Serena Corr | |
---|---|
![]() Corr speaking at the Royal Institution in 2019 | |
Alma mater | Trinity College Dublin |
Known for | Next generation battery materials |
Scientific career | |
Institutions | University College Dublin University of Sheffield University of Glasgow University of Kent University of California, Santa Barbara |
Thesis | New magnetic nanocomposite materials |
Doctoral advisor | Yurii Gun'ko |
Serena Corr is Full Professor of Materials Chemistry at University College Dublin. [1] Previous to this, she was chair in Functional Materials and Professor in Chemical and Biological Engineering at the University of Sheffield. She works on next-generation battery materials and advanced characterisation techniques for nanomaterials.
Corr grew up in Clonmel and attended Presentation Secondary School. [2] She studied chemistry at Trinity College Dublin. [3] She completed her doctoral work on magnetic structured materials (nanoparticles and quantum dots for biomedical applications) with Yurii Gun'ko. [4] She focussed on nanomaterials that could be used for biomedical applications. [5] Corr worked on several outreach programs during her PhD. She joined the University of California, Santa Barbara, working with Ram Seshadri on vanadate metal-insulator transitions from 2007 to 2009. [3] [6] She worked on rutile vanadium oxide. [6] [7] They also explored molybdenum dioxide materials that demonstrated reversible lithium storage capacity. [8]
As a student, Serena was heavily involved in the Maths Department in Trinity College Dublin, acting as a course administrator for Tim Murphy's 061 Practical Computing course[ citation needed ].
Corr was made a lecturer at the University of Kent. [3] She spent her first year writing papers and proposals for the Diamond Light Source and ISIS neutron source. [5] [9] Her early work considered ways to design nanostructured materials using organometallic precursors. [10] [11] She demonstrated that magnetic nanoparticles could be used as MRI contrast agents. [12] She held a visiting professorship at the University of Otago [ citation needed ].
Corr joined the University of Glasgow as a lecturer in 2013 and was made a professor in 2018. [3] She took part in the science communication competition I'm a Scientist, Get me out of here!. [13] In 2014 she collaborated with Eleanor Schofield to conserve the Mary Rose. [14] She developed multi-functional magnetic nano-composites that could remove the iron ions within waterlogged wood. [14]
In 2013 she edited a chapter for Nanomedicine, Magnetic Nanoparticles for Targeted Cancer Diagnosis and Therapy. [15] Her group look at new insertion electrodes for energy storage. [16] These were formed from nanoparticles, which house lithium ions that can be moved between the cathode and anode. [17] She showed that shape and size of the nanoparticles can impact their electrochemical properties. [17] She uses fast microwave processing and alkoxides for continuous chemical synthesis of next generation battery materials. [17] [18] In 2015 she was awarded a £1.2 million Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council grant to investigate the reliability of these materials in devices. [19] This involves studying the structure of electrodes and dynamics of ion movement. [20] [21] In 2017 she was made a Training Champion for the Faraday Institution, an academia – industry response to the Faraday Battery Challenge. [22] [23] Her research on battery longevity and how Lithium-ion batteries degrade was covered by The Daily Telegraph. [24]
In 2017 Corr was selected as a Royal Society of Chemistry Journal of Materials Chemistry lecturer. [3] [25] She joined the University of Sheffield as a chair in Functional Materials and Professor in Chemical and Biological Engineering in 2018, serving as head of department. [2] [26] [27] She serves on the management board of the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council doctoral training centre in energy storage. [28] She is an associate editor of Royal Society of Chemistry journal Nanoscale and the IOP Publishing journal Progress in Energy. [29] [30] In 2019 she gave talks about the chemistry of batteries at the Royal Institution. [31] In 2021 she gave evidence at House of Lords Science and Technology Select Committee for its inquiry into the role of batteries in achieving net zero. [32]
In 2023 she was the winner of the Royal Society of Chemistry's Interdisciplinary Prize. [2] In April 2024, she moved to University College Dublin as Professor of Materials Chemistry. [1] She is a member of the scientific advisory board for the Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research. [33]