Professor Robert Weatherup - 2023 Analytical Science early career Prize: Joseph Black Prize winner

Professor Robert Weatherup MRSC

Winner: 2023 Analytical Science early career Prize: Joseph Black Prize

University of Oxford

For the development and application of interface-sensitive X-ray spectroscopies for observing reactions in atmospheric pressure and liquid environments.

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My group uses a lot of advanced characterisation techniques at large-scale facilities, and many of the measurements we perform simply wouldn’t be possible without working in teams.

Professor Weatherup’s work focuses on observing the reactions that occur at the interfaces between materials and their operating environment. This is often where both beneficial and undesired reactions take place. In lithium-ion batteries, for example, charge is stored by transferring lithium ions across the interface between a liquid electrolyte and a solid electrode. At the same time, the electrolyte can break down producing undesired products and wasting charge.

Given these interfaces are usually buried within a battery, it can be challenging to obtain information on the chemical changes occurring. Professor Weatherup has developed several new approaches that use X-rays to access these interfaces through thin windows, helping us to better understand the processes that limit the lifetime of batteries, or the efficiency of catalysts used for the green production of chemicals.

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Robert Weatherup is Associate Professor in the Department of Materials, where he leads a group of 15 postdoctoral researchers and DPhil students working on materials for energy storage and conversion. His research aims to understand the reactions occurring at the interfaces between these materials and their operating environment in areas including Li-ion batteries, electrochemical hydrogen production, and carbon dioxide conversion.

Robert gained his PhD from the University of Cambridge (2013) working with Professor Stephan Hofmann. He then held a research fellowship at St John’s College, Cambridge (2013–2017), spending two years as a Marie Sk艂odowska Curie Fellow at Lawrence Berkley National Laboratory (2015–2017). After a brief return to Professor Dame Clare Grey’s group in Cambridge, he started his research group as a Diamond-Manchester fellow (2018–2019) based at Diamond Light Source and took up his current position at Oxford in October 2019.

He is a CAMS-UK Fellow, a Visiting Scientist at Diamond Light Source, and the Research Area Lead for Electrochemical Systems within the Royce Institute, the UK’s national institute for advanced materials research and innovation. He currently holds an ERC starting grant and UKRI future leaders fellowship, through which he is developing new methods to probe electrochemical and catalytic interfaces in action using X-ray techniques.

Q&A

What motivates you?

I love learning new things, and understanding how things work, which is what I really enjoy about research. Whether it’s trying a new technique or studying unfamiliar materials, I try to make sure I’m slightly out of my comfort zone so that I’m always picking up new skills or gaining new understanding. I also enjoy passing on what I've learnt to others, and it's always rewarding to see the researchers in my group developing that same love of learning.

What does good research culture look like/mean to you?

I think it’s really important to have an environment where everyone feels able to contribute, is comfortable expressing their views, and respectfully challenges each other to perform the best research they can.

Why do you think teamwork is important in science?

My group uses a lot of advanced characterisation techniques at large-scale facilities, and many of the measurements we perform simply wouldn’t be possible without working in teams. We rely on close collaboration with the facility staff and it’s really valuable to have a diverse range of perspectives and expertise when planning and performing these measurements, as you’re challenged to think carefully about the approach you’re taking and how to best analyse the results obtained. I also find research much more fun when working as part of an inspiring team, where you all have a common goal.

What is your favourite element?

Nickel. My first project during my PhD was understanding and controlling the catalytic growth of graphene on nickel, and most of the research projects I’ve worked on since have involved nickel in some way or another. It’s extremely versatile both as a catalyst and as a redox active centre for energy storage and we’re currently working on nickel alloys as electrocatalysts for hydrogen production, as well as nickel-rich cathode materials for Li-ion batteries.