Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) prizes are among the oldest and most respected in the world and set out to recognise “brilliance in research and innovation”.

Professor Steven Bell is the winner of the Theophilus Redwood Prize while George Burton, technical manager at CCE has been awarded the Technical Excellence Prize.

The RSC has been recognising excellence in chemistry for more than 150 years and counts 60 Nobel laureates among its previous prizewinners, including 2022 Nobel laureate, Carolyn Bertozzi and 2019 Nobel laureate, John B Goodenough. 

Professor Steven Bell, left, and George Burton, from the School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, received the only two prizes awarded this year on the island of Ireland by the Royal Society of Chemistry.

Dr Helen Pain, chief executive of the Royal Society of Chemistry, said: “The chemical sciences cover a rich and diverse collection of disciplines, from fundamental understanding of materials and the living world to applications in medicine, sustainability, technology and more.

"By working together across borders and disciplines, chemists are finding solutions to some of the world’s most pressing challenges … Their passion, dedication and brilliance are an inspiration. I extend my warmest congratulations.”

Groundbreaking science

For the 2024 awards, Prof Bell was honoured for his pioneering work in developing Raman and surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) for quantitative chemical analysis. He receives £3,000, a medal and the opportunity to complete a UK lecture tour.

His work involves determining the chemical composition of samples by focusing lasers on them and measuring the energy of the scattered light. Because this is a rapid, non-contact method of analysis, it has multiple applications, for example Prof Bell's team has used it for identifying illicit drugs or matching paint from crime scenes with evidence from suspects.

To boost the sensitivity of the method, his team adds gold or silver nanoparticles, which allows them to identify bacteria or determine the concentration of therapeutic drugs.

Prof Bell said: “I am delighted to receive this prize, mostly because it will allow me to highlight the work of my students, postdocs and collaborators who all contributed to the research that is being recognised.”

Technical excellence

Separately, technician George Burton won a 2024 award for the development of outstanding glass-blowing expertise, supporting research and supporting teaching nationally and internationally over nearly four decades. He also receives £3,000 and a trophy.

Burton manufactures scientific glassware used in research and teaching at Queen’s and elsewhere. Having an in-house service means even very complex items can be custom-made for particular projects.

It’s rare for a university to have this capability and Queen’s is the only one on the island of Ireland to do so. There are only a handful of UK universities still making their own glassware. The workshop at CCE not only caters to its own staff and students but provides glassware for external clients also, such as other universities and research centres, industry labs and health-research labs.

George Burton.

George Burton said: “I was quite taken aback when I heard I had won the prize. I was told I was nominated, then I put it to the back of my mind ... There are, I'm sure, so many good candidates out there, and I feel really privileged to have been successful.”

Gillian Riddell, technician commitment manager at Queen’s, said: “George is an exceptional, technical colleague. He not only excels in the specialist field of glass blowing, but also as an avid supporter of the Technician Commitment.

“As a member of the Queen's Technician Commitment Steering Group, he has made an invaluable contribution to the Queen's journey, particularly in the development and implementation of the Technician Apprenticeship Programme. We, as a technical community, are immensely proud that George has been awarded this honour and believe no-one deserves it more. I would also like to extend my warm congratulations to Professor Bell.”

For more on the RSC prizewinners, see below:

Professor Steven Bell - Analytical Science open Prize: Theophilus Redwood Prize (rsc.org)

George Burton - 2024 Technical Excellence Prize winner (rsc.org)

rsc.li/prizes