Chemistry PhD

As a Chemistry PhD student you will benefit from:

• a supervisory team comprising 2-3 members of academic staff. Depending on your research specialism you may also have an additional external supervisor from another School, research institution, or industry.
• access to a range of electronic resources via the University’s Online Library, as well as to the physical book and journal collections housed within the Aldrich Library and other campus libraries.
• access to state-of-the-art research facilities on the Moulsecoomb site, including electron microscopy, mass spectrometry, computer simulations and electrochemistry, all of which are available to research students.
• desk space and access to a desktop PC, either in one of the postgraduate offices on the sixth floor of the award-winning Cockcroft Building. 

Our chemistry students are welcomed as members of the School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences and its specialist Chemistry Research and Enterprise Group (REG). We have strong links with the research Centre for Stress and Age-Related Disease (STRAND).

We specialise in research in the fields of pharmacy, biology, biomedical sciences, chemistry and ecology. Our work includes organic and inorganic synthesis, chemical analysis, electrochemistry, materials and polymer science, lipids, the chemistry of ageing, protein chemistry, computational chemistry, supramolecular chemistry, and sensor development.

Interdisciplinary research has recently included analysis of DNA from archaeological sites by mass spectrometry, analysis of composition-based lipid membrane curvature, the development of molecules with anti-ageing potential, drug-releasing polymers and toxin-removing devices for haemodialysis.

Other areas of research involve single molecule magnets, carbon capture through coordination chemistry, disclosing agents for organophosphate nerve agents, computational chemistry, electrochemical sensor and biosensor fabrication, 3D microfabrication and supramolecular chemistry.

Our diverse research interests and interdisciplinary collaborations provide an excellent environment from which global problems can be tackled using multidisciplinary approaches.

Research themes with regular Chemistry PhD researcher involvement include:

• Synthetic chemistry
• Analytical chemistry
• Computational chemistry
• Biochemistry of lipids and proteins
• Electrochemistry and electrochemical sensors
• Supramolecular chemistry
• Polymers
• The chemistry of ageing

We have strong links with the Centre for Stress and Age-Related Disease

Dr Peter Cragg

PhD applications are welcomed in supramolecular chemistry and molecular recognition, macrocyclic chemistry, and computational chemistry.

Dr Ian Gass

Molecular magnetism, coordination chemistry, carbon dioxide uptake materials, liquid crystals.

Prof Lizzy Ostler

The effect of polyphenols and synthetic analogues of these on human ageing, with a particular focus on cellular senescence. Projects are offered in synthetic chemistry, cell biology and multidisciiplinary combinations of these.

Prof Bhavik Patel

My supervisory interests are:

• Development of composite electrodes for bioanalytical monitoring;
• Exploring the signalling mechanisms of the bowel and bladder epithelium
• Development of innovative e-learning tools

Dr Graham Pattison

Research areas where project applications are welcomed include: 

- Synthetic Methodology Devleopment

- Organofluorine Chemistry

- Organoboron Chemistry

- Catalysis

- Physical Organic Chemistry

- Medicinal Chemistry

- Bioimaging Molecules

Dr Jonathan Salvage

I am interested in supervising postgraduate research students in the field of biomaterials, encompassing nanotechnology, polymers, nanoparticles, nanomedicine, pharmaceutics, cell biology, microbiology, and advanced microscopy.

Dr Irina Savina

Projects on developing polymer materials, hydrogel, nanocomposites for biomedical and environmental applications. Particular interest in biomaterials, drug delivery systems, nanoparticles as catalyst and antibacterial agents, materials/methods for water decontamination.

Dr Nicolas Stewart

Research areas where project applications are welcomed include: 1) Applying nanoLC-MS/MS for the identification of novel post-translational modification of proteins, 2) Developing on-line methods for the enrichment of modified peptides in proteomics.

For further supervisory staff including cross-disciplinary options, please visit research staff on our research website.