University of Edinburgh School of Chemistry
Encyclopedia
The School of Chemistry is an academic unit of the University of Edinburgh
, in Scotland
, responsible for research, teaching, outreach and commercialisation in Chemistry
.
The teaching of Chemistry at Edinburgh began almost 300 hundred years ago in 1713 when James Crawford was appointed to the Chair of Physick and Chymistry. The department has occupied many sites in its history, from a house at the top of Robertson's Close in the city centre, to purpose-built facilities in the central campus at Old College
through to its current location at King's Buildings
. Each move has brought with it expansions in size and status until the department occupied the position it does now, as one of the world's leading Chemistry teaching and research
establishments.
Today the department carries on the traditions of Chemistry at Edinburgh both in teaching and research. The collaborative research School formed with St Andrews Chemistry department to form EaStCHEM has strengthened research in Scotland in the chemical sciences. The school's teaching is ranked as excellent, and the research was ranked 1st in the UK-wide 2008 RAE
research rankings when staff volume is factored in.
The school has a research staff of approximately 120 individuals, and an academic staff of over 40. Current annual enrollment includes around 200 research students, and 450 taught postgraduate and undergraduate students.
In the Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) 2008, the most in-depth analysis of research outputs for seven years, EaStCHEM, submitted 73% of all world leading outputs (4*) in Scotland and 12% of world leading outputs in all of the UK. From 31 submissions EastChem was the largest in UK
Chemistry. EaStCHEM comes joint 4th in the Grade Point Average (GPA) metric, and first when staff numbers are factored in (the power ranking).
The Chemistry/Biology Interface area is broad, with particular strengths in the areas of protein structure
and function, mechanistic enzymology, proteomics
, biologically targeted synthesis, the application of high throughput and combinatorial approaches and biophysical chemistry
, which focuses on the development and application of physicochemical techniques to biological system
s.
Chemical Physics/Physical Chemistry is the fundamental study of molecular properties and processes. Areas of expertise include probing molecular structure
in the gas phase, clusters and nanoparticles, the development and application of physicochemical techniques such as mass spectrometry
to molecular systems and the EaStCHEM surface science group, who study complex molecules on surfaces, probing the structure property-relationships employed in heterogeneous catalysis
. A major feature is In Silico Scotland, a world class research computing facility.
Molecular Synthesis encompasses the synthesis and characterisation at ambient and extreme conditions of organic and inorganic compounds, including those with application in homogeneous catalysis, nanotechnology
, supramolecular chemistry
, drug discovery
and ligand design. The development of innovative synthetic and characterisation methodologies (particularly in structural chemistry) is a key feature.
The Materials Chemistry group is one the largest materials chemistry groups in the UK. Areas of strength include the design, synthesis and characterisation of strongly correlated electronic materials, battery
and fuel cell
materials and devices, porous solids, materials at extreme pressures and temperatures, polymer microarray technologies and technique development for materials and nanomaterials
analysis.
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
, in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, responsible for research, teaching, outreach and commercialisation in Chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
.
The teaching of Chemistry at Edinburgh began almost 300 hundred years ago in 1713 when James Crawford was appointed to the Chair of Physick and Chymistry. The department has occupied many sites in its history, from a house at the top of Robertson's Close in the city centre, to purpose-built facilities in the central campus at Old College
Old College, University of Edinburgh
Old College is a building of the University of Edinburgh. It is located on South Bridge, and presently houses parts of the University's administration, the University of Edinburgh School of Law, and the Talbot Rice Gallery...
through to its current location at King's Buildings
King's Buildings
The King's Buildings are a campus of the University of Edinburgh in Scotland, and contains most of the schools within the College of Science and Engineering, excepting only part of the School of Informatics and the Institute of Geography, which are located at the central George Square campus...
. Each move has brought with it expansions in size and status until the department occupied the position it does now, as one of the world's leading Chemistry teaching and research
Research
Research can be defined as the scientific search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories, usually using a scientific method...
establishments.
Today the department carries on the traditions of Chemistry at Edinburgh both in teaching and research. The collaborative research School formed with St Andrews Chemistry department to form EaStCHEM has strengthened research in Scotland in the chemical sciences. The school's teaching is ranked as excellent, and the research was ranked 1st in the UK-wide 2008 RAE
Research Assessment Exercise
The Research Assessment Exercise is an exercise undertaken approximately every 5 years on behalf of the four UK higher education funding councils to evaluate the quality of research undertaken by British higher education institutions...
research rankings when staff volume is factored in.
The school has a research staff of approximately 120 individuals, and an academic staff of over 40. Current annual enrollment includes around 200 research students, and 450 taught postgraduate and undergraduate students.
