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From research facilities to real-world solutions


Heriot-Watt’s history began in 1821 when the School of Arts of Edinburgh, the world’s first Mechanics Institute, was established to “address societal needs by incorporating fundamental scientific thinking and research into engineering solutions”. Almost 200 years later, the University hasn’t forgotten where it came from.


The work of Professor Mercedes Maroto-Valer, the Robert M Buchan Chair in Sustainable Energy Engineering, is an example of this excellence and innovation. Mercedes and her team develop novel chemical and engineering solutions to meet the worldwide need for cost-effective and environmentally friendly energy – with particular emphasis on clean energy technologies including carbon dioxide capture, transport, storage and utilisation.


Mercedes recently received a prestigious European Research Council Advanced Award worth €3 million to pursue frontier research into understanding how liquids and gases travel through porous rocks in the sub-surface, which is essential to the storage of captured carbon dioxide underground. This research has been recognised as an area with potentially ground-breaking impact on the future security of water, food and energy supplies.


Professor Mercedes Maroto-Valer


Robert M Buchan Chair in Sustainable Energy Engineering


Professor Rory Duncan


Head of the Institute of Biological Chemistry, Biophysics and Bioengineering


Meanwhile, Professor Rory Duncan, Head of the Institute of Biological Chemistry, Biophysics and Bioengineering (IB3) is applying advances in the physical sciences and engineering to address fundamental questions in the life sciences. Studying the mechanisms underlying diseases such as diabetes, cancer and hypertension as well as neurological disorders including dementia, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, multiple sclerosis and epilepsy, Rory’s team is perfectly executing Heriot-Watt’s ethos to make time and space for innovative thinkers from diverse backgrounds to come together to address such challenges.


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