New clues to fossil fuels

As fuel prices continue to rise, researchers have shown how giant channels on the ocean floor could point the way to finding new oil and gas reserves.

The research, led by Dr Ian Kane of the University of Leeds, examined how these channels, similar to rivers, but deep underwater, build up to scar the ocean floor. He found that their formation follows a very different pattern to that of rivers on land. His findings, published by the Geological Society of America, have significant implications for helping the oil and gas companies get the most out of the ground.

"The sands and gravels deposited by these sub-sea giants, have in many cases trapped valuable accumulations of fossil fuels," said Dr Kane. These fields are already being tapped by deep-water production rigs off Brazil, West Africa, the Nile Delta, Mexico and Indonesia - but knowing where to drill is an inexact science. Anything giving a clearer picture of where to find the oil and gas is very valuable."

Dr Kane used the world-leading Sorby Environmental Fluid Dynamics Laboratory at the University of Leeds to model the creation of these submarine channels.

Understanding the differences between submarine channels and rivers will enable improved geological models and enhanced oil production.

Leeds researchers reshape the future of drug discovery

University scientists have devised a new way to create the next generation of man-made molecules in a breakthrough that could revolutionise drug development.

Creating new drugs requires the completion of a complex 3D jigsaw. The shape of the drug most be right to enable it to bind to a specific disease-related protein - and this shape is determined by the core framework of the molecule.

Professor Adam Nelson, from the University's School of Chemistry, and his team have developed a process which can construct molecules in different ways. The potential of this process is enormous.

The research is funded both through Professor Nelson's EPSRC Advanced Research Fellowship and by the Wellcome Trust. It has been published in a paper with VIP status in the leading Chemistry journal Angewandte Chemie.

Transforming drug production

Scientists are under increasing pressure to come up with better, cheaper, more efficient ways of producing high quality pharmaceuticals.

With this in mind, a £1.8 million grant from the University's transformation fund has helped to establish a world-leading interdisciplinary Institute of Process Research and Development (iPRD) at the University of Leeds, which links academic creativity with industrial opportunities.

Its vision is to get Leeds engineers and chemists working alongside industry to develop novel technologies that will improve manufacturing processes and products, while at the same time reducing costs, energy and waste.

Organic chemist Dr Steve Marsden is part of the core team leading the project and is currently on a Royal Society industrial research fellowship. "We're looking to carry out fundamental research that individual companies can't afford to do on their own because it's too risky, testing speculative ideas that offer high returns if they are successful," he says.

The iPRD has formed its own 'industrial club' which has commercial partners from the pharmaceutical, agrochemicals and fine chemicals industries.

The Institute brings together a team of experts from the School of Chemistry and the School of Process, Environmental and Materials Engineering, including Professor Philip Kocienski, a Fellow of the Royal Society, Professor Kevin Roberts, a world expert in crystallisation; and industrial chemist Dr John Blacker, who is the technical director for innovation at Piramal Healthcare.

New generation chemical reactors

Unique nanostructures which respond to stimuli, such as pH, heat and light will pave the way for safer, greener and more efficient chemical reactors.

Being developed by a consortium of UK universities, the nanostructures can regulate reactions through in-situ changes to momentum, heat and mass transfer and catalyst activities. This technology will provide a step change in reactor technology for the chemical, pharmaceutical and agrochemical industries.

Professor Yulong Ding of the Institute of Particle Science and Engineering at the University of Leeds explains: "This research programme is an important step towards producing the next generation of smart "small footprint", greener reactors. The responsive reaction systems we are investigating could make the measurement systems currently used in reactors redundant."

The technique is being developed through a collaborative research programme initiated by Professor Ding together with Dr Alexei Lapkin at the University of Bath, and Professor Lee Cronin at the University of Glasgow.

The three-year programme, funded by the EPSRC, brings together leading experts in the fields of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Particle Science and Engineering.

Volcanic triggers

Scientists have exploited crystals from lavas to unravel the records of volcanic eruptions.

The team, from Durham University and the University of Leeds, studied crystal formation from a volcano in Santorini, Greece, to calculate the timescale between the trigger of volcanic activity and the volcano's eruption. They say the technique can be applied to other volcanoes - such as Vesuvius, near Naples, in Italy - and will help inform the decisions of civil defence agencies.

Worldwide, it is estimated that between 50 and 70 volcanoes erupt each year but, due to the long gaps between eruptions at most volcanoes, it is hard to understand how any individual volcano behaves. This work, funded by the NERC, will shed new light on this.

Leeds researcher Dr Dan Morgan, from the School of Earth and Environment, said: "We hope to develop these techniques further and apply them to more volcanoes worldwide.

Fifteen minute diagnosis

Testing for diseases such as cancer and multiple sclerosis could soon be as simple as using a pregnancy testing kit with new biosensor technology developed by scientists at the University of Leeds.

The technology uses antibodies to detect biomarkers - molecules in the human body which are often a marker for disease - much faster than current testing methods. It could be used in doctors' surgeries for more accurate referral to consultants, and in hospitals for rapid diagnosis. Tests have shown that the biosensors can detect a wide range of analytes, including biomarkers present in prostate and ovarian cancer, stroke, multiple sclerosis, heart disease and fungal infections.

A £2.7 million European collaboration of researchers and commercial partners enabled the development of this technology. The Euro project, called ELISHA, was co-ordinated by Dr Paul Millner and managed by Dr Tim Gibson, both from the Faculty of Biological Sciences.

Quenching the world's thirst

The devastating effects of extreme weather events - along with pollution of rivers and aquifers - have become more common throughout the world, reducing humanity's already scarce freshwater sources for drinking, crop irrigation, hydro-electricity and industrial production.

A new interdisciplinary research group called water@leeds will focus on the impact of climate change on water processes. It will also investigate more efficient, sustainable ways to capture, store, treat, use and recycle H2O.

Led by Professor Joseph Holden, water@leeds pools the talents of more than 54 water science experts across five faculties and has received £1 million from the University's transformation fund, matched by equal funding from faculties.

Over the next five years, water@leeds aims to secure an additional £10 million in new research funding over and above its normal grant income level which is already very strong. It will seek to attract this income from major funders such as the United Nations, the World Bank and the global water industry.