£12.9m for UK Catalysis Research Centre

In an exciting joint venture, scientists from UCL will play a leading role in the development of a UK catalysis research hub. The initiative is a partnership between UCL and the University of Cardiff, the University of Bath and Queen's University Belfast. The initiative has received funding totaling £12.9m from the EPSRC to establish a cross-disciplinary research hub at The Research Complex at Harwell. The hub will enable scientists and chemical engineers from over 30 universities to collaborate on cross-disciplinary projects, share expertise, facilitate world-class research and attract new funding streams. The hub will also provide training opportunities and the chance for researchers to work at different universities. Richard Catlow (UCL Chemistry) will lead the development of the £4m catalyst design centre, which will focus on how catalysts function at a molecular level, and implications for catalytic design. Catlow said: "The overall theme of the research is to develop how catalysts work at a molecular level and, from that knowledge, to design new and improved catalysts.