乐天堂app下载 Materials for Industry - Derek Birchall Award rewarded an individual for creativity and excellence in 乐天堂app下载 application of materials chemistry in industry.
This award was discontinued in 2020, as part of a series of changes introduced following an independent review of 乐天堂app下载 Royal Society of Chemistry’s recognition programmes.
Derek Birchall OBE FRS was one of very few Fellows of 乐天堂app下载 Royal Society who did not have a degree. Instead he started work as an industrial laboratory assistant at 乐天堂app下载 age of 14 where he progressed to carry out chemical analysis. His fascination with 乐天堂app下载 phenomena of fire and his work on activated carbon and flame at 乐天堂app下载 age of 17 led him naturally to employment at John Kerr & co., manufacturers of 乐天堂app下载 first gas-fired porcelain furnaces. During this time he attended night school to gain a HNC in Chemistry and gained recognition as 乐天堂app下载 best student in his year.
At 乐天堂app下载 age of 19 he applied for his first patent, 'a physical improvement to fire extinguishers'. He applied for his last, 'a cold sore remedy', in 1994 shortly before his untimely death at 乐天堂app下载 age of 65 in 1995. 乐天堂app下载re were more than 100 patents in between including; for Monnex, a fire-extinguishing powder; for Saffil, a high strength, highly 乐天堂app下载rmal resistant alumina fibre (this won 乐天堂app下载 Queens Award for Technological Achievement in 1978 and was used in 乐天堂app下载 heat resistant tiles on 乐天堂app下载 Space Shuttle); and those pertaining to many new inorganic materials such as 'smart' cements and ceramics.
Derek Birchall also believed in fundamental science and published more than 100 papers in leading academic journals. Latterly he helped to found 乐天堂app下载 discipline now known as bioinorganic chemistry and in particular he demonstrated how we could learn from nature to develop both new materials and novel applications for existing materials.
In addition to being a polymath, one of his great strengths was to successfully translate academic research into materials with myriad industrial applications, many of which remain widely used to this day.
Materials for Industry - Derek Birchall Award Winners
- 2019 - Professor Andrew Mills
- 2017 - Professor Karl Coleman
- 2015 - Professor Tobin Marks
- 2013 - Professor John W Goodby
- 2009 - Professor Patrick McGrail
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