In the lead up to the UK Government’s 2015 spending review, we worked with MPs and civil servants to demonstrate both macroeconomic evidence and concrete examples of how the country’s outstanding science base is bringing benefits to the UK.
Inspirational chemistry for a modern economy
The following case studies show how chemical scientists across the UK are designing drugs that improve human health, building diagnostics to improve the efficiency of healthcare, revolutionising materials, and developing new clean-energy technologies. We have limited ourselves to only a few, but there are many more in the Research Excellence Framework (REF) database online, and many new success stories in the making right now.
The innovations presented here all began in university chemistry departments – often with fundamental origins – but their impact is delivered with contributions from physics, biology, physiology, computer science, engineering, and many other disciplines. Collective strength helps us all achieve more.
It’s important that we do not become complacent, but these case studies show where things have gone well, and how, with sustained funding, we can continue to lead the world as a modern knowledge economy.
We hope you will join us in our mission and that these case studies can inspire and help in your own campaigning work. You can also download the PDF of the original Inspirational chemistry for a modern economy booklet that we launched in a Parliamentary event in June 2015.
Chemistry transforms drug discovery
Read how researchers at the University of Cambridge developed a ground-breaking method for drug discovery using molecular fragments.
Chemistry analyses blood in 30 seconds
Find out how Professor de Silva was inspired by his grandmother’s hypertension to produce a point-of-care device used in hospitals, ambulances and war zones.
Chemical engineering increases pharmaceutical productivity
Read about a Heriot-Watt University spin-out’s solution to significantly reduce waste, energy usage, inventory costs and process time for making crystalline pharmaceutical products.
Chemistry revolutionises DNA sequencing
Discover how fundamental research on proteins led to a revolutionary technique for DNA sequencing and a company valued at $3bn.
Chemistry creates next-generation materials
Find out how applying combinatorial chemistry techniques to materials discovery led to the spin-out of Ilika Technologies, valued at £50m in 2015, and the development of increased capacity lithium ion batteries.
Chemistry protects soldiers, footwear and smartphones
Learn how nanocoating techniques developed by Jas Pal Baydal at Durham has led to treatments protecting 100 million pipette tips, 3 million pairs of footwear, 50 million mobile phones and 60% of the world’s hearing aids.
Chemistry creates efficient electronics
Read how the development of light emitting quantum dots at Imperial and Manchester allowed the formation of Nanoco Ltd producing cadmium-free dots for lighting and televisions.
Chemistry enables zero-emission energy production
Find out how work on hydrogen fuel cells at Loughborough lead to Intelligent Energy, now floated on the London Stock exchange, and a fleet of hybrid fuel cell taxis launched for the 2012 London Olympics.
Chemistry extends nuclear reactor lives
Learn how research by Malcolm Heggie at the University of Sussex on the properties of graphite extended the life of UK gas-cooled nuclear reactors and contributed £40m of savings to date.
