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The Stones that Boil - Nuclear Waste Management. Radio 4 Material World: Zeolites (last half of the programme)
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My first novel University Shambles is available at: http://www.universityshambles.com Summary. My research/consulting interests concern environmental decontamination and pollutant degradation, nanoporous materials for green chemistry, renewable energy sources and fuels, including fuels made from algae, and the development of sustainable societies. I am based in Reading in the U.K. Career to DateI started my career in industry, spending 4 years in total with Beecham Pharmaceuticals and Wellcome Research. I am a graduate of the University of Sussex, having obtained both my B.Sc and D.Phil there; this was followed by a 2 year period as a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Leicester with Professor M.C.R.Symons, FRS. Subsequently, I worked for 2 years as a lecturer in Physical Chemistry at Thames Polytechnic, before moving to Queen Mary and Westfield College, University of London, as a lecturer in Organic Chemistry where I remained for 5 years, until being appointed as Research Professor in Chemistry at Liverpool John Moores University in 1994. In a five-year period, I was awarded grants totalling £1.4m; additionally central facilities to the value of £4.8m were awarded via competitive peer review. This support came from: research councils (EPSRC; BBSRC), the Leverhulme Trust, the Wellcome Trust, the Paul Scherrer Institute, industry (Shell Research, Ceram Research, Courtaulds, Akross Chemicals, JEOL Ltd., Bruker Spectrospin, Unilever Research, Convatec), the European Union, NATO, The Royal Society, the Government of China and the International Science and Technology Centre (ISTC, based in Moscow). In August 2003, I set-up as an independent consultant for energy and the environment, in which capacity I am currently involved in projects concerning land decontamination, radioactive waste management, antioxidants and free radical toxicology, radiation effects on biomolecules and on satellite components, and a feasibility study of alternative fuels and energy sources, including biomass to liquids (BTL), gas to liquids (GTL) and coal to liquids (CTL) strategies. My current funding is from several commercial enterprises, acting in the capacity of an independent "expert" in subjects as outlined above. Recent research/consultancy projects:
In total 180 publications have arisen from the successful outcome of these activities. The collaboration and support of the Rutherford-Appleton Laboratory and the Paul Scherrer Institute (Switzerland) render possible the development of radiolabelling and time-resolved spectroscopic studies of processes involving radicals, particularly in atmospheric and environmental pollution chemistry. Additional collaborations with PSI concern measuring the diffusion of water in clays to be used for radioactive-waste remediation and hydrothermal biomass conversion. I have given invited plenary lectures at the International Symposium on Radical Ions in Upsalla, the 2nd International Conference of the Polish EPR Association, the 17th International Conference on Radical Ions in Spain, two International Workshops on EPR (EMARDIS) in Sofia (Bulgaria), the International Conference on Spin-Trapping (SPIN) in Kaiserslautern and the 34th International Meeting of the Electron Spin Resonance Group of the Royal Society of Chemistry (University of Bristol). I have lectured at: the University of Basle, the University of Notre Dame Radiation Laboratories, the Paul Scherrer Institute (Switzerland), the University of Ioannina (Greece), Kocaeli University (Turkey), the University of Leipzig, Texas Tech University, Rice University (Houston), the University of Texas at Arlington, the Slovak Technical University (Slovakia) and the Yerevan Physics Institute (Armenia). Past and current projects, involve groups both in the U.K. and in the wider world. Particular international links are with: Sweden, Germany, Switzerland, USA, Turkey, Greece, Bulgaria, Poland, Italy, Armenia and Russia.
Research HighlightsUsing conventional ESR methods:
Using radiolabelled free radicals:
Additional Professional DetailsConsultant to the Energy Industry. Former Chairman of the the Royal Society of Chemistry ESR group. Evaluator for the European Union Framework 7 Programme. Editor of the texts Radicals on Surfaces (Kluwer) and Toxicology of the Human Environment - the Critical Role of Free Radicals (Taylor and Francis). Guest Editor of a Special Issue of Magnetic Resonance in Chemistry, on "Muon Magnetic Resonance". Invited member of the EPSRC College. Member of the Association of British Spectroscopists. Member of the Society for Free Radical Research. Referee for the Journals of the Chemical Society and of the American Chemical Society, along with various commercial journals. Partner in two ISTC projects, involving the Yerevan Physics Institute, Armenia. Partner in NATO project, involving the Slovak Technical University, Bratslava, Slovakia. Vice-president of the St. Paul's Trust Centre, a Liverpool-based Christian charity. Email: cjrhodes@fresh-lands.com |