Zixuan Wang is currently working towards a computational screening for nucleating agents to match phase changing materials, in the light of generating a nucleating agent database, with the resulting technology marketed as a heat-storage battery. She is also working on unveiling the nucleation mechanism of phase changing materials. The process of triggering crystallisation for phase change materials has, until now, relied on trial and error, and represents a frustrating restriction in the development of new heat storage batteries that can function over a range of temperatures. Her project will introduce the central concepts of cheminformatics computational screening to this field, and to rationalise the process of finding new lead compounds. Her project is run in collaboration with Sunamp Ltd.

Edmund completed his BSc. in the University of Liverpool spending a year of which in Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University. Edmund worked on surface properties and modification of trititanate nanotubes. Edmund gained further experience in solid-state chemistry during his MSc. project at the University of Edinburgh, focusing on a deeper understanding of the structures of wolframite and using automation to discover further possible wolframite materials in the ISCD database by developing new techniques to automate the comparison of solid-state structures. Edmund is now working on understanding the structures of nitrocellulose and nitroglycerin in double-base propellants through experimental and computational techniques.

Aaron joined the group in November 2020 after completing his MChem at the University of Edinburgh. His final year project was on ‘aerogels as thermal insulation’ during his year-long industrial placement at Sunamp, an SME focused on thermal energy storage. His research focus is understanding energetic materials at extreme conditions with neutron diffraction.

Dilraj (Dil) completed his BSc at The University of Reading in June 2020. He enjoyed working on developing ‘Ruthenium compounds for biomedical applications’ under the guidance of Professor Christine J Cardin and Dr Kane T McQuaid for his dissertation. 

Although he loves the puzzles of Organic Chemistry and retrosynthesis, he loves to delve into the realms of medicine and theoretical chemistry; often citing ideas that many drugs and compounds can be inspired by nature. 

He also enjoys playing Saxophone and Piano in his spare time to help him relax, as well as exploring new places.

Monica completed her MChem at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow. Her final year project involved studying the amorphous form at high pressure under the supervision of Dr. Iain Oswald. Her course also included a 6 month placement in France at Servier where she focused at increasing the solubility of a poorly water soluble drug by forming amorphous solid dispersions. Monica joined the Pulham group in 2020 to work on understanding amorphous energetic materials.

Rebecca obtained her BSc. in Chemistry at the University of Turin in 2014. She moved to Switzerland in 2015, where she pursued a MSc. degree in Molecular Technologies with an industrial thesis at Roche Diagnostics International Ltd. on the nano-encapsulation of dyes and surface modification of polymers for health care applications.

After obtaining her MSc. degree in 2017, she worked for two years as a research associate on a wide variety of subjects.

She joined the Pulham group in 2020 to pursue her PhD, working on polymorphic esters for thermal energy storage applications.

Hannah joined the group in September 2019 after completing her Masters at the University of Edinburgh. Having completed a year in industry with Sunamp, an SME focussed on the development of thermal-energy storage and a Masters project in the Pulham group developing high temperature solid-solid phase-change materials (PCMs), she continues to work in developing and understanding phase change materials for Sunamp. Her research focus is understanding the mechanism of nucleation in PCMs and the further development of materials for cold-storage applications.

Akachai obtained his MChem degree from Chulalongkorn University, Thailand in 2012 under the supervision of Professor Dr. Mongkol Sukwattanasinitt. His previous research experiences was in organic synthesis working on cyanide fluorescent sensors from diphenylacetylene derivatives. He then worked at the Michelin Company for four years as a material development engineer. He joined the Pulham group in Sep 2018 to pursue his PhD, working on studies of environmentally benign propellants.

Akachai is funded by the Royal Thai Government Scholarship, Ministry of Defence.

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Nisa completed her BSc in Chemical Engineering at Yildiz Technical University, Turkey. She subsequently obtained an MSc in bioengineering in 2016, on a TUBITAK sponsored project, crystallizing enzymes. In Nov 2017, Nisa joined the Pulham group to pursue her PhD, working on the co-crystallisation of Energetic materials.

Nisa is funded by Turkish Minister of Education.

Emily joined the group in October 2016 after completing her MChem at the university of Edinburgh. Her undergraduate project under Stephen Moggach was in the field of high pressure crystallography, studying ZIF-8 with varying hydrostatic media. She is now working on the encapsulation of various phase change materials (PCMs) for energy storage applications.