Professor Dermot O'Hare - 2024 Materials Chemistry open prize: John B Goodenough Prize

Professor Dermot O'Hare FRSC

Winner: 2024 Materials Chemistry open prize: John B Goodenough Prize

University of Oxford

For pioneering new concepts in materials chemistry, catalysis, and nanomaterials and promoting their application and commercialisation in sustainable technologies.

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The O’Hare Research Group is a friendly and dynamic team of inorganic chemists focused on green chemistry and closing loops in the chemical circular economy. Their research interests span the breadth of chemistry from energy utilisation and carbon net zero to the chemical circular economy and the future of plastics and polymers.

Read winner biography

Dermot O’Hare was born in Newry, County Down and went to Balliol College, Oxford, for his BSc in chemistry. He then did a DPhil under the direction of Professor MLH Green FRS. After his DPhil, he was awarded a Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 Research Fellowship. This was followed by a visiting postdoctoral research fellowship at the Central Research & Development Laboratories of EI du Pont de Nemours in Delaware, USA. He subsequently returned to Oxford to take up a university lectureship and a Tutorial Fellowship at Balliol College. In 1990 he was appointed Professor of Inorganic Chemistry. In 2020, Dermot was promoted to a Senior Research Fellowship at Balliol College and then a University Research Professorship of Organometallic and Materials Chemistry.

Q&A

Tell us about somebody who has inspired or mentored you in your career.

My Balliol College inorganic tutor, Professor Malcolm H Green FRS was my inspiration. I did my 4th-year undergraduate project in his laboratories, and until that moment, I had not thought of a future career in academic research. He must have seen something in me; he found the sponsorship for me to do a PhD and supported me throughout my career. At the time, I felt he was always very critical and tough, but I now realise he was preparing me for a life ahead in academia. I was very fortunate to get his Tutorial Fellowship when he was promoted to the Statutory Professorship of Inorganic Chemistry. Now, as a colleague, he was always available for advice and guidance, and I knew he always had my best interests at heart.

What motivates you?

What motivates me today is to work across disciplines to innovate and discover solutions, to address long-term carbon-neutral targets, help mitigate the effects of global warming, and to benefit society and communities. To this aim, I want to inspire and encourage brilliant young researchers to carry out this ground-breaking research at the frontiers of knowledge.

Can you tell us about a scientific development on the horizon that you are excited about?

Carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) needs to play a key role in meeting our global energy and climate goals. Carbon dioxide is one of the substances that make a significant contribution to global warming and climate change. Developing new net zero chemistry that reduces the amount of CO₂ in the air is, therefore, one of the greatest challenges for the current generation. Carbon capture is an important pathway to reduce CO₂ emissions: in the first phase, storing the CO₂, and in the second phase, using the CO₂ by bringing it back into the value chain, for example, by low-temperature hydrogenation to methanol or hydrocarbons.

How are the chemical sciences making the world a better place?

The chemical sciences are at the centre of our multidisciplinary efforts to address long-term carbon-neutral targets, help mitigate the effects of global warming, and benefit society and communities with a passion for a better world.