themselves after damage.

We study the chemistry that occurs around and within membranes and lipid bilayers, to enhance our understanding of how the stimuli-responsive membrane proteins work in biological conditions. 

We use a range of X-ray spectroscopy technique to understand the physical properties and reactivity of liquids, including ionic liquids and electrolytes.

Research Sections

For administrative purposes, we organise into two sections, both sitting under our Chemical Sciences Division:

Organic, Biological and Analytical (OBA) Chemistry Section
Physical, Inorganic and Materials (PIM) Chemistry Section

Meet our team

Members of the Organic, Biological, and Analytical (OBA) Chemistry Section:

Professor R Cramer (Head of Section)
Professor F Hartl
Dr JE McKendrick
Dr C Smith
Professor CJ Cardin
Dr James Cooper
Professor IW Hamley
Professor WC Hayes
Dr M Cafiero

Members of the Physical, Inorganic, and Materials (PIM) Chemistry Section:

Professor AM Chippindale (Head of Section)

Dr R Grau-Crespo
Dr RA Bennett
Dr JM Elliott
Professor AV Powell
Dr P Vaqueiro
Dr K Lovelock
Dr J Hallett

For more information about our Chemistry research, please contact Dr Ricardo Grau-Crespo, Research Division Lead, email: r.grau-crespo@reading.ac.uk


 
 
Box full of pipettes

Collaborating with us

Our research groups have worked on projects with a number of major organisations.

As well as forging new relationships, we currently work with organisations such as AstraZeneca, BP, Cytec, DuPont, GSK, Henkel, Johnson Matthey, Pfizer, Procter & Gamble, Syngenta and Unilever.
Scientist looking at an agar plate in front of a computer

Wider research at Reading

We apply our research expertise in collaborations across the University. 

We have particularly strong links with the Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences and Reading School of Pharmacy.
Athena SWAN Silver Award