Professor Bob Slade

Bob Slade is a Professorial Researcher funded by several programmes in multiple areas of Chemical Technology.    He has served as Head of Chemistry and Acting Head of 2 historical Schools at the University of Surrey.  His research is typically cross-disciplinary.

Bob trained at the University of Oxford (New College), receiving a BA (1975), MA and DPhil (1978). He held post-doctoral positions at the University of York (1978-9) and the University of Oxford (1979-80), where he also held the position of Lecturer in Inorganic Chemistry at Lincoln College. He was appointed Lecturer in Inorganic Chemistry at the University of Exeter (1980) and then promoted to Reader in Materials Chemistry (1989). He moved to become appointed Head of Chemistry at the University of Surrey in 1998, serving in that role for 5 years. He has since led research in the sustainable chemistry of materials and of electrochemical energy devices, with a particular emphasis on envisaged applications, and in 2015 he changed his status to enable research-only operation.  He is now employed as Professor (Chemical Technology) under a number of externally funded research contracts in energy, materials and nanochemistry.

In his current role, Bob is investigator in several government and industry funded research programmes and acts as mentor to junior staff members (Chemistry and other departments) in their career development, particularly in bids for external funding.   His research is deliberately multi-disciplinary, with local collaborations and supervisions involving colleagues in several departments of the Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences,

Appointments

• 2015-          Professor (Chemical Technology) (employed) and Professor Emeritus, University of Surrey.
• 1998-2015  Professor of Inorganic and Materials Chemistry, University of Surrey.
• 1990-1998  Reader in Materials Chemistry, University of Exeter.
• 1987-1990  Lecturer B, Chemistry, University of Exeter.
• 1980-1987  Lecturer, Chemistry, University of Exeter.
• 1979-1980  Research Fellow, Chemistry, University of Oxford (Lecturer, Lincoln College).
• 1977-1979  Research Fellow, Chemistry, University of York.

Senior management experience

• 1998-2003 Head of Chemistry. 
• 1998-2003 Deputy Head of School (School of Physics and Chemistry and then School of Biomedical and Molecular Sciences).

External activities

• Member of EPSRC prioritisation panels and college of reviewers.
• Chair of EPSRC prioritisation panel for UK-China Energy Program.
• Referee to a number of international journals and funding bodies (e.g. NSF, Singapore SERC, UKRI).
• Member, Christians in Science.  Lay Minister in the Church of England.

Tailored Materials Chemistry and Future Energy Solutions

Recent activities included participation in 2 multi-university EPSRC-funded Supergen Consortia aimed at renewable and sustainable energy production, storage and recovery:  the Energy Storage and Recovery Consortium and the Biological Fuel Cells Consortium (Leader of the Consortium).  Additional participation in multi-centre programs has included an EPSRC-funded (responsive mode, DSTL co-funded) 4-university consortium in Alkaline Membrane Fuel Cells and separate InnovateUK  programmes with industry and other universities. 

Current contracts include 2 on alkali metal based electrochemical batteries and supercapacitors (for electrical energy storage and recovery), 1 on microfitration using porous activated ceramic filter membranes (particularly for polluted gases, including energy technology applications) and 1 in the area of space technology; all include post-doctoral workers.  In addition, Bob co-supervises several cross-disciplinary PhD students.