Citation | Lynn Gladden has revolutionised the thinking of chemical engineers by applying modern scientific methods, particularly magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), to problems of wide industrial interest: (i) the influence of the physical structure and surface chemistry of catalysts, polymers and food materials on in-use properties; (ii) multi-phase flow in porous materials, particularly fixed-bed reactors; (iii) unsteady state mass transfer, with applications in drying, microreactor design and turbulent flow. The latter applications exploit ultra-fast imaging techniques developed by Professor Gladden. These achievements are useful to industry, e.g. work on transport in polymers has aided the design and processing of controlled release methods for pharmaceutical and agrochemical systems; the work has also helped to develop new catalysts in collaboration with Synetix. EPSRC and industrial funding enabled Professor Gladden to set up a national centre to develop and apply magnetic resonance techniques to problems in chemical engineering research. This investment has been amply justified: it is internationally recognised that the results have changed thinking about processes and improved practice in a profitable way. |