Research
EaStCHEM is the joint research school in chemistry between the Universities of Edinburgh and St Andrews. This world-class centre for chemistry has eight research groupings: Chemical Biology; Synthesis; Materials; Structural Chemistry; Chemical Physics; Biophysical Chemistry; Inorganic Chemistry; and Catalysis.In the Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) 2008, the most in-depth analysis of research outputs for seven years, EaStCHEM, submitted 73% of all world leading outputs (4*) in Scotland and 12% of world leading outputs in all of the UK. From 31 submissions EastChem was the largest in UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Chemistry. EaStCHEM comes joint 4th in the Grade Point Average (GPA) metric, and first when staff numbers are factored in (the power ranking).
Research Themes
The School has four major research themes as part of EaStCHEM:The Chemistry/Biology Interface area is broad, with particular strengths in the areas of protein structure
Protein structure
Proteins are an important class of biological macromolecules present in all organisms. Proteins are polymers of amino acids. Classified by their physical size, proteins are nanoparticles . Each protein polymer – also known as a polypeptide – consists of a sequence formed from 20 possible L-α-amino...
and function, mechanistic enzymology, proteomics
Proteomics
Proteomics is the large-scale study of proteins, particularly their structures and functions. Proteins are vital parts of living organisms, as they are the main components of the physiological metabolic pathways of cells. The term "proteomics" was first coined in 1997 to make an analogy with...
, biologically targeted synthesis, the application of high throughput and combinatorial approaches and biophysical chemistry
Biophysical chemistry
Biophysical chemistry is a relatively new branch of chemistry that covers a broad spectrum of research activities involving biological systems. The most common feature of the research in this subject is to seek explanation of the various phenomena in biological systems in terms of either the...
, which focuses on the development and application of physicochemical techniques to biological system
Biological system
In biology, a biological system is a group of organs that work together to perform a certain task. Common systems, such as those present in mammals and other animals, seen in human anatomy, are those such as the circulatory system, the respiratory system, the nervous system, etc.A group of systems...
s.
Chemical Physics/Physical Chemistry is the fundamental study of molecular properties and processes. Areas of expertise include probing molecular structure
Molecular structure
The molecular structure of a substance is described by the combination of nuclei and electrons that comprise its constitute molecules. This includes the molecular geometry , the electronic properties of the...
in the gas phase, clusters and nanoparticles, the development and application of physicochemical techniques such as mass spectrometry
Mass spectrometry
Mass spectrometry is an analytical technique that measures the mass-to-charge ratio of charged particles.It is used for determining masses of particles, for determining the elemental composition of a sample or molecule, and for elucidating the chemical structures of molecules, such as peptides and...
to molecular systems and the EaStCHEM surface science group, who study complex molecules on surfaces, probing the structure property-relationships employed in heterogeneous catalysis
Heterogeneous catalysis
In chemistry, heterogeneous catalysis refers to the form of catalysis where the phase of the catalyst differs from that of the reactants. Phase here refers not only to solid, liquid, vs gas, but also immiscible liquids, e.g. oil and water. The great majority of practical heterogeneous catalysts...
. A major feature is In Silico Scotland, a world class research computing facility.
Molecular Synthesis encompasses the synthesis and characterisation at ambient and extreme conditions of organic and inorganic compounds, including those with application in homogeneous catalysis, nanotechnology
Nanotechnology
Nanotechnology is the study of manipulating matter on an atomic and molecular scale. Generally, nanotechnology deals with developing materials, devices, or other structures possessing at least one dimension sized from 1 to 100 nanometres...
, supramolecular chemistry
Supramolecular chemistry
Supramolecular chemistry refers to the area of chemistry beyond the molecules and focuses on the chemical systems made up of a discrete number of assembled molecular subunits or components...
, drug discovery
Drug discovery
In the fields of medicine, biotechnology and pharmacology, drug discovery is the process by which drugs are discovered or designed.In the past most drugs have been discovered either by identifying the active ingredient from traditional remedies or by serendipitous discovery...
and ligand design. The development of innovative synthetic and characterisation methodologies (particularly in structural chemistry) is a key feature.
The Materials Chemistry group is one the largest materials chemistry groups in the UK. Areas of strength include the design, synthesis and characterisation of strongly correlated electronic materials, battery
Battery (electricity)
An electrical battery is one or more electrochemical cells that convert stored chemical energy into electrical energy. Since the invention of the first battery in 1800 by Alessandro Volta and especially since the technically improved Daniell cell in 1836, batteries have become a common power...
and fuel cell
Fuel cell
A fuel cell is a device that converts the chemical energy from a fuel into electricity through a chemical reaction with oxygen or another oxidizing agent. Hydrogen is the most common fuel, but hydrocarbons such as natural gas and alcohols like methanol are sometimes used...
materials and devices, porous solids, materials at extreme pressures and temperatures, polymer microarray technologies and technique development for materials and nanomaterials
Nanomaterials
Nanomaterials is a field that takes a materials science-based approach to nanotechnology. It studies materials with morphological features on the nanoscale, and especially those that have special properties stemming from their nanoscale dimensions...
analysis.